Alabama Football: BCS Championship Starting Line Up and Depth Chart by Position

Larry Burton (Syndicated Writer) No game this season is going to wind up being as important to the Crimson Tide as the next one.

Clearly, these are the best two teams in all of college football, and the game is much more thn just the two best teams settling the argument over which is best.

It comes down to a man-on-man contest in every position and just one failure from just one of those people can be the difference.

Here is the projected lineup and depth chart for this game based on practice reports, the health of each participant and more.

Offensive Line

Left Tackle

Barrett Jones - Jr. -  6'5'', 311 pounds, special note: Back, finally healthy again with good ankle

Tyler Love - Jr. - 6'6'', 307 pounds

Left Guard

Chance Warmack - Jr. -  6'3'', 320 pounds, special note: Gets better each game.

John Michael Boswell - Sr. - 6'5'', 300 pounds

Center

William Vlachos - Sr. - 6'1'', 295 pounds, special note: Final game in Crimson, stellar career.

Kellen Williams - Soph. - 6'3'', 307 pounds

Chad Lindsey - Fr. - 6'2'' , 290 pounds

Right Guard

Alfred McCullough - Sr. - 6'2'', 311 pounds, special note: Great recent play beats out Steen

Anthony Steen - Soph. - 6'3'', 303 pounds, special note: Will see lots of playing time

Right Tackle

D.J. Fluker - Jr. - 6'6'', 340 pounds, special note: Announced he'd come back for Sr. season

Austin Shepherd - Fresh. - 6'5'', 325 pounds

This line is missing depth and in the last game, that hurt the Tide as starters got nicked up.  In this game, the starters must remain healthy and avoid injuries. This is the weak link in the Tide's armor in this game.

Tight Ends

Tight End

Michael Williams - Jr. - 6'6'', 271 pounds, special note: great run blocking tight end

Chris Underwood - Sr. - 6'4'', 249 pounds

Brian Vogler - Fresh. - 6'7'', 255 pounds, special note: real star of the future

Tight End

Brad Smelley - Sr. - 6'3'', 231 pounds, special note: great third down receiver, reliable pass-catcher

Harrison Jones - Fresh. - 6'4'', 249 pounds

Alabama uses their tight ends more than than most teams in passing situations. All of Alabama's tight ends do a good job, with Smelley doing a better job. But where these tight ends shine is in run-blocking.

Receivers

Wide Receiver

Marquis Maze - Sr. -5'10'', 181 pounds, special note: Must provide a spark and scores for Alabama

Brandon Gibson - Sr. - 6'2'', 194 pounds

Christion Jones - Fresh. - 5'11'', 175 pounds

Wide Receiver

Darius Hanks - Sr. - 6'0'', 186 pounds, special note: Must keep drives alive with possession catches

Kenny Bell - Soph. - 6'1'', 175 pounds

DeAndrew White - Fresh. - 6'0'', 182 pounds, special note: Provided sparks in other games

For Alabama to beat LSU, Darius Hanks is going to have to make tough catches to keep drives alive and Maze must keep them honest deep.  Look for Alabama to use a myriad of different receivers through the game in hopes of having one of them strike lightning.

Running Backs

Running Backs

Trent Richardson - Jr. - 5'11'', 225 pounds, special note: Must play the game of his life

Eddie Lacy - Soph. - 6'0'', 222 pounds, special note: Didn't get to play much in the last game with injury.

Jalston Fowler - Soph. - 6'1'', 250 pounds

The running backs have to work as they have for most of the season, as chain-movers and touchdown-makers. In the last game, Lacy's turf toe kept him on the sideline and Richardson got worn down.

Having a healthy pair of seasoned running backs could be just the difference the Tide needs in this game.

Quarterback

Quarterback

A.J. McCarron - Soph. - 6'4'', 205 pounds, special note: Missed seeing a wide-open man last time; must convert touchdowns in the next game and make every drive productive this time.

Phillip Sims - Fresh. - 6'2'', 217 pounds

Phillip Ely - Fresh. - 6'1'', 187 pounds

Defensive Line

Nose Guard

Josh Chapman - Sr. - 6'1'', 310 pounds, special note: Chapman must contain Jordan Jefferson if possible

Nick Gentry - Sr. - 6'1'', 285 pounds

Defensive End

Jesse Williams - Jr. - 6'4'', 319 pounds, special note: Must temper pass rush with containment for Jefferson

Quinton Dial - Jr. - 6'6'', 295 pounds, special note: A former starter, he's a solid contributor

Undra Billingsley - Jr. - 6'2'', 288 pounds, special note: Solid contributor, no drop off when he plays

Defensive End

Damion Square - Jr. - 6'3'', 287 pounds, special note: The most experienced defensive end; smart

Ed Stinson - Soph. - 6'4'', 281 pounds

This is as deep and solid as any 3-4 defensive line in the country. Their job may not be to provide a strong pass-rush in this game, but help contain a very mobile and shifty Jordan Jefferson.

