WATCH: Trio of Alabama players speak Tuesday of LSU week

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — No. 6 Alabama (7-1, 4-1 SEC) is gearing up for a road trip to Baton Rouge to take on No. 15 LSU (6-2, 4-1 SEC) on Saturday. With back-to-back away games against top-15 opponents, the next couple of weeks will be critical to what lies ahead for the Crimson Tide.

On Tuesday, a trio of Alabama standouts spoke to the media. First, we got to once again talk to defensive back Kool-Aid McKinstry. Then, he was followed by two other veteran players, including offensive lineman Emil Ekiyor Jr. and tight end Cameron Latu. Below, we’ve included everything those guys said during that media availability.

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CB Kool-Aid McKinstry

On seeing Alabama CB Eli Ricks play and do well against Mississippi State…

“I was very excited to see him ball out the way he did. I mean, every week he’s been preparing as if he was a starter. And when his time came, he showed how he played.”

On what he’s seen from Ricks and his readiness to step in…

“Like I just said, he’s been preparing very well. Whether he knew he was gonna play or didn’t know he was gonna play, he still prepared well during the week, and he balled out.”

On if he keeps up with pass deflections, what goes into those…

“Well, I mean, throughout the week Coach… I’m pretty sure Coach talks to you guys every week about corner technique and what he does to teach corners. And I really don’t pay attention to personal goals right now. I’m just focused on doing what I can for the team and leading us to where we’re trying to get.”

On the most interesting technique Nick Saban has taught…

“Just standing up on a guy, using your hands and kick-sliding your feet. Staying on top. Not allowing explosive plays.”

On what stands out about LSU’s passing attack…

“What they do, they do it well. They know how to understand the scheme that they’re trying to do. And basically whatever the scheme is, they try to attack you that way and they play well into their scheme.”

On if opposing teams are punting away from him now…

“I really don’t know. I’m just back there trying to make sure I don’t turn the ball over.”

On the challenge of covering a dual-threat QB as a cornerback…

“Just like you just said. Facing a guy that day, you’ve just got to stay in coverage a little longer and just plaster your guy no matter what because you never know what might be a scramble drill. You never know what might happen. So just to never quit until you hear the whistle blow.”

On if he’s had any conversations with Ricks about going back to LSU…

“No sir, I haven’t had that conversation with him yet, but I’m pretty sure we will have that conversation.”

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OL Emil Ekiyor Jr.

On his assessment of Alabama’s run game, how it can improve…

“A really good thing about the bye week, we got a chance to just reflect on everything that we could work on from the season, and obviously, the run game was one of those things. We kind of just tried to improve the little details in our technique. The coaches, they looked over the scheme, how they can put us in better situations going forward. I think we just really put our head down and get some good work done last week and made some improvement in those areas.”

On how the OL has gotten used to hostile road environments…

“I think we’ve had a lot of experience just within the last two years of hostile environments and having to deal with them. I think this group is just pretty much as well-equipped for it as anybody in the country. So just continue to focus on our communication, practicing with crowd noise, operating with hand signals and things of that nature, we’re kind of used to it now. We’ve got a system in place, and I think we’re well-equipped and ready for it.”

On Alabama OT JC Latham…

“JC’s grown a lot. Coming into the season, everybody expected big things from him, including myself. We put in a lot of time this offseason, extra work and just focusing on technique. Just getting that game experience for him, I think, was huge. He was always a really good player, but now, just having the game experience and being able to translate and get the confidence of playing well in the game, I think his confidence has grown throughout the year and that’s only helped him. He’s probably one of the best tackles in the country right now. I think he’s been doing really good, and we look forward to seeing him grow as a player and do even better things.”

On if he made the trip to LSU in 2018…

“I actually didn’t.”

On what he has heard about playing at Tiger Stadium at night…

“Just being on the team that year, from everybody that got to experience that environment, it was just the craziest environment they said they’ve been a part of. We’ve been in some pretty loud stadiums – Florida, Texas A&M – and that still ranks at the top for everybody that experienced that game. We’re looking forward to the challenge and handling the crowd, but we’re just focused on our preparation and making sure the crowd isn’t a factor.”

On his confidence in centers Darrian Dalcourt, Seth McLaughlin…

“We’ve got a lot of confidence in both of them just because they’ve both played in loud environments before. Seth got the start against Tennessee, a pretty hostile environment. Darrian played at Florida, Texas A&M. Both of them have got experience in playing in tough games, in tough situations, and they both do a really good job communicating with the rest of the line and are really smart guys. I don’t think we’ll have any problem with whoever plays center. Both of those guys got a lot of experience in tough situations.”

On the challenge of practicing without Bryce Young, benefit of having him moving forward…

“I don’t think it’s been a challenge at all. I mean, he’s been doing what he can throughout practice. Just having him there to command the offense and even if he’s not throwing the ball, he’s still taking control and getting the operation going as if he were playing regularly. I think now that he’s been able to take a couple more reps in practice, he’ll do even better. I haven’t seen a drop-off in his performance since he hasn’t been practicing. But now that he’s back out there, we’re even more confident and excited to see what he can do in the game on Saturday.”

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TE Cameron Latu

On the development he’s seen from Eli Ricks…

“It’s actually been pretty crazy because I’ve seen tremendous growth within Eli because of the emotional and mental battles he had to go through while being at Alabama it’s tough. I’ve seen a lot of growth in him. I’m proud of him and he’s a big part of the team.”

On his experience at Tight End University…

“That was a great experience. I love that experience of being around all the NFL tight ends. I just gained confidence in knowing that like, it wasn’t far off from like what I could do personally and I’m at that stage where I look like one of them. It just made me open my eyes and knowing that I’m not really far off, but also I learned a lot from them as well. I took a lot away from that.”

On the benefits of Alabama’s bye week…

“Definitely getting healthier, stronger and just relaxing. Just getting the body fresh for this week for the next four games and this last stretch. Just staying healthy and just getting our bodies right.”

On how Alabama’s tight ends can help the run game…

“Oh definitely blocking. I can personally be better at blocking. I’m not gonna expand on that but just know that definitely be better at blocking and finishing. Just a lot of little things that we need to put together, but definitely stuff like that.”

On balancing being a blocking and receiving tight end…

“Just focusing on one play at a time. Just focusing on whatever play is called at that moment, just doing my job for the team and just focus on that or I lose myself in other areas like how many balls I catch. If I just missed a block or this or that’s just a bunch of nonsense, but we got to just focus on one play at a time.”

On how long it took to transition to becoming a tight end…

“Took a long time actually, but I would say last season was a good season to get my feet wet under the position. But we’re still growing in a lot of areas, we got a lot of room for improvement.”

On Alabama freshman Amari Niblack…

“He has a lot of speed and is a very knowledgeable guy. He picks up on a lot of things quicker than most. Once he gets it down, we’ll get to see him a little bit more but we love his speed, we love his game and he’s a very strong guy actually for his size. He hasn’t really worked the run game in high school but he’s learned really fast and he’s gonna be a great player for us.”