The 2010 Replacements for Alabama's departing football players, Chapter 8

Kareem Jackson went with Rolando McClain to the pros, and they skipped their senior season at Alabama. Both did so with the knowledge that their departures could not be overcome by the talent pool that Head Coach Nick Saban had assembled.

Jackson's cornerback role should be adequately filled by a bevy of good talent that has either been tested already in the SEC or has athletic ability.

Jackson's backup last year was Chris Rogers, who is also leaving after his senior season was completed. That leaves Dre Kirkpatrick, one of the hottest defensive backs to come out of high school.

If you're wondering how the replacement stacks up against the replaced—talent-wise— there's little comparison. Kirkpatrick has gifts that Jackson didn't, but Jackson had the experience. In the SEC, speed is life, but experience is also necessary.

Physically, Jackson is 5'11" and 192 pounds; Kirkpatrick is 6'3" and 188 pounds. Kirkpatrick's height means he can man up on the tallest receivers in the SEC and lock them down.

No one is going to blow by him, either. His speed is top-flight SEC, and his 30-inch vertical on top of that frame is going to make it hard to throw over his head to a defender.

"There's always room to improve," Kirkpatrick said, "but I feel like Coach Saban has given me a great opportunity to learn better techniques and teach me more, get me in the film room. So everything is going well for me my freshman year...It's been positive. Everybody tells you how (Saban) is going to yip-yap with the freshmen. But he's been real positive with me, and he always tries to take my side."

This is an SEC superstar just waiting to shine. Along with incoming freshman Demarcus Milliner, who we'll talk about later, these two could be the future of the lockdown, cover-tight defense Saban loves so much for years to come.

Backing up Kirkpatrick is a question mark at this point. It may be Phelon Jones, a 6', 190-pound transfer from LSU. Coming out of high school, he was the 10th-best cornerback in the nation, according to Rivals. He has two years of eligibility left.

At LSU as a freshman, he saw the field a lot in the nickel package; for all intents and purposes, he was their Marquis Johnson. That experience could cement him some playing time here.

Jones wanted more playing time and came to Alabama. He may not see a starting role, but he is a very solid backup. After sitting out last year, this could be his year to show that he could either be a great backup or take Johnson's role for his own.

Although Johnson was not technically one of the four defensive starting backs, he played more often than not. That could be Jones' role this year.

So if Jones is a nickel back, who else could back up Kirkpatrick? If Milliner does not lock down a starting job, it could be John Fulton, even though he's an enrollee freshman. At 6'1" and 184 pounds, he comes to Tuscaloosa from Manning, S.C., where he was a four- star prospect.

No one questions his size, his 36-inch vertical leap, his sizzling speed, or his ball skills, but he still has some agility problems and needs to learn some footwork skills. He's almost sure to see some special teams play and could see the field in a backup role as a freshman.

If Kirkpatrick can stand up as tall as his potential, this replacement will outshine the original, and Alabama will only be that much tougher a riddle for opponents to solve.

If you liked this story Chapters 1-3 talk about the defensive linemen, Chapters 4-6 talk about the linebackers and 7-9 talk about the defensive backs. They are all on my site. Thanks.