Alabama's Shaun Dion Hamilton appreciative of another season

Alabama senior inside linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton goes through a pass-catching drill during a recent practice in Tuscaloosa.
Alabama senior inside linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton goes through a pass-catching drill during a recent practice in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama senior inside linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton turned the Crimson Tide's fortunes during last December's drubbing of Florida in the Southeastern Conference championship game.

Then fortune turned on him.

A torn ACL late in the second quarter against the Gators prevented Hamilton from competing in the Peach Bowl national semifinal against Washington and the title contest of the four-team playoff against Clemson. Hamilton was Alabama's third-leading tackler at the time he went down, and he may be first on the roster now in appreciation for preseason camp.

"Being out there with my teammates again is just a blessing," Hamilton said in a recent news conference. "This has been pretty difficult to go through, and I had my days, but you just have to embrace the challenge. I didn't get too down on myself. I've got great teammates and a great support staff, and they helped me get over it."

The Crimson Tide returned to practice Monday afternoon after taking Sunday off, and they worked out for two hours in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts. They will wear full pads for the first time today.

Alabama's 54-16 rout of Florida certainly didn't start that way, as quarterback Austin Appleby marched the Gators 64 yards in 10 plays for a surprising 7-0 lead. Appleby's next pass, however, was intercepted by Hamilton and returned 40 yards to the Florida 12, which set up an Adam Griffith field goal.

Appleby's next attempt was intercepted as well, with Minkah Fitzpatrick racing 44 yards for a touchdown and a 10-7 advantage that grew quickly from there.

Hamilton, a 6-foot, 235-pounder from Montgomery, was playing in his 42nd game out of a possible 42 since signing with the Tide in 2014 as a four-star prospect and enrolling early. He has made 17 career starts entering his final go-around, and coach Nick Saban likes what he's seen so far in Hamilton's comeback.

"He's worked really hard and is doing really well," Saban said. "I think he's confident that he's healthy. He's got a very good understanding of our defense and what we do and the concepts of how we play things.

"I think that's going to benefit him."

Hamilton had 64 tackles and nine tackles for loss last year, with 52 of his 64 stops coming on run plays. He did not get to finish with several defenders who were drafted by NFL teams: linemen Jonathan Allen and Dalvin Tomlinson, fellow inside linebacker Reuben Foster, outside linebackers Ryan Anderson and Tim Williams and cornerback Marlon Humphrey.

Another drafted defender, safety Eddie Jackson, had a season-ending injury in late October against Texas A&M.

Although Da'Ron Payne is back up front and the secondary is loaded with the return of Fitzpatrick, Ronnie Harrison, Anthony Averett and Tony Brown, there are plenty of questions that must be answered defensively before the Crimson Tide suit up Sept. 2 against Florida State at the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

"We've got a standard here now where all we do is reload," Hamilton said, "so guys who didn't have big roles last year are embracing the challenge."

Inside linebacker could be Alabama's defensive strength, with Hamilton and fifth-year senior Rashaan Evans occupying first-team roles and Keith Holcombe, Mack Wilson and Dylan Moses waiting in the wings.

Hamilton has been instructing younger teammates to play every play as if it's the last one, because one never knows when things can be taken away. Hamilton has experience with that now, and he's hoping last season will be followed by the longest and most enjoyable year of his life.

"I'm not ready to be grown," Hamilton said, smiling, "so I'm going to embrace every day. I don't want this time to fly by."

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.

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