As a result of their conference record, Alabama missed making the SEC Championship Game, which is set to be played Saturday. The two teams playing are the Texas Longhorns and Georgia Bulldogs with the game taking place in Atlanta.

But linebacker Darrell Johnson, a 6-foot-1, 200-pound four-star out of Eastman, Georgia, said he's talked with Crimson Tide defensive back coaches before his arrival. While he said he plans to arrive as a future Mike linebacker, Johnson said his positionless versatility is what helped him catch the eye of Alabama.

It wasn’t quite good enough to make the first 12-team College Football Playoff, but head coach Kalen DeBoer faces a mandate to get the Alabama Crimson Tide back in the national title race in 2025. Step one on that road is complete,