The 2010 Replacements for Alabama's Departing Football Players, No. 7

Mark Barron will be returning at one safety and Justin Woodall, who filled the other safety position, is leaving for the NFL.

However, Robby Green can and will step up to see if he can finally fulfill his promise, once the load is squarely placed on his shoulders.

Green already has some experience, and at 6'0" and 180 pounds, he’s big enough and certainly fast enough to take the place of 6'2", 220 pound Justin Woodall. Green is faster than the person he’s replacing and in the secondary, speed is life.

Green is a junior from New Orleans and has had a few years now to learn both Saban’s system and expectation levels. He has great athletic ability, but has had moments he’d rather forget as well.

Those are moments the coaches try and help players get over. You can’t stop every throw, you can’t cover every man every play. If Green can take his athletic ability and forget those bad plays, he’ll more than make up for the bad plays with some sensational ones, which will become more common as he gains more experience.

Nick Saban knows defensive backs, and sees huge potential in Green. He's said earlier this year, "Robby has great closing speed and it's just a question of playing time to get him into playing up to his potential."

Backing him up will be Robert Lester, a first team All-State defensive back from Foley, Alabama. He measures up at 6'2" and about 213 pounds and is another star in the making.

Making an impact on coaches means making an impact on opposing players, and Lester secured a spot on the weak kickoff coverage team.

"I had to be more physical on the field and show them that I really wanted to play," Lester said. "Running down full-speed on kickoffs and making plays that let them know that I wanted to get out there and start playing."

And he did look good when he covered receivers in mop up play as well. By the end of the year, he was solidly on the second team.

This is yet another one of those positions where the replacements are actually players one wants to see on the field and who have more athletic ability than their predecessors. Once the experience is there, these young players should really prove to be upgrades.