Alabama has starting experience returning at quarterback, running back and receiver this year, but the same can't be said at place-kicker.
Adam Griffith, who starred at Calhoun (Ga.) High School before signing with the Crimson Tide in 2012, was Nick Saban's starting kicker for the 2014-16 seasons. Now the role is being sought by fifth-year senior Andy Pappanastos and freshman Joseph Bulovas, and they are expected to be under the microscope this afternoon during Alabama's first preseason scrimmage.
"We have work to do there," Saban said in a news conference Thursday evening when asked about the kicking game, "and that's with the timing of the specialists and the other special-teams players, the operation time and blocking schemes. What happens Saturday will tell us more than what happens in practice."
The Crimson Tide held their eighth preseason workout Friday morning, practicing in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts for roughly two hours.
Pappanastos, a 5-foot-11, 190-pounder from Montgomery, was Griffith's backup last season after transferring from Ole Miss. He kicked off twice for the Crimson Tide, made all six of his extra-point attempts and made his lone field-goal try, a 33-yarder against the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
Bulovas, a 6-foot, 212-pounder from Mandeville, La., scored nine of the East's 27 points during January's U.S. Army All-American Bowl, including a 49-yard field goal that decided the contest.
Alabama's scrimmage inside Bryant-Denny Stadium will be closed to the media and to the public.
"When we have the first scrimmage, especially with the younger players, it's really important to see who has taken the knowledge and experience that they've gained in the short amount of time that they've been here and go out and be able to execute without a coach standing behind them," Saban said.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.