Alabama's picks for SEC Media Days attendees sends strong message to the rest of college football
SEC Media Days brings the start of a brand new college football season. Starting on Monday, SEC teams will begin to gather at the Omni Atlanta Hotel at Centennial Park with Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide set to go on Wednesday, July 16.All 16 programs will have three player representatives, in addition to […]
SEC Media Days brings the start of a brand new college football season. Starting on Monday, SEC teams will begin to gather at the Omni Atlanta Hotel at Centennial Park with Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide set to go on Wednesday, July 16.
All 16 programs will have three player representatives, in addition to the head coach. Last year, Alabama elected to bring two offensive players (quarterback Jalen Milroe and offensive lineman Tyler Booker) and one defensive player (defensive back Malachi Moore). This year, it's the opposite with two players from the Crimson Tide defense and just one on offense.
Alabama is bringing offensive lineman Kadyn Proctor, defensive lineman Tim Keenan III and off-ball linebacker Deontae Lawson.
All three have been multi-year starters for the Tide. In fact, they're the three most experienced players on the roster. Lawson's 1,759 career snaps are far-and-away the most from a returning Alabama defender while Keenan brings the second-most (976). Meanwhile, Proctor has played 1,450 snaps while in Tuscaloosa, which also leads by a wide margin.
It's not necessarily about the experience factor though.
While that's impressive and unsurprising, fans needs to be paying attention to the types of players who are attending. Two trench guys with a second-level defender. If you can believe it, this is the first time Alabama has brought both an offensive and defensive linemen to SEC Media Days since 2012 when Barrett Jones and Damion Square were joined by Michael Williams.
- 2024: QB Jalen Milroe, OL Tyler Booker, DB Malachi Moore
- 2023: OL JC Latham, CB Kool-Aid McKinstry, LB Dallas Turner
- 2022: LB Will Anderson, DB Jordan Battle, QB Bryce Young
- 2021: DL Phidarian Mathis, WR John Metchie III
- 2019: WR Jerry Jeudy, LB Dylan Moses, QB Tua Tagovailoa
- 2018: RB Damien Harris, LB Anfernee Jennings, OL Ross Pierschbacher
- 2017: OL Bradley Bozeman, DB Minkah Fitzpatrick, WR Calvin Ridley
- 2016: DL Jonathan Allen, TE OJ Howard, DB Eddie Jackson
- 2015: LB Reggie Ragland, RB Kenyan Drake, OL Ryan Kelly
- 2014: DB Landon Collins, WR Amari Cooper, WR Christion Jones
- 2013: QB AJ McCarron, LB CJ Mosley, OL Anthony Steen
- 2012: OL Barrett Jones, DL Damion Square, TE Michael Williams
That 2012 season is the only time Alabama had both an offensive and defensive lineman representing them at Media Days during the Nick Saban era, too. Wild to think about, right? To me, this is a great sign heading into the season.
A team's top veteran leaders are typically the ones honored with an invite from their head coach. Last year, the easy choices were Milroe, Booker and Moore. Those guys were given the most credit for holding the roster together after DeBoer was tasked with replacing Saban, and they all ended up being NFL talents.
If Alabama wants to get back to the College Football Playoff and push for its first national title since 2020, trench play has to improve, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Yes, the game has changed drastically over the years, but the most recent national champions all had one thing in common: quality play in the trenches. That holds true for Ohio State, Michigan, Georgia in 2021 and 2022 and Alabama in 2020.
Keenan isn't viewed quite as favorably in NFL draft circles as Proctor, but they're both considered Day 1-2 talents. The same holds true for Lawson, who's been the field general of Alabama's defense in each of the last two seasons. Losing him against Oklahoma was a massive blow, but the hope is that he'll be back to a full-go by the time the season opener rolls around against Florida State.
One other thing to note: the Crimson Tide may collectively have the largest group of player attendees at SEC Media Days. Proctor still sits at a cool 6-foot-7, 360 pounds while Keenan stands 6-2, 325. Obviously, Lawson (6-2, 230) hurts the average a bit, but probably not when compared to other teams.
Included below is a complete list of the other SEC athletes who will be attending.
2025 SEC Media Days Athlete Attendees
Alabama
Tim Keenan III, DL, Senior
Deontae Lawson, LB, Senior
Kadyn Proctor, OL, Junior
Arkansas
Cam Ball, DL, Senior
Taylen Green, QB, Senior
Xavian Sorey Jr., LB, Senior
Auburn
Jackson Arnold, QB, Junior
Keldric Faulk, DL, Junior
Connor Lew, OL, Junior
Florida
Caleb Banks, DL, Senior
Jake Slaughter, OL, Senior
DJ Lagway, QB, Sophomore
Georgia
CJ Allen, LB, Junior
Daylen Everette, DB, Senior
Gunner Stockton, QB, Junior
Kentucky
Alex Afari Jr., LB, Senior
Jordan Lovett, DB, Senior
Josh Kattus, TE, Senior
LSU
Chris Hilton Jr., WR, Senior
Garrett Nussmeier, QB, Senior
Whit Weeks, LB, Junior
Ole Miss
TJ Dottery, LB, Junior
Cayden Lee, WR, Junior
Austin Simmons, QB, Sophomore
Mississippi State
Blake Shapen, QB, Graduate
Isaac Smith, S, Junior
Brenen Thompson, WR, Senior
Missouri
Daylan Carnell, S, Graduate
Connor Tollison, C, Graduate
Zion Young, DE, Senior
Oklahoma
John Mateer, QB, Junior
Robert Spears-Jennings, DB, Senior
R Mason Thomas, DL, Senior
South Carolina
LaNorris Sellers, QB, Sophomore
DQ Smith, DB, Senior
Nick Barrett, DT, Senior
Tennessee
Arion Carter, LB, Junior
Miles Kitselman, TE, Senior
Bryson Eason, DT, Senior
Texas
Anthony Hill Jr, LB, Junior
Arch Manning, QB, Sophomore
Michael Taaffe, DB, Senior
Texas A&M
Will Lee III, DB, Senior
Ar’maj Reed-Adams, OL, Graduate
Taurean York, LB, Junior
Vanderbilt
Randon Fontenette, S/OLB, Junior
Martel Hight, DB, Junior
Diego Pavia, QB, Graduate
