Alabama RB stresses importance of filling roles on special teams

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Players have competed all offseason long for one of the 22 starting spots on Alabama’s 2023 team. But on a roster of 85 scholarship players, there will be plenty that lose their respective battles and either serve as rotational pieces or backups this season.

There is another way to get on the field for the Crimson Tide, however, as senior running back Roydell Williams pointed out. He stressed the importance of filling roles on special teams.

“Like Coach said, there’s 41 spots. If you want to play on the University of Alabama football team, that’s a way to start,” Williams said. “That’s why I kind of made my impact on special teams and found out how important it is.

“In high school, I really didn’t play much special teams. But when I got here I realized how important it was, how impactful it was for field position or how to get points here, how we get points there. Just being an important player in that position on special teams.”

For those at home, Williams was likely referring to the four main special teams units – kickoff, kickoff return, punt and punt return. Eliminating the kicker, punter and long snapper, that leaves 41 spots up for grabs, although certain players, like Williams, could fill multiple roles.

Alabama head coach Nick Saban described Williams as a good special teams player in addition to a good runner. Last season, Williams was a top contributor in the third phase of the game and finished with six tackles in addition to being UA’s third and short-yardage running back.

Position groups like running back, wide receiver, defensive back and linebacker are used a lot to block and cover punts and kickoffs, and younger guys at those spots can often get on the field early if they are capable special teams players. Tailback Jam Miller is a prime example of that. With four experienced players ahead of him last year, Miller was still able to log minutes in all 13 games by contributing on all four special teams units as a true freshman.

When asked about how to juggle a loaded running back room, Saban brought up teams.

“Everybody has to show how they can be used in a positive way,” said Saban earlier in fall camp. “That’s a position where guys have been really good special teams players. If they can contribute on special teams, as well as, we’ve had as many as three guys have a strong input into how they’ve been able to impact the team at one time. That’s a position where we can do it.

“Hopefully, we’ll be able to stay healthy at that position, but there’s a competition. And the best guys are going to get the most opportunities and those guys all can contribute in a positive way.”

Saban has previously discussed the returning specialists, Will Reichard and James Burnip, as well as some of the top options in the return game ahead of Alabama’s upcoming season. But he already expressed the need for the 41 players around them to play well in the fall.

“James has gotten a little better each year in terms of his consistency,” Saban said. “He’s got a really strong leg, but he’s gotten a little more consistent, so his bad kicks aren’t as bad and his good kicks are even better. But he’s more consistent all the way around. And Will’s been as good a college kicker over the last 2-3 years as anybody could ever ask for. We’re really glad to have both those guys back.

“I think it’s gonna be an important part of – you’ve gotta have great special teams, and sometimes people just look at the specialist and they evaluate the special teams. So our specialists should be really, really good, so we’ve gotta build really, really good special teams around them so that that can be a real asset for us this season.”

Not a member, Alabama fans? Join BOL today!

Have you subscribed to BamaOnLine.com yet? You can sign up now for a year’s worth of premium access for $74.99! Or you can also gain monthly access for just $1! Get access to premium articles and nuggets covering Alabama sports and recruiting content and also join thousands of Crimson Tide fans on the BOL Round Table message board! CLICK HERE!