First and 10: Alabama has almost everything it needs to win another title. Almost ...

1. I don’t want to get on a soapbox, but …

This has been bothering me all offseason, an obvious red flag whipping at the very top of the flagpole.

Or in this case, college football hierarchy.

Alabama is a prohibitive favorite to reach the Playoff and win the national championship, its seventh under coach Nick Saban. Best player on offense, best player on defense, best coach in the game.

Only there’s one teeny-weeny problem we all witnessed last season and apparently are still ignoring.

Who exactly is Alabama’s No. 1 receiver? Or for that matter, the Tide’s No. 2 receiver?

The 2 players with the greatest upside — Georgia transfer Jermaine Burton and Louisville transfer Tyler Harrell — have a combined 73 career catches. The rest of the position group is full of freshmen signees, or former 4- and 5-star recruits who haven’t developed (more on that later).

When Saban was asked last week about this team moving forward, his answer was straightforward yet telling — especially when seen through the lens of the looming unknown at the wide receiver position.

“The question remains,” Saban said. “Can you complete a simple task on a repetitive basis to play winning football?”

Before we go further and delve deep into the unraveling of the wide receiver position at Alabama, we need to look at the final 3 games of last season. Those games — the SEC Championship, the Playoff semifinal and the national championship game — clearly define what happens with the Alabama offense and star QB Bryce Young when there are issues at wide receiver (and the offensive line, another potential issue in 2022).

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John Metchie III tore his ACL in the second quarter of the SEC Championship Game, with the game tied at 17. From that point on, the Alabama offense got predictable — but played well enough to win the game (with help from a critical pick-6 from the defense).

Before Metchie’s injury, Young completed 16-of-25 passes for 272 yards and 2 TDs. After the injury, he was 10-of-19 for 149 yards and 1 TD — that TD, a 55-yard deep ball to Jameson Williams (the best wide receiver in the nation in 2021), was the only passing game highlight of the second half.

Without that deep ball — where Williams beat double coverage with a double move — Young was a pedestrian 9-of-18 for 94 yards.

In the Playoff semifinal against Cincinnati, Alabama’s limited options outside of Williams were exposed when the Bearcats doubled Williams and forced the other options to beat them.

Young was 17-of-28 for a season-low 181 yards, and Alabama converted just 5-of-13 third downs — well below their average of more than 50 percent.

Finally, there’s the national championship game, where Georgia did exactly what Cincinnati did: rolled coverage to Williams and forced others to beat them. Without Metchie, Williams was limited to 3 catches for 25 yards until he finally broke free on a 40-yard skinny post midway through the second quarter — and tore his ACL on the catch.

From that point on — with the game tied at 3 and Young having completed 10-of-16 passes for 104 yards — the bottom fell out of the Tide passing game. Granted, losing two All-American caliber players would hurt any offense, but it clearly underscores where this offense is without a legitimate threat (or threats) on the outside.

Young was 25-of-41 for 265 yards, 1 TD and 2 INT over the remainder of the game, and averaged 6.5 yards per attempt — well below his season average of more than 9 yards per attempt, a statistical red flag in a category typically evaluated on tenths of a yard gained or lost.

A high percentage of quarterbacks will regress when forced to play without their top 2 targets. That’s an obvious reality.

The problem is, Young will again play without Williams and Metchie this season — and Alabama is relying on a decidedly unproven receiving corps.

Maybe Alabama is the prohibitive favorite, but at the very least, this gives pause.

2. Retooling the receivers

The narrative with Burton is compelling. The former 5-star recruit got caught up in the safe Georgia offense, and only really shined when QB JT Daniels played the last month of the 2020 season and opened up the offense.

With Stetson Bennett as quarterback, Burton’s production dipped.

Fine, let’s go with that. But understand this: After spring practice, after seeing 15 practices with Burton — and more important, with the rest of the Alabama receiving corps — Saban signed Harrell (a burner, but a project) and was desperately pursuing Pitt All-American Jordan Addison.

Alabama signed 5 receivers in the 2022 class, and Kobe Prentice has practiced well enough in fall camp to be able to contribute (likely in the slot) this season. Other than that, the offense will rely on the same receivers who failed to consistently assert themselves last season when called upon.