Linebackers

Sam

Jerrell Harris - Sr. - 6'3'', 242 pounds

Adrian Hubbard - Fresh. - 6'6'', 237 pounds, special note: Also backs up at Jack linebacker

Mike

Dont'a Hightower - Jr. - 6'4'', 262 pounds, special note: Signal caller and leader, solid run supporter

Trey DePriest - Fresh. - 6'2'', 242 pounds, special note: Superstar of the future, reliable now

Chris Jordan - Sr. - 6'3'', 242 pounds

Will

Nico Johnson - Jr. - 6'3'', 246 pounds, special note: Gotten better every game this season, took job from C.J. Mosely

C.J. Mosely - Soph. - 6'2'', 234 pounds, former starter, very good athlete, no drop off when playing

Tana Patrick - Soph. - 6'3'', 236 pounds, Solid backup with little drop off

Jack

Courtney Upshaw - Sr. - 6'2'', 265 pounds, Bama's best pass rusher, plays with a mean streak

Adrian Hubbard - Fresh. - 6'6'', 237 pounds, special note: Also backs up at Sam linebacker

Xzavier Dixon - Fresh. - 6'3'', 241 pounds

The defense's fortunes will rest in these men's hands. They must keep Jordan Jefferson from beating them with his legs and keeping him in front of him all night long.

They can and will freely substitute all night long and be a force that tries to dictate terms of the game on LSU.

Defensive Backs

Corner Back

DeQuan Menzie - Sr. - 6'0'', 200 pounds

Dee Milliner - Soph. - 6'1'', 197 pounds, special note: No drop off when Milliner is in

Corner Back

Dre Kirkpatrick -  Jr. - 6'3'', 195 pounds, special note: Could be leaving early for the NFL after the game.

Phelon Jones -  Sr. - 5'11'', 195 pounds, special note: Jones is a former LSU Tiger himself.

Strong Safety

Robert Lester - Jr. - 6'2'', 211 pounds, special note: slight drop off in interceptions from last season

Vinnie Sunseri - Fresh. - 6'0'', 217 pounds, special note: made big strides all season long, now reliable

Jarrick Williams - Soph. - 6'1'', 212 pounds

Free Safety

Mark Barron - Sr. - 6'2'', 220 pounds - Special Note: Leader of the group, leaving for the NFL

Nick Perry - Soph. - 5'10'', 206 pounds

HaSean Dixon - Fresh. - 6'1'', 204 pounds

In this game, LSU will try and beat Alabama with the running game and athleticism of Jordan Jefferson and his legs, but the they'll take shots down the field to keep the Tide honest.

When they do, this group must be able to stop it as well as support the running game.

Kicking Specialists and Support Members

Kickers

Jeremy Shelley - Jr. - 5'10'', 165 pounds, special note: Shelley is starting place kicker

Cade Foster - Soph. - 6'1'', 217 pounds, special note: Foster is starting kick off specialist

Holder

A.J. McCarron - Soph. - 6'4'', 205 pounds, special note: Also starting quarterback

Hardie Buck - Jr. - 5'9'' - 190 pounds, special note: Buck is a back up receiver

Long Snapper

Carson Tinker - Jr. - 6'1'', 222 pounds, special note: Hasn't muffed a snap all season long

Kelly Johnson - Sr. - 6'3'', 233 pounds

Kick and Punt Return Specialists

Punt Return

Marquis Maze - Sr. - 5'10'', 180 pounds, special note: His last game as Alabama's return specialist

Kenny Bell - Soph. - 6'1'', 175 pounds

DeAndrew White - 6'0'', 182 pounds

Kick Off Return

Marquis Maze

Trent Richardson - Jr. 5'11', 225 pounds, special note: Alabama's starting running back

Darius Hanks - Sr. - 6'0'', 185 pounds, special note: Alabama's starting wide receiver

Dee Miliner - Soph. - 6'1'', 198 pounds, special note: Alabama's starting corner back

If this group can spark a quick touchdown, they could easily turn the game in the favor of the Crimson Tide.

(Larry Burton is a syndicated writer whose work appears online and in print. If you'd like to keep up with all his articles, follow him on Twitter and sign up as a fan on his profile page.)