Alabama player exposes his goals for Tide’s DL in the fall by saying…

Alabama player exposes his goals for Tide’s DL in the fall: “I want teams to fear us.”

Alabama football supporters want more action than talk, but will it come this fall?

Last week, a former five-star Alabama football player shared his expectations for the team’s defensive line on The Bama Standard. Damon Payne, Jr., a Michigan native, entered Alabama’s 2022 recruiting class as one of the nation’s top interior defensive lineman. In 2023, he had nine tackles and one tackle for loss, helping Alabama win the Southeastern Conference Championship and advance to the College Football Playoffs. Payne appears to be a marquee leader, with Justin Eboigbe leaving for the NFL Draft. Alabama also lost Isaiah Hastings and Anquin Barnes via the NCAA transfer site.

Alabama’s new head coach, Kalen DeBoer, has retained Freddie Roach and promoted him to assistant coach.

He continues to work with defensive linemen, and his team is prepared to send a statement next fall.

“The expectation is through the roof with us,” Payne stated of Alabama’s defensive line. “We want teams to fear us when we cross that boundary. We want teams to avoid playing against our defensive line.”

Alabama fans haven’t seen an aggressive defensive lineman since Quinnen Williams.

The 2016 unit, which included Jonathan Allen, Da’Ron Payne, Williams, A’Shawn Robinson, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Jarran Reed, was the last to strike fear into opponents’ hearts. Payne mentioned Jordan Renaud, Edric Hill, Hunter Osborne, and James Smith as young players that are ready to step up. We’ll see how they do in spring practice.