ALABAMA FOOTBALL: Smith gets another chance in front of NFL scouts

It is gameday for Andre Smith.

The talented left tackle, who drew national criticism for a poor appearance at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis last month, hopes to reclaim some of the draft status he reportedly lost at Alabama’s Pro Day today.

Smith, who did not work out and interviewed, reportedly badly, in Indianapolis, will be among several Alabama players going through speed and strength drills for NFL scouts.

It is the first of a couple big days for Alabama football this week. On Friday, the Crimson Tide begin spring practice. They will work for one day, then have a week off for spring break, before returning to school and the other 14 practice sessions, including the A-Day Game, which
will be nationally televised on ESPN on April 18.

Because Smith’s stock has fallen, bringing more NFL teams into the mix, and because it is his only workout before the draft, more NFL teams will be eager to see today’s workout in Tuscaloosa.

That exposure could help Crimson Tide teammates who are also auditioning for a job today.

Center Antoine Caldwell, running back Glen Coffee, safety Rashad Johnson and tight ends Nick Walker and Travis McCall are expected to work out. Several former Tide players may also participate.

Alabama football coach Nick Saban told reporters last week in Tuscaloosa that he has counseled Smith since he suspended him and sent him home from the Sugar Bowl. Smith was with the team on the floor at Coleman Coliseum last Tuesday at the Auburn-Alabama basketball game when the Tide football team accepted the ODK Trophy for winning the Iron Bowl.

“I talk to Andre quite a bit. I tried to give him as much positive feedback, relative to what he needs to be doing, and how important it is to have good people around him right now that are giving him information about what he should and shouldn’t do,” Saban said.

“It doesn’t make any difference if it’s Andre, or anybody else — I encourage all our guys to work at the Combine. I’m not a proponent of not doing anything. ... I certainly think in Andre’s case, with his athleticism and his ability to run, his character, his attitude, he would have enhanced his position by doing more.”

Saban praised his players’ effort in the fourth-quarter conditioning program.

“I think strength and conditioning is, you develop a capacity for it,” Saban said. “It’s like blowing up a balloon. The first time you blow it up, it’s really hard. The next time you blow it up, it’s easy to get it back to where the balloon was, and it gets harder to get to the next level.

“But I think you’re always increasing that capacity with your team and the players. And I’ve been pleased with the progress we’ve made and the work ethic and so forth that we’ve had in that part of it.”

He’s eager to see that effort pay off on the field. That starts Friday because one of the Tide’s originally scheduled workouts was going to fall on Easter weekend.

“I’m always a little bit sensitive about Easter,” Saban said. “The only way to do the odd day out was to have it before or after, so we decided to have it before. Really, those first two days in helmets are teaching days anyway, so it’s not bad to kind of have a day under our belt.”