Today we continue our preview of the 2026 Alabama Crimson Tide with a look at the defensive line, to include both tackle spots and the Bandit end position.
As stated in previous articles in this series, in recent years, we’ve waited until fall camp began to take a look at the upcoming team, giving the coaches every possible second to finalize a pre-camp roster. This has led to content droughts, however, so we’ve chosen to break up the 2026 Alabama team preview into eight segments, following our traditional eight-category game previews.
This week, we are focusing on the two defensive tackle positions and the Bandit end position. While Alabama’s base defense is technically a 4-2-5 Swarm, the Wolf position is almost identical to a traditional Jack/SLB outside linebacker spot, and will therefore be included in the linebacker preview in a future article.
Fans who are familiar with our preview articles know we rate each unit and place them in one of five categories: Excellent, Very Good, Average, Fair and Poor. We now also do a little advance scouting at the player level as well; if there is something that stands out, good or bad, it is noted for the players.
No walk-ons are rated in these articles – outside of the Special Teams preview, which will be the final in this series – unless we believe the walk-on in question has a real chance of making the actual playing rotation, not just playing in blowout situations. Players are listed below in the way we believe they finished spring camp. For players who were not yet on the team in the spring, they are listed at the end of their respective categories.
We will separate the Bandit end candidates from the defensive candidates and profile them separately here.
DEFENSIVE LINE (Rating: Vg)
Starting tackles – Terrance Green, London Simmons
1. Terrance Green (Jr., 6-5, 319)
Strengths: Huge frame with good quickness for his side, penetrates effectively, active hands that he uses to affect throwing lanes
Weaknesses: Needs more consistent gap control, spring work may have been better than expected; was it a mirage?
Analysis: Alabama had to come up aces in the portal after losing James Smith, Kelby Collins, Jordan Renaud and Keon Keeley. Green was the gem of the class without a doubt, but even the highest expectations were exceeded in the spring. Green was a useful part in the Oregon Ducks’ defense the last two-plus years, but he wasn’t a standout. This spring, though, the change of scenery apparently suited him well. Green has an uncommon mix of pure strength and athletic quickness, good enough to recall some of the best linemen of the Nick Saban era. He looked adept at run control as well as affecting the quarterback, and his knowledge on how to bait quarterbacks into throwing directly into his paws is one of those next-level skills. If anything, he needs to work more on controlling the running lane when it’s his assignment to do so, but that’s sort of nitpicking given how good he looked this spring. Alabama was after a contributor; it may have found a star.
2. London Simmons (So., 6-3, 302)
Strengths: Thrown into the fire as a freshman and never wavered, used strength that went beyond his frame in 2025 and now has an extra year of weight training under his belt
Weaknesses: Can get overmatched when playing nose, needs to deepen his resume of pass-rush moves
Analysis: Simmons’ true freshman couldn’t have gone any better given the circumstances. Jeremiah Beaman was injured in the first two weeks of the season, and Simmons went from being a nice-to-have depth piece to being a featured part of the DL rotation. By the end of the year, he was starting alongside Tim Keenan III. Simmons looked to have continued his development trajectory in the spring. He may not be true star-quality, at least not yet, but with Beaman back and Kedrick Bingley-Jones also available to help, Alabama will be able to rotate him more effectively this year and won’t have to expose him to unfavorable matchups.
Reserve tackles – Jeremiah Beaman, Kedrick Bingley-Jones, Edric Hill, Isaia Faga, Steve Mboumoua, Leslie Black, Mhari Johnson, Nolan Wilson, Malique Franklin
3. Jeremiah Beaman (So., 6-4, 303)
Strengths: Knack for the big play in crucial situations, disruptive against linemen who can’t match his initial quickness
Weaknesses: Coming off season-ending injury, needs to use better leverage in run defense
Analysis: Beaman was one of Alabama’s future stars to watch in 2025, but following an uneven debut against Florida State, Beaman was hurt and missed the remainder of the year. He’ll have to work his way back into a starting role, because London Simmons was too consistent last year to bench. Beaman’s true freshman season was highlighted by his work against Michigan in the postseason after several players in front of him were either hurt or opted out. He’s very quick off the line and is a handful for any offensive lineman who isn’t clearly above average in pass protection. The key is going to be getting him back to playing confidently after being hurt, and keeping him from overrunning assignments and getting out of run gaps too easily. The potential is there, no doubt about it.
