Alabama’s recent defensive decisions look even worse after a true freshman receives midseason All-American honors
On3 named Alabama Crimson Tide linebacker Xavier Griffin to its 2026 Midseason True Freshman All-America team, and anyone who has watched him this fall saw it coming. The numbers behind his season tell a stranger story.
On3 released its 2026 Midseason True Freshman All-America team, and Alabama Crimson Tide linebacker Xavier Griffin earned a spot on the squad. For a true freshman playing linebacker in the SEC, that is a strong honor, and he deserves it.
There just happens to be one problem. Griffin has been impactful for Alabama in the snaps he has received. Yet for some reason, the Crimson Tide aren’t putting him on the field nearly enough, and that is especially true in the games that matter most.
Xavier Griffin snap counts
- 25 snaps against South Carolina
- 5 snaps against Georgia
Xavier Griffin has earned more playing time
Go back and watch the Mississippi State game. Then turn on the South Carolina tape. In both, Griffin looks like one of the most disruptive players on the Alabama defense.
Mike Rodak posted Alabama’s freshman snap counts on X after the South Carolina game, and Griffin led all Crimson Tide freshmen on defense with 25 snaps. That is the kind of workload a freshman of his caliber should be seeing on a weekly basis.
Then came the biggest game of the year. Rodak posted the freshman snap counts again after the Georgia game, and Griffin played just five snaps against the Bulldogs. That is near;y 1/5 of his workload against South Carolina, in a game where Alabama needed every playmaker it could find. Griffin also didn’t play a ton against the Vols.
What is the disconnect for the Crimson Tide?
Quite frankly, I don’t understand it. Nobody who watches Alabama needed On3 to release a midseason All-America list to realize how good Griffin has been. The tape already told that story.
When Griffin plays more snaps, as he did against South Carolina and Mississippi State, the defense has another element to it. He brings explosiveness, he brings pass rush, and he creates tackles for loss. Without him, the Alabama defense simply doesn’t have those things in the same way.
Yet when the Crimson Tide get to the biggest games on the schedule, he disappears from the rotation. He played five snaps against Georgia and barely saw the field against Tennessee. Those are the exact matchups where a defense needs a spark, and Alabama kept one of its best sparks on the sideline.
So what needs to change? I’m not exactly sure. Maybe the coaching staff trusts its veterans more in high-leverage games, or maybe there are pieces of Griffin’s game it still wants to see develop. Whatever the reasoning, the results on the field make a strong case for a bigger role.
Xavier Griffin’s All-America nod shows the path he is on
The good news is that Griffin is a midseason true freshman All-American. That is a big deal, and it shows the path he could be on over the next few years in Tuscaloosa.
Recognition from On3 is nice, but it doesn’t win football games. Alabama needs to get its dogs on the field if it wants to win games in the SEC, and Griffin has proven he is one of them. The Crimson Tide’s coaching staff needs to stop saving him for the easier weeks.
