Alabama

NFL Draft 2025: Alabama Crimson Tide Prospects Primer

Published

11 months ago

April 15, 2025

NFL Draft 2025: Alabama Crimson Tide Prospects Primer

As the offseason rolls on, the NFL Draft is quickly sneaking up on us. The first round of the Draft will kick off on Thursday, April 24th (a little over a week from now), and that will dominate the sports news cycle for a couple of weeks.

For Alabama, this will be the first Draft class from a coach not named Saban since 2007, though, admittedly, all of the players going for the NFL this year did play for the legendary head man. In any case, this class will forever be part of Kalen DeBoer’s record at Alabama going forward, and by all accounts, it is still expected to keep the streak of 1st round picks going.

The Tide only had three players declare for the Draft as juniors this year, and only 6 seniors are moving on. It was a young team for the Tide in 2024, so this class reflects that, but the quality of draftees looks to be just as high as usual. Below is a quick primer on each of the Crimson Tide alumni who hope to have their names called next week.

Tyler Booker – Offensive Guard

Projected Round: Mid- to late- first round.

Booker was viewed as the #1 interior offensive lineman in the draft up until a poor showing at the NFL Combine (5.38 forty, 27” vertical, only 21 bench reps) wrecked some of the public opinion on him. Still, he’s going to be the first or second guard off the board. The three most common teams he’s been mocked to are the Seattle Seahawks (#18), Minnesota Vikings (#24), and Houston Texans (#25).

It seems unlikely he’d drop out of the first round, as about ²⁄₃ of the NFL actively hate their OL and need to upgrage, and a player with Booker’s pedigree and production will be hard to pass up.

Jihaad Campbell – Linebacker

Projected Round: First round. Fringe top ten.

Campbell was relatively unknown and not talked about until the final month of the 2024 season, and once people started catching on to how impactful he was, his stock skyrocketed. Then he went to the combine and put together an exceptional performance (seriously, he’s ranked as the 41st most athletic linebacker since 1987).

Most view Campbell as the top off-ball linebacker in the draft and one of the top ten players overall… However that gets the caveat that teams just don’t tend to draft off-ball linebackers very high. The Atlanta Falcons at #15 and Tampa Bay Bucs at #19 seem to be the most common mock landing spots, but most pundits will mention that they could see him going earlier if a team is willing to spend on the less premium position for a great player.

Jalen Milroe – Quarterback

Projected Round: Most likely 2nd round. Maybe first round? Maybe 5th?

After being one of the most polarizing players ever among Alabama fans, Milroe continues to be a polarizing NFL prospect. He was often mocked in the first round (and probably top-10 pick) going into 2024, but a lackluster season as far as production and a poor end to the year and bad Senior Bowl performance saw opinions on him plummet.

On the other hand, he ran a 4.40 flat forty yard dash and really impressed in throwing drills during his pro day a few weeks back.

In any case, Alabama fans, for the most part, seem to be more down on Milroe than the NFL community at large. There’s a big contingent mock drafts sending him to the Steelers at #21 overall, and even a few crazy souls that have him at #6 to the Raiders.

There are also plenty of mocks sending him to the 2nd or 3rd round. Some even had him in the 4th or 5th only a month ago, but the groupthink has generally moved him back up into 2nd round over the last few weeks. Ultimately, the NFL is starved for QBs, and he could be the best one. Milroe has, at times, shown he has the ability to do anything an elite NFL QB can, and his rushing ability is something nobody outside of Lamar Jackson can match. It’s just a question of if he can eliminate his spirals of poor play.

CJ Dippre – Tight End

Projected Round: 5-7

Most of the pundits have Dippre solidly in the 6th round, but I’m going out on a limb and predicting he’s the 4th Alabama player off the board, and it could very well be in the 4th or 5th round.

Dippre’s athletic testing was phenomenal at his size, and his combination of blocking, hands, and after the catch ability far outweigh his actual production in Alabama’s low-volume passing offense the last two years. I think a smart NFL team will pounce on him earlier than expected.

James Burnip – Punter

Projected Round: 4-6

Burnip is the top punter in the Draft, and the Aussie’s stratospheric improvement over the last two seasons to go along with this 6’6” height and trebuchet-like legs give him essentially unlimited upside as a punter.

He’s still a punter, though, and round 5 is about as good as you can hope for without being a transcendent talent. He’ll be the first one off the board, and that’s all you can ask.

Malachi Moore – Safety/Nickel

Projected Round: 5-6

As a 5-year starter for Alabama with All-American honors, the low projections for Malachi Moore might seem a bit shocking. Ultimately, Moore lacks the athleticism to be a stand out at the NFL level, and with 5 years of production, he’s viewed as someone that has very little upside to improve from what has already been seen. He’s not big enough to be a true safety, nor fast enough to be a corner.

