Alabama receives bad news before Week 1 game against Florida State

No. 8 Alabama got some bad news on the injury front ahead of its season opener on Saturday against Florida State.

Per On3's Brett McMurphy, star defensive lineman Tim Keenan III will miss multiple games due to an ankle injury that requires surgery.

“Alabama DT Tim Keenan III, who suffered an ankle injury Tuesday, is expected to undergo ‘tightrope’ surgery Wednesday, source told On3,” McMurphy said. “The Tide’s best defensive lineman and a captain, Keenan will be out multiple games, but expected to return this season, source said.

Keenan has been with the program since 2022, and the nose tackle had his best season in 2024 when he recorded 40 tackles, eight tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. The senior from Birmingham, Alabama, has played in 29 games with 79 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in his college career.

The injury is bad news for the Crimson Tide defense before they play dual-threat quarterback Tommy Castellanos, who transferred from Boston College to FSU in December. Alabama needs a strong pass rush to throw the senior off his game, and needs to keep him from running out of the pocket.

Redshirt freshman Jeremiah Beaman is the No. 2 nose tackle on Alabama's depth chart. The six-foot-four, 314-pound athlete from Birmingham, Alabama, recorded two total tackles in 2024.

Saturday's game will be pivotal for Beaman to show improvement this year with Keenan out. The Crimson Tide enter its matchup with Florida State with high expectations of being a College Football Playoff contender in head coach Kalen DeBoer's second season in Tuscaloosa.