Spring statistics can be misleading, and spring awards are hollow.
It’s what happens in the fall that counts.
But has there been a more dominant player this spring in the SEC than Alabama junior defensive end Marcell Dareus?
He had five sacks in the Crimson Tide’s scrimmage Saturday after collecting four in the first scrimmage. Alabama’s scrimmages are closed to the public and the media, but it’s clear that Dareus is poised for an All-America-type season in 2010.
Alabama coach Nick Saban told me when I was there two weeks ago that Dareus was the best defensive end on the team last season. He certainly made his presence felt in the BCS National Championship Game, earning defensive MVP honors.
What makes Dareus so effective in Alabama’s 3-4 defensive scheme is that he’s as good rushing the passer as he is playing the run.
He knows this is his time, too, not to mention this team’s time.
“We’re looking for leaders on defense with all the guys we lost, and that’s something I’m ready to take on,” Dareus said. “We’re all looking for our own identity this year. We’re not the team we were last year. We’re not the team we were two years ago. We are this team now.
“It’s all about what this team can do, and I like the hunger I see out there."
It’s what happens in the fall that counts.
But has there been a more dominant player this spring in the SEC than Alabama junior defensive end Marcell Dareus?
He had five sacks in the Crimson Tide’s scrimmage Saturday after collecting four in the first scrimmage. Alabama’s scrimmages are closed to the public and the media, but it’s clear that Dareus is poised for an All-America-type season in 2010.
Alabama coach Nick Saban told me when I was there two weeks ago that Dareus was the best defensive end on the team last season. He certainly made his presence felt in the BCS National Championship Game, earning defensive MVP honors.
What makes Dareus so effective in Alabama’s 3-4 defensive scheme is that he’s as good rushing the passer as he is playing the run.
He knows this is his time, too, not to mention this team’s time.
“We’re looking for leaders on defense with all the guys we lost, and that’s something I’m ready to take on,” Dareus said. “We’re all looking for our own identity this year. We’re not the team we were last year. We’re not the team we were two years ago. We are this team now.
“It’s all about what this team can do, and I like the hunger I see out there."
- ESPN.com SEC blogger
- Joined ESPN.com in 2007
- Wrote for The (Nashville) Tennessean
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Chris Low
Low joined ESPN.com in 2007 after 10 years with The (Nashville) Tennessean covering the University of Tennessee and SEC. The Rock Hill, S.C., native lives with his wife in Knoxville and has three sons.
Edward Aschoff
Aschoff joined ESPN.com in 2011 after spending four years covering the University of Florida for The Gainesville Sun. He grew up in Oxford, Miss., before attending UF, graduating with a B.S. in journalism.
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