Alabama football countdown to kickoff: 78 days

If you can believe it, we are officially under the 80-day mark until Alabama is back on a live-game football field. After coming up short in the national championship game against Georgia back in January, the Crimson Tide will once again be searching for its seventh title under Nick Saban.

This year’s season opener will be against the Utah State Aggies on Sept. 3 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. With today being June 17, that means we are only 78 days away from the return of Alabama football. The team here at BamaOn3 is ready to celebrate every day of the countdown standing between now and then.

With opening week 78 days away, let’s focus on a player — both past and present — who has represented that number.

*Note: BamaOn3 is also doing a Countdown to Fall Camp, which is only 49 days away.

Who currently wears the No. 78?

Offensive tackle Amari Kight will once again wear the No. 78 for Alabama. The fourth-year junior has represented that number for the Crimson Tide in each of the previous three seasons after also wearing it while starring at Thompson High School in Alabaster, Ala.

Coming out of high school in 2019, Kight was rated as a four-star prospect who was also listed as the No. 71 overall player in the nation, No. 10 offensive tackle and No. 5 player from the state of Alabama, per the On3 Consensus rankings.

Through his first three seasons, the 6-foot-7, 322-pound offensive tackle has only played 81 snaps. He did, however, see a steep increase in snap count from the 17 combined over his first two years to the 64 he played this past season. A majority of those snaps came at left tackle, but Kight also saw brief action on the right side against Cincinnati in the College Football Playoff.

Kight has been in an ongoing battle with Kendall Randolph to replace All-American Evan Neal at left tackle. But with the arrival of Vanderbilt transfer Tyler Steen this summer, his path to a starting job just became all the more difficult. Now would be the time for Kight to make his move.

Who’s a noteworthy former player to wear it?

Who here remembers Mike Johnson? The former offensive lineman played for the Crimson Tide from 2006 to 2009, which means he spent his final three seasons under head coach Nick Saban. Needless to say, that move proved to be beneficial for Johnson.

Not only was Johnson a part of that 2009 Alabama team, which won the school its first national title since 1992, but he also went back-to-back as an All-American in 2008 and 2009. That success on the college level helped the Pensacola (Fla.) native find his way to the next level.

Johnson was selected in the third round (No. 98) of the 2010 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons.

Unfortunately, the 6-foot-6, 304-pound lineman would spend two of his first –and only — four seasons in the league dealing with serious injuries that prevented him from ever getting a proper footing. After being released by the Falcons following the 2014 season, Johnson retired in 2015.

2022 Alabama Football Schedule

Sept. 3 vs. Utah State Aggies (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

Sept. 10 at Texas Longhorns (Austin, Tex.)

Sept. 17 vs. UL-Monroe Warhawks (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

Sept. 24 vs. Vanderbilt Commodores (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

Oct. 1 at Arkansas Razorbacks (Fayetteville, Ark.)

Oct. 8 vs. Texas A&M Aggies (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

Oct. 15 at Tennessee Volunteers (Knoxville, Tenn.)

Oct. 22 vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

Oct. 29 – OPEN WEEK

Nov. 5 at LSU Tigers (Baton Rouge, La.)

Nov. 12 at Ole Miss Rebels (Oxford, Miss.)

Nov. 19 vs. Austin Peay Governors (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

Nov. 26 vs. Auburn Tigers (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

Dec. 3 – SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (Atlanta, Ga.)