Sports

10 Greatest Alabama Football Players of All-Time

By Eric W. Bolin Athlon Sports

Updated May 26, 2026 8:37 AM

Since 1936, Alabama football has won 16 national championships. Perhaps more, depending on with whom you speak. No other school has more than eight.

The Crimson Tide are the most dominant college football program in sports history, putting together two different legendary runs in both the mid-20th century and, well, the whole of the 21st century.

It's no surprise, then, that ranking the school's 10 greatest players ever is a monumental task. We tried, anyway. And while your favorite player may be left off the list, know that we'd probably agree with your ranking on a different day.

For now, this is the list.

Honorable Mentions

LB Lee Roy Jordan (1960-1962)
QB Joe Namath (1962-1964)
TE Ozzie Newsome (1974-1977)
LB Cornelius Bennett (1983-1986)
WR Julio Jones (2008-2010)
RB Mark Ingram (2008-2010)
WR Amari Cooper (2012-2014)
QB Tua Tagovailoa (2017-2019)

10. WR David Palmer (1991-1993)

Alabama Crimson receiver David Palmer carries the ball past teammate Dabo Swinney against the Miami Hurricanes during the 1993 Sugar Bowl at the Superdome. RVR Photos-USA TODAY Sports RVR Photos-USA TODAY Sports

You won't find Palmer's name in the top 10 of Alabama record books. The modern game and its reliance on passing has knocked the wide receiver down the hierarchy there. But, make no mistake, Palmer was one of the best to ever wear the uniform.

He finished third in Heisman Trophy voting in 1993 after leading the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in yards receiving with 1,000 and catching 61 passes. The year before, he helped the team to a national championship.

And overall, the man who practically invented the idea of a "wildcat" quarterback, finished his Alabama career with 102 receptions for 1,611 yards, 86 carries for 598 yards, and 83 punt returns for 865 yards (with four touchdowns). He could do it all in an era where such things were incredibly rare.

9. DB Minkah Fitzpatrick (2015-2017)

A Freshman All-American national championship winner, Fitzpatrick was an immediate force on the Alabama defense when he arrived in 2015. Things only grew better.

As a sophomore, Fitzpatrick tied the school's career record with four interceptions returned for a touchdown and was named a consensus All-American. As a junior, in his final season, he prefaced a second national championship by winning the Chuck Bednarik Award and Jim Thorpe Award en route to a unanimous All-American campaign.

8. QB AJ McCarron (2010-2013)

Greg McElroy may be the first national championship-winning quarterback in the Nick Saban era of Alabama, but McCarron remains the only Crimson Tide quarterback to capture the title in back-to-back seasons.

A consummate leader who was more than just a game manager, McCarron still holds the Alabama record for career yards passing and he ranks third in career passing touchdowns. Alabama's national titles in 2011 and 2012 with McCarron at the helm, established the school as a modern-day dynasty.

7. C Barrett Jones (2008-2012)

Alabama Crimson Tide offensive lineman Barrett Jones against the Texas Longhorns during the 2010 BCS national championship game at the Rose Bowl. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports Mark J&period; Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

It could easily be argued Jones belongs higher on this list. The man was a starter for all four of his seasons on the Alabama offensive line from 2009 to 2012, and he did it at three different positions.

Jones began at right guard, earning Freshman All-American honors as the Crimson Tide won the 2009 national championship. In 2011, he moved to left tackle and helped pave the way for another Alabama title while winning the Outland Trophy as the nation's best offensive lineman.

In his final season, Jones moved to center where he won the Rimington Trophy as the best center in football. To this day, he's the only player in history to win the award in two different years at two different positions.

6. RB Shaun Alexander (1996-1999)

When Alexander left Alabama after the 1999 season, he held the school records for yards rushing and rushing touchdowns. And while time has allowed some to leapfrog him, he remains No. 3 and No. 4 on the list.

As a freshman, Alexander ran for a single-game school record 291 yards, a mark that still stands. Alabama struggled in his sophomore year to just four wins. But in 1997, he took over, leading the SEC in carries and rushing touchdowns.

In his senior year, Alexander ran for 1,383 yards and led the nation with 19 rushing touchdowns while earning first-team All-American honors and winning the SEC Player of the Year award.

5. QB Bryce Young (2020-2022)

Probably the most physically talented quarterback to ever play at Alabama, Young torched the record books in his sophomore, Heisman Trophy-winning season.

Young threw for 4,872 yards, including a 559-yard game against Arkansas, with 47 touchdowns and seven interceptions, making Heisman voting easy that year. For his career, Young won a national title (2020), the Heisman (2021), and left Tuscaloosa as the school's No. 2 career passer in both yardage and touchdowns.

4. WR DeVonta Smith (2017-2020)

Two national titles, two 1,000-yard seasons, and the greatest single-season wide receiver performance in history? It's impossible to leave Smith off this list.

His 2020 campaign, in a strange, COVID-altered season, is the stuff of legend. Smith caught 117 passes for 1,856 yards with 23 touchdowns. All three totals led the entire nation. To cap his career, Smith set national championship-game records with 12 catches for 215 yards with three touchdowns. He left the game early in the second quarter. Absolutely bonkers.

3. OL John Hannah (1970-1972)

Legendary Alabama coach Bear Bryant called Hannah the best offensive lineman he ever coached. That alone should get him on the list.

Hannah's honors include two All-American campaigns, in 1971 and 1972, the second of which was a consensus selection. Later, he'd be named to Alabama's All-Century team and Alabama's All-70s team.

Most significantly, the Associated Press named him a first-team all-time All-American when the organization picked the greatest players in the last 100 years of college football.

2. RB Derrick Henry (2013-2015)

Alabama Crimson Tide running back Derrick Henry runs for a touchdown against the Wisconsin Badgers at AT&T Stadium. Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

A few years earlier, Mark Ingram became the first Alabama running back to win the Heisman Trophy. But Henry's 2014 Heisman-winning season may have been the best single year by a running back since Barry Sanders' in 1988.

Henry carried the ball 398 times for 2,223 yards and 28 touchdowns, all totals that led the nation. He ranks seventh in NCAA history in single-season yards rushing, 11th in touchdowns, and fourth in carries. And it isn't as though he was overworked, either. Henry has run for more than 13,000 yards on more than 2,600 carries as a five-time Pro Bowler in the NFL.

1. LB Derrick Thomas (1986-1988)

No one could do what Thomas could do to opposing quarterbacks. Not at Alabama. Not in the NFL.

The NCAA didn't keep track of sacks totals until, ridiculously, the year 2000. Had they back when Thomas was in Tuscaloosa, they'd have seen No. 55 drop the quarterback 52 times in just three seasons. In 1988 alone, his final year with the Tide, Thomas would have racked up 27. That number alone would rank him third in school history for a career.

Thankfully, he was recognized enough to win the Butkus Award as the nation's best linebacker and, like Hannah, the AP named him a first-team all-time All-American.

More Alabama Football Rankings

This story was originally published May 26, 2026 at 8:22 AM.