Update: Abandoning Alabama - Stud OT Kadyn Proctor Follows Star Safety Caleb Downs To Portal After WR Isaiah Bond Left For Texas

Published|Updated

The No. 1 offensive tackle and safety in America in the class of 2023 who each became stars as freshman at Alabama last season plan to leave the Crimson Tide.

Kadyn Proctor, a 6-foot-8, 365-pound starter in all 14 games for Alabama last season, entered the NCAA Transfer Portal on Wednesday, according to On3.com. Proctor earned freshman All-American and All-Southeastern Conference honors in the 2023 season. He was the No. 1 offensive tackle in the nation and No. 5 overall prospect by 247 Sports for the class of 2023 and the No. 1 player in Iowa out of Southeast Polk High in Des Moines.

Proctor's entry to the portal came not long after Caleb Downs entered it and is expected to land at Georgia for his sophomore season. That is where his Alabama defensive backs coach, Travaris Robinson, left for last week to be a co-defensive coordinator.

New Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer either didn't offer Robinson or didn't get him. On Monday night, DeBoer hired South Alabama head coach Kane Wommack as his defensive coordinator.

Alabama's Caleb Downs 2nd Top Player To Exit Post Saban

That makes three major stars from Alabama to hit the portal since legendary coach Nick Saban retired after 17 seasons with the Tide on Jan. 10.

Sophomore wide receiver Isaiah Bond entered the portal shortly after Saban's announcement and transferred to Texas on Sunday - two days after Alabama hired DeBoer from Washington to replace Saban.

247 Sports called Downs the No. 1 safety in the nation in the 2022-23 recruiting season, the No. 8 prospect in the nation overall and the No. 1 player in Georgia. Downs went to Mill Creek High in Hoschton, Georgia, which is 45 minutes from the Georgia campus. He originally chose Alabama over Georgia, Ohio State, Clemson and Notre Dame and signed with the Tide on Dec. 21, 2022.

Isaiah Bond Led Crimson Tide In Receptions Last Season

Downs won the Shaun Alexander national freshman of the year award after the 2023 regular season along with Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year. And he made the first unit of the All-SEC team. Downs led Alabama with 107 tackles on the season with 3.5 for losses. He intercepted two passes, broke up four and forced and recovered a fumble. Downs also returned four punts for 87 yards with a touchdown.

Caleb Downs

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Caleb Downs (2) warms up before the Alabama Crimson Tide game versus the Michigan Wolverines CFP Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game on January, 1, 2024, at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, CA. (Photo by Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

New Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer (right) trying to keep Crimson Tide players in light of Nick Saban's retirement last week. (Getty Images)

New Alabama Coach Kalen DeBoer Trying To Keep Players

Bond led Alabama in the 2023 season in receptions with 48 for 668 yards and four touchdowns. He was the No. 11 receiver in the nation coming out of Buford, Georgia in 2022.

"Our players are being sought after from our own roster," Kalen DeBoer said Saturday after being introduced as Alabama's coach. "There's less people to get in front of them. And so, I'm working tirelessly with who we have here."

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Guilbeau joined OutKick as an SEC columnist in September of 2021 after covering LSU and the Saints for 17 years at USA TODAY Louisiana. He has been a national columnist/feature writer since the summer of 2022, covering college football, basketball and baseball with some NFL, NBA, MLB, TV and Movies and general assignment, including hot dog taste tests. A New Orleans native and Mizzou graduate, he has consistently won Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) and Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) awards since covering Alabama and Auburn at the Mobile Press-Register (1993-98) and LSU and the Saints at the Baton Rouge Advocate (1998-2004). In 2021, Guilbeau won an FWAA 1st for a game feature, placed in APSE Beat Writing, Breaking News and Explanatory, and won Beat Writer of the Year from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association (LSWA). He won an FWAA columnist 1st in 2017 and was FWAA's top overall winner in 2016 with 1st in game story, 2nd in columns, and features honorable mention. Guilbeau completed a book in 2022 about LSU's five-time national champion coach - "Everything Matters In Baseball: The Skip Bertman Story" - that is available at www.acadianhouse.com, Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble outlets. He lives in Baton Rouge with his wife, the former Michelle Millhollon of Thibodaux who previously covered politics for the Baton Rouge Advocate and is a communications director.