4. Kedrick Bingley-Jones (Sr., 6-4, 302)
Strengths: Good pass-rush moves for a guy projected as tackle depth, strong spring that saw him work competently in both run and pass defense roles
Weaknesses: HS tweener who sort of grew into tackle by default, can he carry the extra weight without it negatively affecting him?
Analysis: Bingley-Jones wasn’t a big name to a lot of Alabama fans when the Crimson Tide took him in the transfer portal out of Mississippi State, but prior to his time at MSU, he was a highly-rated tackle/end combo recruit, originally signing with North Carolina. Bingley-Jones was mostly rotational depth at Mississippi State, but the raw talent is there, and he showed a bit of it in spring work. Alabama signed him likely with an eye toward being a bigger-bodied depth piece, but he was one of the surprises of spring work and seems to have supplanted program veterans Edric Hill and Isaia Faga in the main rotation.
5. Edric Hill (Jr., 6-3, 287)
Strengths: Good technique, smart player with good work ethic, plays within himself
Weaknesses: Smaller tackle but without the quickness for end, can be a liability in goal-line and other short-yardage work
Analysis: Hill is a coaches’ favorite, level-headed and intelligent. It’s simply a question of raw skills with him, because while he plays with sound technique and doesn’t let things get away from him, he’s also lighter and especially thinner than most tackles at this level. Hill can be effective when his snap load is controlled, and when he’s used in specific situations. Expecting him to play the nose for long stretches, for example, is probably not going to work well.
6. Isaia Faga (So., 6-2, 291)
Strengths: Low center of gravity combined with good initial quickness, knows how to use leverage against bigger linemen, surprisingly effective in run defense
Weaknesses: Limited pass-rush move set, can get overpowered especially when doubled
Analysis: Faga and Edric Hill are a defensive line’s answer to “scatback,” as their primary skill set is based around being more nimble than the blockers in front of them. Faga is a high-motor player who looks like a guy you don’t want to wrestle, and he was in and out of the primary playing rotation for all of 2025. Like Hill, he has a role to fill but his effectiveness will drop the longer he’s asked to play outside of that plan.
7. Steve Bolo Mboumoua (So., 6-4, 301)
Strengths: Former DE with a good set of pass rush moves, strength and explosiveness off the charts, hits through players with violence
Weaknesses: Still raw as a DT and as a football player in general, can get out of control regarding assignments
Analysis: If you remember what Christian Barmore looked like early in his career, that’s Steve Mboumoua. Fast, explosive, aggressive, a potential star in the making … but also a player who can get completely outside the lines quickly and be turned into a liability by smart offensive coordinators. He played his high school ball in Canada, then had to divert for a year through the junior college ranks, where he dominated. If you can put up with the rough edges, Mboumoua (which is pronounced “BOOM – wah,” immediately putting him on the All-Name Team for defensive linemen) has the kind of ceiling that no one else on this Alabama team can reach.
8. Leslie Black (Jr., 6-5, 285)
Strengths: Good frame with functional strength, solid spring session capped by a good A-Day
Weaknesses: Low production numbers up to this point, tweener size
Analysis: Black began his career at Nebraska and then transferred down a level to West Georgia. He had a good year at West Georgia, but not outstanding; he failed to move the needle at Nebraska. Alabama signed him as a depth piece, but Black was one of a couple of players in that vein who showed out a bit in spring and make you wonder if there might be something more there. There’s a pretty clear line drawn between Steve Mboumoua and Black; he will probably only play in blowouts, but if he keeps building upon his spring effort, he could make the second rotation before his career ends.
9. Mhari Johnson (Fr., 6-3, 286)
Strengths: Intelligent, good work ethic, played bigger than his listing in the spring
Weaknesses: No experience, tweener frame that could push him to Bandit
Analysis: Not much was expected from Johnson as spring opened, simply because of the number of bodies ahead of him on the initial depth chart. But Johnson turned in a solid spring and may have positioned himself for some late-game work as a true freshman. It remains to be seen whether he’ll eventually stick at tackle or end, but all signs this spring point to eventual success no matter where it happens.
10. Corey Howard (Fr., 6-6, 285)
Strengths: Positional flexibility for both end and tackle, excellent frame to handle added weight
Weaknesses: Didn’t appear to settle into a role in spring, needs to focus on assignments
Analysis: Howard appeared to line up more at Bandit than anywhere else at A-Day, but the large frame and the lack of elite quickness compared to others at the spot may wind up getting Howard into the rotation at tackle more quickly than at end. Howard was considered a developmental talent during the recruiting cycle, and Alabama has enough depth in front of him that it can afford to be patient and let him find the role that most suits him.
