Alabama football’s offensive line has had a world of trouble protecting quarterback Jalen Milroe throughout the 2023 season. The Crimson Tide signal-caller has been sacked 26 times so far this season, five of which came last week against Arkansas.

Some of them are due to Milroe’s tendency to hold the ball a beat too long. However, the offensive line has been a major area of concern.

“I do think we have guys that are capable,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said Monday. “I think it goes back to that same attention to detail. There’s little things like in certain protections, I know I have inside help. So why would I get beat outside? Does that make sense? These are not all capability issues.”

When Milroe was sacked more than four times in the Arkansas game, it was the the fifth consecutive game that happened in, which, as ESPN’s Heather Dinich pointed out during the game, tied the longest such streak in the past 20 years of FBS football.

A huge part of the issue stems from left tackle. Alabama has two youngsters playing the position, with true freshman Kadyn Proctor and redshirt freshman Elijah Pritchett both getting snaps.

According to Pro Football Focus’ advanced stats, Proctor, who has seen the lion’s share of playing time, has allowed seven sacks this season, three over the past two games and two against Arkansas. Pritchett allowed three, all against Arkansas.

Offensive guard Tyler Booker said he, along with tackle JC Latham, is taking more time to chat with the team’s younger offensive linemen this week.

“I’m telling these guys to be a lot more consistent,” Booker said. “The thing that gets them in trouble is not focusing on their technique. The guys, they have all the talent in the world, it’s just consistency and focusing on technique, so that’s what I’m going to be reiterating to them all week long.”

Alabama faces Tennessee this week. The Volunteers have a fearsome defensive front, ranking third in the SEC this season with 24 sacks so far.

UT has plenty of speed on the edge, so the tackles will be crucial in keeping Milroe upright. Unfortunately for Alabama, it’s an immensely difficult position to learn on the fly during SEC competition.

“A lot of the challenge comes from the speed on the outside,” Booker said. “When you’re on the inside, like I was last year, there’s not much of a speed element. When you’re on that edge, on that island by yourself, you have to adjust to the speed and the multitude of moves somebody could throw at you. When you’re on the inside you have two side boys, but when you’re on that island, you’re essentially out there by yourself.”

Booker pointed out that the offensive line has had troubles besides the play of Proctor and Pritchett. And he’s right, the unit that spoke so much about dominating teams during the offseason has struggled once the games began.

Still, the problems there can’t be ignored. On Monday, Saban was asked if he’d considered moving Latham to the left side, and Booker fielded a question Tuesday on whether he had discussed kicking out to tackle with the coaches.

“None. That’s just not really a concern of ours,” Booker said. “Our concern is just doing what the coaches tell us to do, being able to execute wherever they put us. So if I am called upon to do that, I’ll be ready for it, but I haven’t had any talks with the coaches about that. So my concern is just doing my job and just helping those guys at tackle improve.”

He wasn’t giving up hope on Pritchett and Proctor either. Proctor was a five-star prospect, while Pritchett was a four-star.

Like Saban said, the talent is there.

“I’m really proud of both those guys for the way they’re weathering the storm right now,” Booker said. “Brighter days are definitely ahead, I like how they improve each week.”