Freshman WR Caleb Odom Catching Eyes for Alabama Football Amidst Position Change
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – There's a new force in the wide-receiver room for Alabama football.
Standing tall at 6-foot-5, 215-pounds, four-star freshman wide receiver Caleb Odom came into the Crimson Tide program hoping to have an immediate impact in year one.
While Odom is currently listed as a tight-end on Alabama's official roster, junior wide receiver Kendrick Law was quick to put that notion to rest on Friday.
"Caleb Odom is a wide receiver," Law said. "He is not a tight end."
When asked about what Odom brings to the table, Law pointed to his impressive build – even comparing him to a former star receiver in the SEC.
"Caleb [Odom] is elite," Law said. "He's the biggest receiver we have height goes wise. Most aggressive. When I look at him, I kinda see a George Pickens. He's real aggressive at the line. He has strong hands. He goes up to attack the ball."
As to what makes Odom a special athlete, Law highlighted his overall ball skills and aggressiveness at the point of attack.
"As a player, he has tremendous ball dominance," Law said. "He sees the ball. He tracks the ball. He catches the ball, and he's the most aggressive at the line. People are gonna fear him coming off the line."
For wide receivers coach JaMarcus Shepard, Odom's preparation sets him apart above all else.
"He's got a wide range, catch range." Shepard said. "The ability to absorb knowledge and information pretty quickly. His coaches at his high school did a great job preparing him for college and the expectations that are placed on him at a place like Alabama. He's been in the fire at Carrolton High School (GA), and this right here is an environment that's not going to shake him. He can provide some size, some ability to make fifty-fifty catches down the field. He's a sponge out there. He's doing everything in his power to make himself successful in every situation we ask him to be in."
In offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan's eyes, Odom's position change is a result of preventative measures against early wear-and-tear on a promising young talent.
"I think with Caleb we're just trying to put him in a position to be successful early on in his career," Sheridan said. "You know, he's a big kid, very athletic, very explosive, he's got a great frame. You know, how is body grows and what he turns into being when he's 20-21-22 years old, I think time will tell, he certainly runs plenty good enough to play wide receiver very well, he's a big target, so we just try to put him in a position early on, you know, to try not to run into 275-pound people, you know, put him in a position so he can have success."
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