AJ McCarron calls out Deontae Lawson, Ryan Williams for lack of effort

After the Crimson Tide’s 31-17 loss to Florida State on Saturday, college football fans are questioning the culture within Alabama‘s football program. They aren’t the only ones. On a recent episode of THE DYNASTY podcast, former Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron called out the team’s lack of effort.

“There was no passion, there was no fight, no dog, and especially from the guys that I thought were returning that would show that,” McCarron said. “Ryan Williams, Deontae Lawson — I did not see that fire. I thought Deontae Lawson would be an absolute dog. He was nonexistent in this game. I’m just being up front, and I love the kid.

“Hell, he graduated from the same school my kids go to. I’ve watched him for a long time. I don’t know if he’s just slow coming back from the ACL, and I’ve had that. And trust me, it’s not easy. But he played slow. He looked out of shape. He did not play with a reckless abandonment, like I thought he would.”

Wide receiver Ryan Williams and linebacker Deontae Lawson are widely regarded as two of Alabama’s best players. However, the pair were lackluster in the Crimson Tide’s season opener against the Seminoles.

In the loss, Williams recorded five catches for just 30 yards and failed to score a touchdown. It was a disappointing outing for the sophomore, who averaged over 60 receiving yards per game last season and was an All-SEC First-Team selection.

Williams left the game in the fourth quarter after absorbing a brutal hit while running a crossing route across the middle of the field. He suffered a concussion and his status is currently day-to-day.

On the other side of the ball, Lawson finished the game with six sacks. However, he didn’t record a single tackle for loss or sack. As McCarron mentioned, Lawson is returning from a torn ACL that he suffered in November last season.

Nonetheless, as a defensive leader, Lawson is expected to establish a standard for his fellow Crimson Tide members. Evidently, Lawson understands this and is working to ensure Alabama doesn’t make the same mistakes again.

“D-Law said it best when he was talking,” Alabama QB Ty Simpson said after the loss. “It starts with the little things. We got to make sure we finish through the line during flex, we pick up after ourselves in the lunch room, we make sure our locker is clean. We make sure we go to class not one minute late. It’s just little things like that.

“… We can’t be happy with just one eight-minute drive and just can’t be happy because we’re Alabama. We have to earn this. We’re going to earn it. We’re gonna make sure we go back to work and we’re going to practice our tails off and work our tails off to get this team and everybody right.”