Ja’Corey Brooks played well at times in 2021 (see: Auburn game), but he couldn’t do it consistently and was average in both Playoff games. The Tide’s 5 top receivers — not including TE Cameron Latu — are Burton, Traeshon Holden (23 catches in 2021), Brooks (15 catches), Harrell and Prentice.

And that doesn’t, at some base level, raise a red flag?

3. The WR question, The Epilogue

If you want to blame someone for the current situation with the receiving corps, look no further than the current staff.

They recruited (and some would say, missed) all of the non-transfers from high school, they developed them and got them ready to play. If they’re not consistently performing, it’s coaching, or missing on high school evaluation or both.

The days of landing elite freshman receivers who walk on campus and terrorize the SEC are gone at Alabama. Julio Jones, Amari Cooper, Calvin Ridley, Jaylen Waddle.

The last Tide true freshman to make a significant impact at wide receiver was Waddle in 2018. But there is hope with development.

Some players develop late, some take more than 1 season to figure it out. The heralded 2017 receiving class (Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs III, DeVonta Smith) contributed in their first season, but none had more than 14 catches.

There is hope that Brooks, who struggled early in fall camp to hold onto the ball, will develop into a consistent threat. He has the size and speed, and has shown flashes.

There was hope that JoJo Earle would be a Waddle-type slot receiver before he broke a bone in his foot. He won’t be back until late September or early October.

More than anything, the receiving corps will center around Burton (who had 1 game of 100-plus yards receiving in 2 seasons at Georgia), Brooks (who had 11 catches in the final 3 critical games last year), a possession receiver (Holden), a project (Harrell) and a true freshman (Prentice).

If Saban and Bill O’Brien pull this off, one will have completed his greatest coaching job, and the other will soon be a head coach again in college football or the NFL.

4. Defending the run

Forget about the quarterbacks at LSU. The most important players on the field in New Orleans against Florida State will be DTs Maason Smith and Jaquelin Roy.

LSU got a sneak peek at FSU playing in Week 0, a dismantling of FCS Duquesne. The Noles rushed for 406 yards, and the run/pass ratio of play calls was wildly in favor of rush (54) to pass (22).

Before you say FSU was holding back and showing very little of what it will unveil against LSU, understand that FSU has won 19 games in the past 4 seasons. In that span, FSU lost to FCS Jacksonville State.

The Noles aren’t holding back anything. This is who they are. Jordan Travis has made strides as a thrower, but he’s not going to win games with just his arm.

He’s a dual threat who thrives in the run game, and FSU has 3 legitimate options at tailback in Treshaun Ward, Trey Benson and Lawrence Toafili. There will be little deception with what FSU wants to do offensively.

That means Smith, who has as much upside as any interior lineman in the SEC, and Roy, who played well last year as a top backup, are the point of attack for Sunday’s game.

One NFL scout told me Roy wasn’t used properly last season and is high on the radar of many teams. Smith, just a sophomore, has the potential to grow into a consistently disruptive interior presence — much like Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter at Georgia in 2021.

5. The Weekly Five

Five picks against the spread, from our friends at FanDuel. Learn more about where you can bet online.

Utah (-2.5) at Florida
Cincinnati at Arkansas (-6.5)
Oregon vs. Georgia (-17.5)
Miami (Ohio) at Kentucky (-17.5)
Florida State vs. LSU (-3.5)

6. Your tape is your résumé

An NFL scout analyzes a draft-eligible SEC player. This week: Georgia RB Kenny McIntosh.

“It’s his time now, a last chance to make a move. A lot of guys hit on their money year. James Cook did it last season. Now (McIntosh) doesn’t have the explosiveness and make you miss that Cook has, but he’s a very underrated, strong runner. He does have edge speed, he can win the corner when the play busts outside.

“He’s a patient runner, a lot like (former Florida tailback) Dameon Pierce. Once he plants his foot and hits the hole, he has some movement and explosion. He’s also a solid receiver. It has to start Week 1 in that big game against Oregon. He has to show it right then.”

7. Powered Up

This week’s Power Poll, and one big thing: What to watch in Week 1.