His versatility and production will get him drafted and likely carve out a nice role as core backup and special teams piece, but that mostly limits him to being a day 3 pick.

Tim Smith – Defensive Tackle

Projected Round: 5-7

Former 5-star recruits at defensive tackle are hard to come by, and that kind of clout pushes Tim Smith up the draft boards a little. His production over multiple years as a starter is underwhelming, but there will be teams that look at him and see a solid DT depth piece. It’s hard enough for NFL teams to find DTs that can be even functional, so someone with Smith’s size, experience, and former high school ranking will be tempting. Round 6 seems to be the most common projection.

Que Robinson – Edge Rusher

Projected Round: 4th – UDFA

There’s a wide range of opinions on Robinson. NFL.com seems rather high on him, as does Pro Football Focus, who put him in the 3rd round. On the other hand, many mocks have him going 6th or even 7th. Personally, I wouldn’t even be surprised if he goes undrafted. The senior had years of no production and didn’t do a whole lot with his 5th year senior season as a part-time starter. He’s long and has decent speed, but is a bit light to play on the line and doesn’t have the skill set to be an off-ball linebacker.

He’s essentially a tweener speed rusher, but lacks dominant tape doing that.

A team may take a flyer on him for the height/speed, but I suspect he’ll drop further than many think.

Robbie Ouzts – Tight End

Projected Round: 7th-UDFA

Ouzts quietly had a nice Combine performance, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some team noticed and is willing to jump to the 6th or 7th round to make sure he makes it to their team. If not, he’ll be one of the top UDFAs.

Ouzts is something of a unique body type (Lance Zierlein said he’s “built like an ironworker with a squat rack in the garage”), and I think he could have been a legitimate NFL fullback about 15-20 years ago. With the NFL starting to swing back to running the ball more, I’ve heard some rumblings that fullbacks might start making something of a comeback, and with that, bowling ball shaped blockers like Ouzts may be able to catch on and carve out a career after being relegated to extinction post-2013.

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Alabama

Husband, 19, fatally shot wife, 24, himself at Alabama hospital moments after welcoming their first child

Published

5 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Husband, 19, fatally shot wife, 24, himself at Alabama hospital moments after welcoming their first child

A husband fatally shot his wife before turning the gun on himself at an Alabama hospital just moments after they welcomed their first child on Sunday.

Kynath Terry Jr., 19, gunned down 24-year-old Precious Johnson before fatally shooting himself inside the Baptist Health Brookwood Hospital around 9:30 p.m. Sunday night, WTVM 13 reported.

Johnson delivered a healthy baby just before she was murdered. It’s not immediately clear if the baby was present during the shooting, but police said that Terry and Johnson were the only ones injured.

Terry’s mother told the outlet that the couple were having some marital issues leading up to Johnson’s due date, but nothing that made her fear her son would become violent.

She told the outlet that Terry completed Army National Guard training before tying the knot with Johnson.

She noted that Johnson didn’t want Terry’s side of the family at the hospital for her child’s birth, but it’s unclear if anyone from the mother-to-be’s own family was there.

The hospital was plunged into a lockdown “out of an abundance of caution” while police investigated reports of a shooting. It wasn’t lifted until hours later when they determined there was “no active threat to patients, team members or the public,” the outlet reported.

The Homewood Police Department described the tragedy as “an apparent murder-suicide and is domestic in nature.”

Danne Howard, the president of the Alabama Hospital Association, told the outlet that the chilling attack “was an isolated incident” unlike anything she’d encountered during her three decades working in the state.

Howard said, in the wake of the tragedy, the Baptist Health Brookwood Hospital would undergo a security overhaul implementing “lessons learned” from a mandated after-action report.

Just three months ago, in a town six miles outside of Homewood, a beloved sports reporter was fatally shot by her husband before taking his own life. Their 3-year-old son, who was unharmed, led his grandfather to his parents’ bodies.

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Alabama

Air Force base security tightens, AL reacts after attacks in Iran

Published

17 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Air Force base security tightens, AL reacts after attacks in Iran

The United States and Israel-led attacks on Iran are having an impact in Central Alabama.

The military actions that began Saturday targets the military forces of Iran and the nation’s ability to build nuclear weapons.

In Montgomery, Maxwell Air Force Base and Gunter Annex have stepped up security so that all entry points will have a 100 percent ID check, the bases said on social media. The Trusted Traveler Program is suspended, which allowed Department of Defense identification holders to vouch for passengers.

