A-DAY GAME
When: Saturday at 3 p.m. EDTWhere: Bryant-Denny StadiumTelevision: ESPN
Alabama football coach Nick Saban opted for familiarity in December when he hired Jeremy Pruitt to replace Kirby Smart as defensive coordinator.
Pruitt coordinated Georgia's defenses the past two seasons and was Florida State's defensive coordinator during the national championship run by the Seminoles in 2013, and he spent six seasons in Tuscaloosa before that. Pruitt coached the Crimson Tide secondary from 2010 to 2012, and the program won national titles in 2011 and 2012.
"It's been a really smooth transition," junior inside linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton said recently in a news conference. "Coach Pruitt is a great coach, and he's a guy I'm going to love playing for."
Saban called Pruitt a "no-brainer" of a hire to replace Smart, who is in his first year as Georgia's head coach, but Pruitt's responsibilities are different from before.
Not only is he overseeing the entire unit for the first time at Alabama, but Pruitt is specifically working with inside linebackers. The Crimson Tide lost top inside linebacker Reggie Ragland from last season's national champions and are working Reuben Foster and Hamilton inside when they're in a 3-4 base package.
When Alabama shifts to a nickel package, Rashaan Evans lines up alongside Foster. Evans played last season at outside linebacker and had two sacks of Clemson's Deshaun Watson in the national championship game, and he's had 15 tackles and two sacks through the first two spring scrimmages.
"Rashaan has made a lot of plays," Saban said after Saturday's second scrimmage. "I also think that, because this is a new position for him, he probably makes more mental errors and struggles to feel comfortable knowing exactly what to do sometimes. If we can get him over the hump in that regard, he could be a really, really good player for us."
Working Evans inside has been Alabama's biggest spring storyline defensively.
The Crimson Tide held their 13th practice Tuesday, working out for two hours in full pads, and will practice again Thursday before conducting their annual A-Day game Saturday afternoon in Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Alabama has been without two injured defensive starters all spring - end Jonathan Allen and safety Eddie Jackson - and nearly everyone on that side of the ball has been asked to compare the personalities of their former and current superiors.
"I would probably say that Coach Smart is the kind of a coach who's a loud, get-in-your-face type of guy," Hamilton said. "I won't say that Coach Pruitt is laid back, because when you make him mad he is definitely going to get on you. They're just different styles."
Hamilton hasn't noticed much of a difference overall on defense, a sentiment that has been echoed by end Da'Shawn Hand and outside linebacker Ryan Anderson. Hand was back at practice Tuesday after sitting out Saturday's scrimmage with back spasms.
Another aspect that hasn't seemed to change is that the Crimson Tide will provide their share of defenders in the NFL draft later this month but have another wave of youthful talent making its way through the ranks.
"At Alabama, there is never a drop-off," Hamilton said. "We just keep on coming."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.