Replacing three players that made up what was referred to as the best offensive line in the nation last year will be a daunting challenge for Alabama as it enters the season.
Alabama’s offensive line will have to replace dynamic and experienced players like Chance Warmack, D.J. Fluker and Barrett Jones.
Right guard Anthony Steen has stepped up as a leader on the offensive line.
“It’s a big challenge,” Steen said. “Everybody was saying we were the best offensive line in the country. It’s going to be difficult making our own way, but I think we’re looking forward to it.”
Steen and left tackle Cyrus Kouandjio are the only returning starters.
That is where Ryan Kelly, Austin Shepherd and Arie Kouandjio come in.
Kelly has taken over the duties of playing center, while Shepherd has taken most of the first-team snaps at right tackle this spring. Arie Kouandjio has been playing at left guard so far, lining up beside his older brother, Cyrus Kouandjio.
Arie, Shepherd and Kelly worked together last year with the second-team offense and built a reputation among the team for their efforts in practice.
“Last year we got the nickname Touchdown Twos,” Kelly said, “it was coined for us for a little bit,”
“That was something we joked around about when we went in because that was our chance to shine because we couldn’t get the playing time,” Shepherd said. “So when we went in in the fourth quarter or something, we’d joke around. Touchdown Twos, try to score, have fun with it. It was just kind of a joke.”
Kelly’s demeanor toward practice and his commitment to the program is no secret to his teammates. He enters his sophomore season of football with the task of replacing one of the most decorated players in Alabama history, Barrett Jones.
Cyrus said Kelly approaches everything with a business-like attitude, much like another Jones did at center.
“He’s the most professional person I know,” Cyrus said. “He’s really serious, and that’s the perfect center right there. I trust him 100 percent. I trust him as much as I trusted Barrett Jones last year.”
Shepherd, unlike Kelly, has approached the idea of competing for a first-team job with a more laid-back approach.
“I’m pretty excited about it,” Shepherd said. “I’ve dreamed about it as a little kid, trying to play with the best running backs in the nation, pancake some people. I’m just trying to have some fun.”
Shepherd appreciates the things he learned from waiting behind Fluker for his time to start at right tackle.
“I had a great guy in front of me, D.J. Fluker,” Shepherd said. “It’s not too bad because you can learn a lot from that kind of guy. Of course, he’s going to be a first-round draft pick so I’ve learned a lot of things from him. Waiting wasn’t a problem because it probably helped me develop.”
Arie has also been awaiting his opportunity to appear in the starting lineup, after injuries to both knees plagued his career. He is finally healthy enough to compete.
He has been battling to be the starter at left guard, replacing Warmack, and has seen most of the first-team snaps this spring. “We’re going to keep building,” Arie said. “Keep stacking those bricks.”
The Touchdown Twos are starting to mesh with Steen and Cyrus, and others are beginning to take notice.
“I like the way the offensive line is progressing,” head coach Nick Saban said. “They obviously need to continue to improve, but Arie has really had a good spring and done a nice job at left guard. Kellen Williams continues to make improvement, and he’s playing center and guard. Austin Shepherd and Leon [Brown] both are making good progress at right tackle. Some of the other younger players are making progress as well. Ryan Kelly has really done a good job at center.
“That part of it, I feel like is taking shape,” Saban said. “I think we have some other parts of our team that we really have to be concerned about, trying to get some depth created, but I kind of like the way the offensive line is coming along.”
