If there was ever a play that could make millions of people black out, it was 2nd and 26.

Tua Tagovailoa’s throw + DeVonta Smith’s catch = Alabama’s title.

It was a simple equation that, in typical Alabama fashion, fired everyone up about the future. After all, the classic play was made by 2 true freshmen. The natural assumption was that Tagovailoa would be the new Alabama starter and as a result, the Tide’s young receiving core would to be just fine in 2018.

Both of those things could be true. Tagovailoa could wind up being the most talented quarterback that Saban has had in Tuscaloosa.

But there’s still another major question that needs to be answered that, in my opinion, is the Tide’s greatest area of concern in 2018. The excitement of the walk-off touchdown might’ve made everyone forget about it. Now that we’ve had roughly 6 weeks to calm down, I’ll present the question again.

Are we sure about Alabama’s young receivers?

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Calvin Ridley, AKA the only Alabama player who averaged at least 20 receiving yards per game last season, is off to the NFL. Everyone knew that would happen. Riley spent his last 3 years as the Tide’s go-to target. Lord knows his versatility made life easier for plenty of his teammates.

In fact, Ridley was the only receiver who Jalen Hurts trusted. That’s been well-documented. Whether that was Hurts missing open receivers or young wideouts not being good enough route-runners, they still didn’t get many opportunities to make big plays. Some might assume that if Tagovailoa steps in, that issue is no longer because he’ll share the ball like he did against Georgia (he completed passes to 9 different players).

A few things on that.

First, I’m not trying to take away anything Tagovailoa did. The stones he showed to step into that spot and toss 3 touchdown passes was nothing short of legendary. And speaking of legends, that’s what Smith is in Tuscaloosa. Forever.

But one play doesn’t guarantee a productive career. How easy it is to forget that Smith had just 7 catches all season besides his game-winner, which was the result of a coverage breakdown (and a beautiful throw).

And another thing worth mentioning is Smith and his fellow young wideouts won’t have the luxury of playing against a defense that didn’t plan on facing their quarterback. They also won’t have the luxury of Ridley attracting all the attention. Instead, someone is going to have to step up and be the alpha. Maybe that’s multiple guys.

Smith, Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs III all came to Alabama as highly-touted freshmen last year. All of them will face the task of taking a major step up at the same stage in their careers. In addition to Ridley, even seniors like Cam Simms and Robert Foster are gone. That’s going to create an interesting dynamic among that returning group of wideouts.

And while the usual school of thought is “Alabama just reloads,” it’s not like there’s a whole new crop of 5-star receivers coming in. Nick Saban signed a pair of 4-star wideouts and 3-star all-purpose back Slade Bolden is expected to play in the slot. Alabama missed out on 4-star receivers Jacob Copeland (much to his mom’s chagrin) and Justyn Ross on the February signing day.

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So what does that all mean? Is Alabama doomed to have an ineffective passing game like it did throughout 2017? Not necessarily.

If Tagovailoa is the real deal — remember that’s still an “if” — then the Tide’s young wideouts will be in much better position to succeed than they were in 2017. They won’t have to worry about whether they’ll get the ball if they’re streaking down the sideline with 10 yards on a defensive back. They’ll have a quarterback who can work through his progressions and find the open man. Don’t underestimate the addition of receivers coach Josh Gattis, either.

But there are growing pains that come with that. There’s still a rapport that needs to be developed. One half of meaningful football doesn’t establish that, no matter how incredible it is.

This offseason is going to be extremely important for Alabama’s receivers. With all the attention on the quarterback battle, they’ll still need to develop chemistry with both Hurts and Tagovailoa while taking their own individual games to the next level. That’s not an easy thing to do.

So far, all we’ve seen from Jeudy, Ruggs and Smith are flashes. Some of those flashes were big, bright flashes, but they were still just flashes. It’s up to them to make up for the loss of Ridley. How and if that happens is, at the very least, a question.

If that isn’t answered, it can certainly keep the Tide from rolling in 2018.