With rain pouring in Tuscaloosa, Alabama practiced inside the Hank Crisp Indoor Facility on Tuesday Aug. 6 for the Crimson Tide’s first practice in full pads. This was Alabama’s fifth consecutive day of preseason practice.

Head coach Nick Saban said he was happy to see his players donning their full gear.

“It’s always exciting, the first day in pads,” Saban said. “I remember back when I played, it didn’t matter how much summer conditioning you did, no matter how practices you had, the first day in pads, if you’re a football player, is always something that is a little bit special.”

Senior linebacker C.J. Mosley said the first day in full pads was not a big transition for his team. The Crimson Tide wore shoulder pads and shorts over the weekend and didn’t stray away from contact.

“The only difference is you’re just putting on pants,” Mosley said. “We always have a physical mentality on defense. We’re out there ready to go whether we’re in pants or not.”

Alabama was able to escape the heat and humidity on Tuesday, something that Saban said benefited the team in terms of its intensity.

Saban has mentioned a lack of mental intensity since the start of fall camp but said the change of scenery may have sparked something among the players.

“It was a really good practice for us today to go inside and give us a little break from the heat,” he said. “We had much better mental intensity, players were focusing better, paying better attention to detail.”

One thing that may have heightened the team’s focus is the quality guest speakers that have made appearances on campus in recent days.

Former NFL head coach Herm Edwards and former two-time Super Bowl champion linebacker Ray Lewis have met with the Crimson Tide players the past two nights to teach the players valuable life lessons.

Saban said the two speakers have been some of the best to meet with players during his tenure.

“We’ve had two of the best guest speakers the last two nights that our players could ever hope for: Ray Lewis and Herm Edwards,” Saban said. “Both guys talked a lot about what it takes to be a man but really that most things that you’ll regret the most is if you don’t take advantage of your gifts, be all you can be, what the difference between being good and being great is.”

Mosley was also impressed with the speakers, especially Lewis. Mosley was able to sit down one-on-one with Lewis to pick the former star linebacker’s mind for advice for the upcoming season.

“For me, that was one of my role models, my idols growing up as a linebacker and as a football player,” Mosley said. “But just to have him here was the biggest honor.”

Alabama returns to camp for two Wednesday practices at 9:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Other notes from the Tide’s Tuesday indoor practice:

• Sophomore wide receiver Amari Cooper was limited in practice but still dressed in full pads. The limitation doesn’t seem to be anything serious. 

• Sophomore linebacker Dillon Lee was spotted working with the Kirby Smart and the inside linebackers. Lee had been practicing with the outside linebackers up until this point. 

• One player – other than the quarterbacks – wore a black no-contact jersey. Walk-on wide receiver Jeremy Watson practiced for the first time on Tuesday without pads. The senior from Tuscaloosa County High School was not listed in the original 105-man roster, but he can be found in the team’s media guide alongside his brother, Jared Watson.