Kalen DeBoer provides injury update on freshman who’s trending towards playing time on offense
On Sunday, Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer provided an injury update on one of the Crimson Tide’s most talented freshmen.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama’s season opener against Florida State is less than four weeks, and the Crimson Tide are doing their best to maintain a healthy roster in preparation for the road showdown against the Seminoles.
One player who’s been dealing with some sort of lower-body injury is freshman wide receiver Lotzeir Brooks. On Saturday, BamaOnLine reported that the pass-catcher was at practice in a black, no-contact jersey while wearing a boot on his left foot. Not only that, but he was also riding the stationary bike on the side.
Then on Sunday, we reported that Brooks wasn’t at practice — or at least not during the portion that’s open to the media at the beginning. That prompted a question to head coach Kalen DeBoer following Alabama’s fourth fall camp practice, and he said the issue isn’t considered a long-term concern.
“It won’t be anything long-term or anything like that,” DeBoer told reporters. “So it’ll just be a little bit of recovery here. I don’t know if it’s day-to-day, but it’s not gonna be something that’s extended.”
Obviously, you want your true freshmen out there getting as many reps as possible in fall camp, especially when he’s trending towards having some sort of role in Year 1. But with that being said, at least this isn’t something that’s going to hold Brooks out for very long.
Alabama’s projected starters at wide receiver are Ryan Williams, Germie Bernard and Isaiah Horton. You’ve also got returning players such as Rico Scott, Jalen Hale, Cole Adams and maybe even Jaylen Mbakwe who are expected to be in the mix for snaps this fall. So in other words, depth still isn’t a concern at the position, but you’d still like to see Brooks back as soon as possible.
This is a guy who, despite all the other options in that room, has the ability contribute as a first-year player, whether that be on offense or as a return man on special teams. We primarily view him as a backup in the slot, but he has the ability to play out on the perimeter too. Hopefully, he’s back soon.
