Why Alabama's 2024 tight end room calls themselves 'the sharks'

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – CJ Dippre said Alabama’s tight ends call themselves the sharks.

The nickname for the position room holds multiple meanings, according to Robbie Ouzts.

“We’ve got a couple of guys that like to play some poker, so just kind of poker sharks,” Ouzts said after Tuesday’s practice. “But at the same time, we kind of swim together is what we like to say. It’s kind of more of a mentality thing.”

Who’s the best poker player in Alabama’s tight end room? That title goes to a walk-on.

“Adam Thorsland, by far,” Ouzts said.

As for the best poker face, the Crimson Tide veteran settled on himself after mulling it over.

“I think I’m pretty hard to read,” Ouzts said.

Alabama’s tight ends are a close-knit group. Dippre and Ouzts are the elder statesmen and lead a unit that returned Danny Lewis and Ty Lockwood and added Josh Cuevas and Jay Lindsey to the fold this offseason. Not only do they regularly meet to play poker but spend time in and away from the Mal M. Moore Athletic Facility, as noted by their Tide teammates.

“That’s a room that I feel like everybody on this team can learn from with how close they are,” said Alabama offensive lineman Tyler Booker. “We’re close as an offensive line room, but we aim to be as close as those guys are. They’re hanging out all the time, always laughing. They’re always with each other. 

“If you see Robbie, CJ is probably two steps behind him, and Danny is probably two steps behind him, Josh is two steps behind him. To see the camaraderie in that room, see how well they perform, there’s definitely a correlation there.”

Dippre is Alabama’s top pass catcher at the position with eight receptions for 124 yards, but Cuevas, who followed Kalen DeBoer and company from Washington, isn’t far behind with seven catches for 91 yards and one touchdown. Ouzts also has three catches for 18 yards.

In the Tide’s last two games, the tight ends have been more involved in the offensive game plan. Dippre recorded six catches for 104 yards during SEC games against Georgia and Vanderbilt, while Cuevas has multiple receptions in each of the last two contests. Two of Ouzts’ three grabs have also come in the most recent outings as the tight ends see more targets.

“I really like it,” Ouzts said. “I think we’re growing within the offense, especially in the receiving game. But we’re always gonna have our impact blocking because that’s what we do. We embrace it. I like the direction that we’re headed. I’m excited for the rest of this season.”

Before Alabama’s season even kicked off, DeBoer preached the importance of the tight end’s role within his offense. While their blocking oftentimes goes unnoticed, they are starting to see more balls thrown their way, and the sharks add another wrinkle to UA’s offense.

“The tight end has always been an extremely critical part of our offense,” DeBoer said. “The ability to be able to line up wide, come in tight, hand down, off the ball – the more things all can do, especially skill players, in our offense, the more versatile we’ll become. 

“Receivers who can run the ball … running backs that can catch the ball … and some other opportunities, as well. Just that versatility to where a defense and a defensive coordinator putting in a game plan has to give him all these different elements of how we’re gonna attack.”

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