Alabama Football: Crimson Tide's Defensive Line Can Be Historically Good in 2015

With spring practice getting underway on March 13, Bleacher Report will break down where Alabama stands at each position group heading in, players to watch and what needs to be done. Next up: the defensive line.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Nick Saban tried to brush off the topic last spring. This year, he won’t be able to.

“Nick, you have what appears to be quality depth along the defensive line. Just wondering how you would access that group thus far?” Saban was asked last March 31.

The Crimson Tide returned Brandon Ivory at nose tackle, were building on the freshman seasons of Jonathan Allen and A’Shawn Robinson and had just signed D.J. Pettway and Jarran Reed from the JUCO ranks to enroll early. On paper, the reporter said, this looked like a top-notch group.

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“On paper? What it looks like on paper?” Saban said with a sarcastic grin before putting a palm directly on his face. “We’ve never seen these guys play or seen them take on an SEC lineman or anything like that. But 'It appears?' I like that—‘It appears.’ So that’s how we form public opinion because something ‘appears’ that way so we make it that way and then everybody believes it that way.”

Alabama finished the season No. 1 in adjusted line yards, per Football Outsiders, and the unit ranked in the top 10 in six of Football Outsiders’ nine defensive line metrics. It was a good year for, yes, a deep group that was able to sub out frequently, replenishing the line with fresh and talented bodies.

And with the Crimson Tide returning all but one player from that group that was so improved last year, expectations should be through the roof for Alabama’s big men up front in 2015.

When Saban knows he has a good player or position group—or even a good team—he usually won’t oblige some of the praise-heaping from reporters.

In 2011 and 2012, Saban knew he had good teams. But he didn’t necessarily want his team to know that he thought they were that good, especially in the media, so you saw several trademark Saban eruptions before winning two straight BCS National Championships.

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In 2014, Saban knew his team would need to fight tooth and nail for a playoff spot. You heard him praise his players for their togetherness and teamwork all season, and the year ended with a convincing loss to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl.

That’s what happened with his defensive line. He likely saw the potential in the group. Anyone could. But he didn’t want his players getting big heads and resting on laurels. That’s the opposite approach to his famous “Process.”

This year, it will be even harder for him to deny those accolades.

Gone from that group is only Ivory, a nose tackle who started just three games due to the fact that offensive philosophies in the SEC have dictated that finesse linemen who possess speed are preferred over pure gap-cloggers.

But everyone else is back. Allen and Robinson are now juniors, both fully formed players from their freshman seasons that lit the SEC on fire two years ago. And Reed and Pettway—the two JUCOs from last year—are both back on a front that will have as good of a top four as anyone in the country. All four could be top-half picks in the 2016 draft should they choose to come out.

And behind them there is an embarrassment of riches.

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Former 5-star and No. 1-rated Rivals prospect Da’Shawn Hand and 4-star Josh Frazier will be sophomores after a year of spot duty under their belts. Alabama signed 5-star defensive tackle Daron Payne from Birmingham. And if 2015 JUCO Jonathan Taylor can stay out of off-field trouble, he and Payne could both be impact players, replacing Ivory in the middle in run situations.

Even further back on the depth chart there’s Dalvin Tomlinson, who was No. 10 on the team in tackles for loss with 10 in 2014, and Darren Lake, who is developing into a solid nose tackle.

The depth chart at defensive line reads like an all-star team.

In Alabama’s system, the linemen aren’t necessarily relied on to get to the quarterback. That duty largely falls on pass-rushing outside linebackers such as Xzavier Dickson, who led the team with nine sacks last year.

But against the run, and in collapsing the pocket, Alabama’s defensive line did so as well as anyone in the country last year. With almost everyone coming back, it should be in for a massive 2015.

Not even Nick Saban will be able to deny that.

Unless otherwise noted, all recruiting rankings courtesy of 247Sports.

Marc Torrence is the Alabama lead writer for Bleacher Report. All quotes and reporting were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Follow on Twitter @marctorrence.