TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Before Alabama cranks spring practice up into high gear with Monday’s return to the field, an offseason refresher to this point is in order.
There has been plenty of scattered news and notes that are easy to miss during the post-football-season hangover and now March Madness.
So let’s get caught up on the news since Alabama fell to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl.
Roster turnover
First, the good kinds of turnover (no, not the Arby's snack).
Amari Cooper, Landon Collins and T.J. Yeldon all declared for the NFL draft as juniors. Cooper and Collins are expected to go in the first round, with Yeldon following shortly behind.
All three were generally expected to turn pro. This came as no shock to anyone inside or outside of the Mal Moore Athletic Facility. They will be sent off to the NFL leaving nothing but fond memories behind.
Reggie Ragland and Jarran Reed, meanwhile, decided to come back for senior seasons.
"I wanted to come back and get even smarter for the game, because I know at the next level, if you're not smart playing on the inside, you're not going to last that long,” Ragland said of his decision. “So I wanted to come back and learn more from coach (Nick) Saban, and coach (Kirby) Smart, and all the defensive guys that we've got coaching."
Then, there’s the not-so-good turnover.
Running back Altee Tenpenny—a former 4-star used sparingly during his first two years on campus who has gotten into his fair share of trouble—announced he was transferring from the program in a since-deleted tweet. Tenpenny has yet to find a transfer landing spot, though home-state Arkansas, who initially recruited him out of high school, could be a candidate.
Defensive lineman Dee Liner, who appeared in four games in his two years in Tuscaloosa, also announced his transfer via Twitter:
Liner was a 4-star in-state prospect who had a down-to-the-wire recruitment between Alabama and Auburn. His redshirt was burned on the last series of the Crimson Tide’s 2013 game against Tennessee, his only action that year. He found himself with a loaded depth chart ahead of him and decided to leave with two more years of eligibility remaining.
Otherwise, there are several more players whose 2015 statuses seem up in the air.
Running back Tyren Jones was suspended indefinitely back in February and remains so into spring practice, leaving Alabama a little thin in the backfield.
Saban also said offensive lineman Grant Hill "has still got medical leave, and we're not prepared to make any decisions about what his future status is."
Staff changes
Alabama did some shuffling on the coaching staff and had one key assistant remain on board.
Outside linebackers coach Lance Thompson was hired by Auburn to do the same job across the state. And LSU hired inside linebackers coach Kevin Steele to be its defensive coordinator.
The Crimson Tide promoted Tosh Lupoi from intern to outside linebackers coach after his one-year buyout at Washington expired. Defensive coordinator Kirby Smart moved from a one-year stint working with the secondary back to inside linebackers, where he had worked during Alabama’s championship run. And former Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Mel Tucker was hired as the new secondary coach.
Not much changed on the offensive side, which is a good thing after a record-setting year on that side of the ball. After reports connected him to the San Francisco 49ers’ offensive coordinator job, Alabama announced Kiffin would be returning for his second year:
Behind the scenes, director of football operations Joe Pannunzio left to take a job with the Philadelphia Eagles, according to TideSports.com’s Aaron Suttles. He was replaced by Justin Dickens, who worked in the same capacity at Michigan.
Tyler Siskey, Alabama’s director of player personnel, left to be the wide receivers coach at South Alabama. Jody Wright, who held the same position at UAB, was hired as his replacement.
The Crimson Tide also added two more to its staff, including one with a recognizable name, per Suttles:
Another No. 1 recruiting class comes with controversy
Alabama pulled in the 247Sports Composite’s No. 1 recruiting class for the fifth straight year on national signing day.
Seven of the 24-man class is already on campus in addition to Bo Scarbrough, a 2014 signee who is now eligible.
It included the No. 2 dual-threat quarterback in Blake Barnett, as well as five other 5-star prospects.
But the class came with a good bit of controversy.
Jonathan Taylor was the lone JUCO signee, and he comes with his fair share of baggage, a massive risk for Saban and Alabama to undertake. Taylor reportedly choked and struck his then-girlfriend with a closed fist, leading to his dismissal from Georgia, and that was after he had already been arrested for theft-by-deception after double-cashing meal checks.
The decision to admit Taylor divided the fanbase and UA administration, and Saban said he will be keeping a close eye on Taylor during his time at Alabama.
“This was a decision that got made by a lot of people here. It was a university decision,” Saban said. “We recruited this young man out of high school and we felt that from what we knew about him, what his high school coach said, what the people at the school that he was at said about him, and where he came from in junior college, that he was the kind of guy that deserved a second chance.
“But with that chance, we also have stipulations of things that he needs to do from a personal development standpoint so that he won't make any kind of mistake like this ever again.
“That's an ongoing process with him, and that's something that we continue to monitor and he has done a very good job with.”
Marc Torrence is the Alabama Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. All quotes and reporting were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
Follow on Twitter @marctorrence.