Nick Saban praises development of Tim Keenan: 'Playing like a starter'

The Alabama football team is looking for some new bodies in the front seven to emerge after losing a few key pieces from the 2022 squad, including superstar edge rusher Will Anderson. One player who has emerged is Tim Keenan.

The redshirt sophomore defensive tackle has won the eye of coach Nick Saban thanks to his work in fall camp.

“Tim has done a really good job,” Saban said. “He lost weight, he got in much better shape, he’s moving a lot better, he’s a lot quicker. He’s always had a lot of explosive power, so he’s been a really pleasant surprise in this camp to be a guy that’s playing like a starter, actually.”

Keenan has been at Alabama for the last two years but failed to make much of an impact.

A 6-foot-2, 315-pound defensive tackle from Birmingham, Ala., he appeared in two games in 2022, appearing against Vanderbilt and Louisiana-Monroe. He recorded one tackle and a half tackle for a loss.

Prior to enrolling at Alabama, Keenan was a highly sought after recruit. He was ranked as a four-star prospect, the No. 398 overall player in the nation in the 2021 recruiting class.

He checked in as the No. 37 defensive lineman in the class and the No. 13 overall player in the state of Alabama, hailing from Birmingham (Ala.) Ramsay.

Dallas Turner emerging as defensive leader

While Keenan will line up on the inside for the Alabama front seven, Dallas Turner will be in the exact position to replace Anderson. He’s done a nice job so far.

Turner is embracing the leadership role, hoping to make up for some of what was lost when Anderson departed for the NFL.

“It’s a new generation of college football now. So you know, just like me having the experience that I have, playing as a freshman and stuff, knowing what it takes, and knowing what it takes to get to where you want to be, I could just echo that,” explained Turner. Tell everybody, try to get everybody on the same page. Make sure everybody is ready to work for the season.”

The Alabama defense will have to gel quickly in 2023, because there’s a big test coming up early on. While Alabama takes on MTSU in the season opener, it will host Texas in Week 2 on Sept. 9.

Last year’s game against Texas was a thriller, resulting in a 20-19 Alabama win.