June has transitioned into July, meaning the calendar is inching closer to the beginning of football season.
There are now nine weeks until Alabama football returns to the gridiron, so it’s time to take a look at the best Crimson Tide players to don the No. 9.
Wearing the number this year will be cornerback Cam Calhoun and running back Richard Young. Here are the best players to wear the number nine in the program’s history.
Amari Cooper, 2012-2014, wide receiver
The four-star recruit out of Miami chose Alabama over programs such as Ohio State, Florida State and his hometown of Miami.
He made an impact right away in Tuscaloosa, playing all 14 games of his freshman year in starting in the final nine. Cooper led the way for the Crimson Tide receiving corps with team highs of 59 receptions, 1,000 yards, and 11 touchdowns, and was named a consensus All-American.
His sophomore season saw him miss a couple of games due to injury, but he still snagged 45 receptions for a team-high 736 yards. Cooper’s junior season would be his finest one yet, snagging 124 passes for a notably high 1,727 yards and 16 touchdowns, both school records at the time. He won the Biletnikoff award, given to the best wide receiver in college football, and was a consensus All-American.
Cooper had several iconic moments at Alabama, including catching a 99-yard touchdown pass in the 2013 Iron Bowl and snagging the game-winning touchdown in the 2012 SEC championship against Georgia.
Jordan Battle, 2019-2022, safety
Hailing from Fort Lauderdale in Florida, Battle was originally committed to Ohio State but ultimately flipped to Alabama in the later stages of his recruitment.
He saw extended time on the field during his freshman season, playing in 13 games and starting four of them, recording 30 tackles with a sack and an interception. Battle took firm control of a starting safety spot in 2020, ranking third on the team with 66 tackles, including three for loss, and recording a pick-six on the year.
Battle broke out as a star in 2021, leading the team with three interceptions, two of which were pick-sixes, and recording 86 tackles with three pass breakups. He was named a third-team All-American and a first-team All-SEC.
The safety saw similar success in 2022, again being named a third-team All-American and first-team All-SEC, as he recorded 71 tackles, two pass breakups, and an interception. Battle recorded an interception in his final college game against Kansas State.
Bryce Young, 2020-2022, quarterback
From the star-studded Mater Dei High School in California, Young was a consensus five-star prospect and No. 1 quarterback in his class. He originally committed to stay home at USC but flipped to Alabama. Young spent his freshman season backing up Mac Jones and appeared in nine games.
Young took over the reins as starter in 2021 and broke out as a superstar, passing for 4,872 yards and 47 touchdowns with three rushing touchdowns. He was a consensus All-American and ultimately won the Heisman Trophy, awarded to the best player in college football.
His follow-up to his Heisman season saw him deal with a shoulder injury he sustained against Arkansas, missing two games and hampering him for the rest of the season. But he still performed well, passing for 3,328 yards and 36 touchdowns in 12 games.
Young brought plenty of iconic moments in Tuscaloosa, most notably his heroics in the 2021 Iron Bowl against Auburn or his 421-yard, three-touchdown performance in the 2021 SEC Championship against Georgia.
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