The 3 Alabama freshmen that will have the biggest impact in 2026

The 2025 season was a big step for Kalen DeBoer as the new Alabama head coach cracked the College Football Playoff field in his second season. The task now for Kalen DeBoer and company is building on that run while fixing some of the flaws that showed up in Alabama's 4 losses. The Crimson Tide weren't major players in the Transfer Portal creating a ton of opportunity for incoming freshmen.

Alabama constantly recruits at an elite level which has continued into the beginning of the Kalen DeBoer era. The Crimson Tide finished with the 6th-ranked recruiting class in the 2026 recruiting cycle giving this staff a great infusion of young talent.

These 3 freshmen are set for instant stardom at Alabama

Cederian Morgan

Alabama has become a great developmental program for elite wide receivers over the past several years. Coming into the program is a truly rare talent in wide receiver Cederian Morgan who finished the cycle as a top 50 recruit. At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Morgan is already flashing his ability at Spring practice, and he should have a key role in the offense.

Ezavier Crowell

One of Alabama's biggest issues in 2025 was an inability to run the ball effectively, especially against top teams. An easy way to help bounce back is signing a player as talented as 5-star recruit Ezavier Crowell. In just 3 seasons of High School football, Crowell racked up 6,333 yards and 91 touchdowns which should help make him a key figure in the offense.

Jireh Edwards

The strength of Alabama's defense next season is going to be the loaded defensive back room which returns a ton of elite playmakers. While the room is crowded, 5-star safety Jireh Edwards is going to be too talented to keep off the field. Jireh Edwards already looks the part, and should have a smooth transition to college football.