Can these 3 youngsters blossom and help make Alabama football's offensive line one of the SEC's top units?
on its offensive line for the 2026 season. Barring further transfer portal additions, which would certainly be possible, Kalen DeBoer and company will be heavily reliant on a group of rising sophomores and redshirt freshman.
However, all of those players come with an excellent pedigree, and one even played a major role for the Crimson Tide in 2025. As the offseason continues, here’s a look at which youngsters could be big for UA up front next year.This is the most obvious one. Carroll is the one remaining starter from Alabama’s 2025 season and figures to play a huge roll in the Crimson Tide’s 2026 success. Carroll joined up as a freshman in last year’s recruiting class, initially sitting behind Wilkin Formby at right tackle. As the year went, he got more and more playing time, eventually moving into the starting role. “He kept flashing in practice when he’d go against our defense and go against our top guys,” offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic said before the Rose Bowl. “And he was doing some good things and so we started giving him more reps each game, and when he got out there, he did it. He did a nice job. He showed that he could play. He showed the moment wasn’t too big and we just felt like he brought something to the table that maybe some of the other guys didn’t have.” Carroll had his struggles, especially early. But by year’s end, he was playing well, drawing praise from coaches and teammates. For 2026, he’ll move into a new role. If Carroll can gel with a new set of starters, he could continue growing into one of the SEC’s top offensive linemen, after earning freshman all-conference honors in Year 1.Opposite Carroll, Alabama will have to figure out something new. Kadyn Proctor was a stalwart at the position for three seasons, after taking over the starting role as a true freshman in 2023, but he left a year early to enter the NFL Draft. The Crimson Tide is still portal shopping, but the answer could already be on the roster. Lloyd played a few snaps in 2025, seeing action in five games, but if he could become a starter as a sophomore, and perform well, it would be a massive development. “So you got this big body,” DeBoer said of the 6-foot-7, 318-pound Lloyd when he initially signed. “Then you got this athlete and you’ve got a mindset. I don’t know if there’s ever been a time where I haven’t talked to him — and I know there is — but where I haven’t either called him or he’s texted me and I texted back, ‘What are you doing?’ And it involves a workout that he just finished or that you’re heading to. So you just love that about him that he just loves the grind.” Lloyd was a four-star prospect out of high school. The 247Sports composite ranked him as the No. 7 offensive tackle in the 2025 class.Haywood’s history with Alabama has been interesting. As a five-star prospect out of high school, he was committed to the Crimson Tide for a time. Then, he flipped to Michigan and played his freshman season. The Wolverines were thrown into chaos after the season though, when head coach Sherrone Moore was fired for cause after UM alleged he carried on an inappropriate relationship with a staffer.See Kalen DeBoer’s final college football rankings for 2025Haywood jumped into the portal, then opted to join up with the Crimson Tide. The redshirt freshman could play an intriguing role this coming season. The 6-foot-5, 315-pound Haywood can play both guard and tackle. With all of Alabama’s starting guards gone, he could make an impact inside this year. At the very least, the Texas native’s versatility will make him an interesting depth piece. But if he makes strides on the field, Haywood could blossom into a full-time starter.Matt Stahl covers University of Alabama sports for AL.com. He joined AL.com in July of 2023. He previously covered University of Missouri athletics for the Columbia Daily Tribune and started his career covering...
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