Bandit ends – Devan Thompkins, Desmond Umeozulu, Fatutoa Henry, Caleb Smith, Nolan Wilson, Malique Franklin
1. Devan Thompkins (Sr., 6-5, 298)
Strengths: Tackle size with end speed, strong hands that can frustrate offensive tackles, proven resume with high draft predictives
Weaknesses: Had issues playing inside at USC, can get stymied by double-teams and OL isolation tactics
Analysis: A lot of scouts believe Thompkins’ best position is exactly what he’ll be playing at Alabama, the strongside end slot where he can get a little bit outside of the wash at the line of scrimmage. His size would suggest the ability to slide inside, at least on passing downs, but a big reason why Thompkins is currently at Bama is the Kalen DeBoer staff’s intentions of having him come off the edge. Thompkins is a guy who has already improved mightily over his prep recruiting rankings, and some draft analysts believe he’s a potential first-round pick. He looked the part in the spring, and could wind up being a plug-in-play solution for the loss of L.T. Overton.
2. Desmond Umeozulu (Sr., 6-6, 253)
Strengths: Edge pass-rush skills in the frame of a defensive end, three years of experience in the SEC (South Carolina), cat-quick
Weaknesses: May not have the body for Bandit, run defense look solid but there are fears of him wearing down
Analysis: Umeozulu appears to play both end spots in the spring, and while he’s probably more of a Wolf linebacker than a Bandit end, the path to playing time has fewer roadblocks at Bandit. Umeozulu had a solid prep resume as an edge rusher, but while he was solid for South Carolina, he didn’t stand out. He appears to have put on a bit of size recently and did a solid job in both run and pass defense in the spring. It remains to be seen how Bama coaches will juggle a senior-heavy group of Umeozulu, Fatutoa Henry and Jah-Marien Latham, who is currently listed at Wolf.
3. Fatutoa Henry (Sr., 6-4, 272)
Strengths: Great JUCO tape, good size for the position at which he’s listed, decent pursuit speed
Weaknesses: Was a developmental prospect with just two years of playing eligibility, and the clock is running out
Analysis: Henry got a few snaps in critical situations last year but his A-Day work was limited. We’re not completely sure where the disconnect is, but this is Henry’s final season of college eligibility and it’s now or never. The addition of Desmond Umeozulu cuts significantly into Henry’s potential snap load. Despite his high ranking coming out of JUCO, most thought he was still raw, but could be developed. He’s on the borderline of getting playing time in 2026; maybe it finally happens for him.
4. Caleb Smith (RFr., 6-5, 277)
Strengths: Good frame, some positional flexibility, put together a good spring after being added as mostly a depth piece
Weaknesses: Doesn’t excel in any one category, probably limited to running downs at least early in his career
Analysis: Smith was a high school teammate of Jeremiah Beaman at Birmingham-Parker, but somehow found himself signing with Washington out of high school. He was on the team last year but didn’t play for the Huskies, and is now back home. Perhaps the change of scenery did something for him, because Smith was another one of those guys added for depth who seemed to be better than advertised, at least in spring drills. He has some time to develop, and looking forward, everyone else in front of him at Bandit is scheduled to run out of eligibility this year – assuming another court case regarding eligibility doesn’t pop up.
5. Nolan Wilson (Fr., 6-5, 250)
Strengths: Elite-level film as an edge player, has the frame to get bigger and slide inside
Weaknesses: No experience and wasn’t on campus for spring drills
Analysis: Wilson was probably the cream of the crop of Alabama’s defensive line signees, and if winds up at Bandit, he’s looking at a better-than-even chance of being the starter there in 2027. Whether he plays much in 2026 remains to be seen, but Alabama’s copious upperclassmen depth at the spot will allow the coaches to bring him along as slowly as he needs.
6. Malique Franklin (Fr., 6-6, 252)
Strengths: Good frame with the capacity to add weight and not lose speed
Weaknesses: No experience, wasn’t on campus for spring drills, developmental talent
Analysis: Franklin could wind up at tight end, Wolf or Bandit, perhaps even inside if he is able to add quality weight. He’s a home-state prospect coached by a former Bama player (Kenny King) who probably has a longer timeline to playing time than the other defensive line signees.