Alabama has nine returning starters on defense, many of them four- and five-star recruits whom Nick Saban and his staff have groomed into starring roles. Safety Robert Lester of Foley, Ala., didn’t attract a lot of attention in high school. Last season, he led the Southeastern Conference with eight interceptions.
On the ESPNU College Football podcast on Tuesday, I asked Saban what he and his staff saw in Lester.
"When we look at players, we have critical factors that we look at for every position,” Saban said. “And for defensive backs, it’s ball skills, tackling and can you judge the ball in the deep part of the field? Robert Lester really played corner in high school and was probably speed deficient for that position. But had good enough size that we thought he could play safety. He lacked in none of the critical factors.”
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