The Alabama football team does not seem to have found an answer to the competition at right tackle yet.
After the second practice game, Kalen DeBoer still seemed to be looking for clarity regarding the competition between Wilkin Formby and Elijah Pritchett.
“I think it’s just going to be a matter of time before we really get to some game replays. I don’t know if we’ve got that completely figured out, just based on how it’s gone so far,” DeBoer said Saturday.
It reflects what offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic has been saying throughout preseason practice. Earlier this week, he called it a constant battle. Kapilovic sees improvement in both, but “it’s going to continue throughout training camp until one shows he’s clearly better than the other.”
DeBoer doesn’t believe either tackle is a liability and says both have their strengths.
“They’ve both done a lot to get a lot of reps,” DeBoer said. “Maybe we’ll take that back in a week if something else develops or if one of the guys steps up, but that seems to be the direction we’re heading right now.”
Kapilovic has said he is OK with using two players if both are progressing and doing a good job, and he values the qualities of Pritchett and Formby.
“Wilk understands the scheme and what we need to accomplish very well,” Kapilovic said. “He makes good decisions. He has the ability to be a very good player. When Pritchett plays hard and has a little bit of grit, he can be a physically dominant player. When that shows, he does a really good job in the passing game and the running game.”
Nick Kelly is an Alabama beat writer for AL.com and the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X And Instagram.
