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Trio of Alabama players to return for 2025-26 season
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
A trio of Alabama players are set to return for the 2025-26 season, the program’s NIL collective announced on Saturday.
Fifth-year senior guard Latrell Wrightsell was given a medical redshirt for the 2024-25 season after suffering an Achilles injury that held him out for all but 8 games. Sophomore guard Aden Holloway averaged 11.4 points a game in 37 games (despite no starts) in his first year with the program after transferring from Auburn. Meanwhile, Aiden Sherrell, a freshman, averaged 3.4 points an outing in 36 games.
All 3 will return to Alabama next season.
And all could factor heavily into the equation. Alabama will need to replace Mark Sears, Grant Nelson, Clifford Omoruyi, and Chris Youngblood. The Tide also lost Mo Dioubate to the transfer portal. Alabama is still awaiting public announcements from Labaron Philon, Derrion Reid, and Jarin Stevenson about their intentions for next season. Philon could test the NBA Draft landscape.
The Crimson Tide fell one game short of a second straight trip to the Final Four. Prior to 2024’s appearance, the furthest they’d been in an NCAA Tournament was the 2004 Elite Eight.
Under Nate Oats, though, the program has developed into a consistent national power. Since his arrival in 2019 after leading Buffalo to 96 wins and 3 tournament appearances in 4 seasons, Oats has led the Tide to the Big Dance in every season it was played.
Now, the Tide’s eyes are set on not only returning to the Final Four, but winning the program’s first national championsip.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
