2007 Roster Released

Finally, the 2007 roster has been released at RollTide.com.

I wanted to track the weight changes a bit, and that has been relatively interesting stuff. Generally speaking, guys who needed to get bigger have generally done so, and those that needed to trim down have seemingly done so as well.

A few notes on that front:

• D.J. Hall, who nearly everyone pointed out needed to get more physical, gained 9 pounds, going from 186 to 195.
  

• Jimmy Johns is bigger than ever, up 6 pounds to 233 pounds. No, those rumors of him being up to 250 are obviously incorrect, but he's big, to say the least. I don't think I can ever recall us having a true tailback at over 230 pounds, not in a while at least.
  

• Prince Hall has apparently made major strides, thinning down big time, as all had hoped he would. He has apparently trimmed off 20 pounds, going from 255 to 235.
  

• Justin Woodall, too, has made major strides, going from 213 pounds to 224 pounds. He's legitimately big enough to play linebacker now, but if he stays at safety he is going to be as physical as they come. Just another reason as to why I think he gets a starting job this year.

• Justin Britt has trimmed down by six pounds. Not too surprising considering a lot of people thought dropping a few pounds would help him in pass protection.
  

• Glen Coffee apparently lost a ton of weight. The 2006 roster has him at 225 pounds, but the 2007 roster has him at only 197 pounds. That's a loss of 28 pounds, and unless that is a typo, that is very odd.
  

• B.J. Stabler has apparently gotten in shape, big-time. He was never regarded as a "workout warrior" before, but if the rosters are accurate, that has changed. He has dropped 13 pounds, going from 307 to 294. Big strides from him, and that will certainly make it much easier for him to play right tackle, if that needs to be the case.
  

• Andre Smith has dropped a much needed eight pounds, going from 348 to 340. That's good news, as it could put his actual playing weight around 330-335 during the season itself, so that's definitely good news for us, and well, bad news for everyone else.

• Marlon Davis has really busted his tail in the S&C program, apparently, as he's dropped a full 21 pounds. He has went from 311 to 290.
  

• Mike McCoy has also leaned down big time. 'BamaMag ran an article a couple of weeks ago about how players felt he was really going to surprise this year, and how he had made massive strides in the S&C program. According to the rosters, he has dropped 18 pounds, going from 217 to 199. Apparently he's dropped a lot of weight and got in great shape.
  

• Earl Alexander has gotten bigger, as you would expect from someone with a 6'4 frame. He's gained nine pounds, going from 201 to 210.

• Nick Walker has dropped a good bit of weight, going down 15 pounds from 270 to 255. I think it shows that the coaching staff now is looking for a more nimble guy at tight end who can be a legitimate receiving threat.
  

• Preston Dial, too, has trimmed down big-time. He has dropped 17 pounds, going from 240 to 223. At 223 pounds, I don't see him at tight end. I'm imagining that the coaching staff has him pegged for the H-back position. He certainly has the athleticism from that spot to be a threat.
  

• Lorenzo Washington has bulked up a good bit, gaining 14 pounds. He went up from 269 to 283. He's still too small for defensive tackle, but he could play end quite well at that weight.
  

• Brandon Fanney dropped a ton of weight, as expected. He has moved from the defensive line to the Jack position, and has dropped 12 pounds. He has went from 253 to 241. Not too surprising, I don't believe.
  

All in all, it seems to be very positive stuff from the off-season S&C program. Guys who needed to get bigger generally got bigger, and guys who needed to trim down generally got smaller. It's good news, on the surface. I can't recall us ever making leaps like this in the S&C program under Shula.

Finally, the incoming freshmen have also been added to the roster, so I'll go ahead and post the reporting weights for a few players:

• Rolando McClain reported as the absolute beast that everyone expected. It's no secret he had been following the Saban workout regimen religiously with his own personal trainer, and it shows. He showed up at 6'4 and 255 pounds, and everything I have seen has people gushing over his condition. Much like how Jimmy Johns blew everyone away a couple of years ago.
  

• Luther Davis reported at 6'4 and 275 pounds. That's good news, to say the least. At 275 pounds, he could easily see playing time at defensive end this year.
  

• Alfred McCullough apparently gained a good bit of weight from the end of his senior season, and reported at 317 pounds.
  

• Josh Chapman, too, showed up at a nice weight, coming in at 300 pounds.
  

• Patrick Crump will almost certainly be headed for a redshirt year. He showed up at 267 pounds, and that's not near big enough to play on the offensive line. Not that he was expected to anyway, but the point remains the same.
  

All in all, it's pretty good news. The defensive linemen generally showed up in good shape. Considering McCullough and Chapman reported at 300 pounds and above, it's likely due to lack of depth alone that they will be destined to play this year. And the same largely goes for Luther Davis as well.

And Rolando McClain looks like he could start from day one.

Seemingly a good news day all the way around.