1. Georgia: That was no mirage in the Playoff championship game. Watch Stetson Bennett take next step as an elite college QB.

2. Alabama: Utah State isn’t going to stress Alabama, but it could expose a rebuilt offensive line before a key game at Texas.

3. Texas A&M: The defense will be overwhelming. The offense has 2 weeks (Sam Houston, Appalachian State) to figure it out.

4. Kentucky: Cats have 1 week to figure out a rebuilt offensive line, and how it will deal with a critical SEC road game in Week 2 at Florida.

5. Arkansas: The upgrade of transfers on defense — specifically edge rushers Landon Jackson and Drew Sanders — and how they allow Hogs to play more man coverage.

6. Tennessee: The impact of USC WR transfer Bru McCoy. Star WR Cedric Tillman gets a legit threat to prevent teams from constantly rolling coverage toward him.

7. LSU: DC Matt House’s return to the SEC. When he left Kentucky after the 2018 season, he was among the top 5 DCs in the SEC.

8. Mississippi State: This is where DC Zach Arnett and a stout defense set the tone for the season, pushing Mississippi State toward a breakout season.

9. Ole Miss: TE Michael Trigg. He has been uncoverable in fall camp and has been drawing comparisons to former Florida All-American TE Kyle Pitts.

10. South Carolina: While everyone will watch QB Spencer Rattler, zero in on WRs Antwane Wells and Corey Rucker. Two dynamic players who can stress (and stretch) defenses.

11. Florida: The pass rush on Utah QB Cam Rising. More specifically, DE Brenton Cox’s ability to disrupt off the edge and force mistakes.

12. Auburn: QB TJ Finley has 2 weeks to figure it out against overmatched nonconference games against FCS Mercer and San Jose State.

13. Missouri: 5-star WR Luther Burden III. Saban badly wanted Burden, who chose Missouri with the idea that Eliah Drinkwitz’s pass offense will run through him.

14. Vanderbilt: Beat FCS Elon (which is probably better than Hawaii) for first 2-game winning streak since back-to-back wins over Ole Miss and Tennessee in 2018.

8. Ask and you shall receive

Matt: Haynes King is the starter at Texas A&M. Are you as shocked as many of us in Aggieland? — Rich Foster, Houston.

Rich:

Fisher has been infatuated with King’s ability to stress defenses with his legs. SEC defenses are so destructive in the front seven, Fisher is intrigued by the idea of a quarterback who can extend plays and succeed off schedule.

That said, we saw King last year before he sustained a season-ending lower leg injury. He threw 3 interceptions in a season-opening win over Kent State, and ran for 22 yards on 5 carries.

Fisher says King might be the best athlete on the team, and that’s saying plenty considering the elite skill players the Aggies have at tailback and wide receiver. But at some point, King will be forced to make accurate throws on time.

You know what you have with Max Johnson, who proved he could throw with success (and not throw costly interceptions) in the SEC. King’s résumé includes 3 interceptions against a MAC school.

I have a feeling this competition isn’t over yet, and we’ll see King and Johnson playing in the first 2 games of the season before Fisher chooses a permanent starter and moves forward into a brutal 8-game stretch unlike any other in college football.

9. Numbers

163.9. If you’re looking for an indicator of Billy Napier’s impact at Florida, check out run defense. The Gators were 85th in the nation in 2021, giving up 163.9 yards per game. In 3 of the first 4 weeks of the season, Florida will play run games that ranked No. 13 (Utah, 217.21 ypg.), No. 25 (Kentucky, 199.54 ypg.) and No. 12 in the nation (Tennessee, 217.31 ypg.) in 2021.

Florida’s weakness on defense is the interior line — where Gervon Dexter is the team’s only consistent run-stuffer — and linebacker. A lack of size and speed in both areas is a concern, which could lead to freshman Shemar James (6-1, 230) — who chose Florida over Alabama in the recruiting process — to get significant playing time early and eventually start.

10. Quote to note

Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker: “I just need to lead. Make the guys understand that no matter what the scoreboard says, we’re still hungry for more. Keep our foot on the gas pedal and continue to apply pressure.”