Visitors without base access will have to go through the visitor center to get a pass.

Central Alabama residents react to the Iran attacks

For Travis Jackson of Montgomery, the attacks bring back memories, bad memories. He served one tour in Iraq from 2007-2008 with the U.S. Army. He attained the rank of sergeant before leaving the service and has worked the last 10 years as a community activist and diversity, equality and inclusion coordinator.

“I had a flashback of being overseas again,” he said when he first heard news of the attack. “The first thing I thought of was corporate greed. Of yet again seeing what has transpired throughout the years of any war overseas.”

He feels the attacks are a mistake.

“It’s going to be detrimental to the economy, notably with the increase in oil prices,” he said.

Removing the current regime in Iran and establishing a more western friendly country could improve hopes for a more stable Middle East, said Amy Stephens of Elmore County.

“I don’t know if there will ever be peace there,” Stephens said. “But Iran has been the causing trouble over there for almost 50 years.”

Ray Roberts of Prattville served in Operation Desert Shield/Storm in 1990 and 1991 after Iraq invaded Kuwait. He served in an ordinance company with the Alabama Army National Guard. He was a sergeant when he left the service and now works as a draftsman at a Montgomery manufacturing plant.

“It wasn’t a surprise,” Roberts said of the attacks. “President Trump had said they were coming. When he says something like that, he means it. I am glad we are working with Israel so it’s not just the United States. I wonder if Europe and some of the other Gulf nations will join the attacks.”

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com. To support his work, please subscribe to the Montgomery Advertiser.

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Alabama

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey receives Boy Scouts’ Circle of Honor

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey receives Boy Scouts’ Circle of Honor

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey was honored for her lifelong dedication to youth and community service during the 12th annual Black Warrior Council Boy Scouts of America Circle of Honor awards luncheon.

The ceremony, which was held Feb. 27 at the Embassy Suites hotel in downtown Tuscaloosa, serves as a fundraiser for the council’s scouting program.

The Circle of Honor award is presented to people in west central Alabama whose livelihood and actions reflect the same values of the Black Warrior Boy Scouts. Recipients have also shown advocacy for youth and leadership in the community.

Past recipients of the award include Terry Saban, Nick Saban, former U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, scientist and philanthropist Thomas Joiner, pharmacist and retailer James I. Harrison Jr., civic leader Mary Ann Phelps and more.

Cathy Randall, a Tuscaloosa businesswoman, educator and philanthropist, presented Ivey with the award. Randall was inducted into the Circle of Honor in 2025 along with her late husband, Pettus.

Ivey said she was grateful to receive the honor by the Black Warrior Council and highlighted the importance of public service.

“I’m proud to have dedicated my life to public service, there’s no more noble calling than to uplift and empower lives,” said Ivey during the Feb. 27 ceremony.

Ivey thanked the scouting organizations, including the Black Warrior Council for its contributions to educational opportunities, economic development, and public safety.

“In particular, I’m proud of the work done by our Scouting organizations like the Black Warrior Council, who lay a foundation for successful future in both our young people and our state, thank you for all you do to build a stronger Alabama by changing lives and preparing our future leaders,” said Ivey, a native of Camden in Wilcox County.

Ivey is wrapping up her second term as governor after a long career spent primarily in government.

After graduating from Auburn University in 1967, Ivey worked as a high school teacher and a bank officer. She served as reading clerk for the Alabama House of Representatives under then-Speaker Joseph C. McCorquodale and she served as assistant director at the Alabama Development Office.

In 2002, Ivey was elected to the first of two terms as Alabama’s treasurer and in 2010, she was elected to the first of two terms as lieutenant governor. On April 10, 2017, Ivey was sworn in as Alabama’s 54th governor after the resignation of Robert Bentley. She filled out the rest of Bentley’s term before winning the gubernatorial election in 2018 and she was re-elected in 2022.

She will leave office at the end of this year.

She is the first Republican woman to serve as Alabama’s governor but she’s the second woman to hold the state’s top executive office. Tuscaloosa County native Lurleen B. Wallace, a Democrat, became Alabama’s first female governor in 1966.

Circle of Honor luncheon raises nearly $200,000

Also during the ceremony, retired DCH Health System administrator Sammy Watson, who served as the event’s emcee, announced that the council had raised $197,000 through the luncheon that day.

Proceeds from the lunch will be used to expand Boy Scouts programs, making them available to over 3,000 young people in west central Alabama.

The Boy Scouts of America is the nation’s leading outdoor education and character development program. The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law.

Reach Jasmine Hollie at JHollie@usatodayco.com. To support her work, please subscribe to The Tuscaloosa News.

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