Sam Johnson: Three things to know about Alabama's walk-on punter

Despite a three-man competition for at punter, Alabama coach Nick Saban said he could only afford to take one punter with the team to Missouri for its season opener. That punter proved to be Sam Johnson.

Here’s three things to know about Alabama’s freshman walk-on that has won the starting punter job.

He’s a rare Oak Mountain prospect

Oak Mountain High School in Birmingham hasn’t sent a football player directly to a FBS program in at least a decade; the best it has done was a tight end to Princeton in 2018.

According to the Shelby County Reporter, he is the first Oak Mountain High School player to appear on Alabama’s football roster. The high school was established in 1999.

He played tight end in high school

In a game against Taulia Tagovailoa and Thompson High School in 2018, Johnson caught a 20-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter.

He had other options

Johnson may have walked-on to UA, but he had other options as a highly rated punter. Louisville and Florida State are among the schools he visited before choosing Alabama.