If Kadyn Proctor is out for Alabama, Elijah Pritchett is the perfect 'understudy'

In theater, one of the toughest roles to fill is being an understudy. You might never get used at all, and emotionally you have to handle that. On the flipside, when the director or producer comes knocking, you have to be ready to fill in and not miss a beat.

During Week 1, Alabama offensive lineman Elijah Pritchett learned all too well of being an understudy.

Not even a half hour before kicking off the 2024 season against Western Kentucky, starting left tackle Kadyn Proctor had a freak shoulder injury that took him out of the game. Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer had to alert Pritchett just minutes before kickoff that he was starting for Proctor.

Overall, DeBoer was pleased with Pritchett having to step up in a moment's notice, "Yeah, [Elijah Pritchett] got thrown into [playing left tackle] on Saturday. Maybe all but the first three or four practices, maybe a couple more early in fall camp, he was at right tackle ever since then. So just 30 minutes before kickoff, all of a sudden, you're realizing you're going to be the starting left tackle now. [I'm] really proud of the way he responded. It didn't feel like he was overwhelmed in any way. He took a lot of snaps, actually most of his snaps this spring, at left tackle along next to Tyler Booker. So that was very helpful...A lot of those reps were really valuable for him feeling comfortable on Saturday."

Left guard Tyler Booker, who played right beside Pritchett, gave glowing reviews as well, “I think Pritch had a really good game. Obviously, there is room for improvement from everybody. For Pritch, who has been working at right tackle for a while, to go in there and play left tackle, he hasn’t played that in a while, he played a really good game. I am very excited to see how he progresses through the season.”

With DeBoer alluding to Proctor is week-to-week due to the nature of his shoulder injury, DeBoer has a luxury of not having to rush Proctor back and build depth with Pritchett.