Kool-Aid McKinstry Dreamed of Playing in a National Championship for Alabama

Growing up in Alabama, Kool Aid McKinstry watched the Crimson Tide form one of the greatest dynasties in modern sports, winning six national championships in 12 seasons. McKinstry met with the media for the first time in an Alabama uniform on Tuesday and talked about wanting to play on college football’s biggest stage.

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"I always told my mom I didn't know what position I'd be playing, but I knew I wanted to play for Alabama in a national championship," said McKinstry.

Not only did McKinstry achieve a lifelong goal of his — he did it in his first season on campus. The Pinson Valley graduate was the No. 1 ranked corner and top player in Alabama in the 2021 recruiting cycle per the 247Sports Rankings. He saw action in all 15 games and started each of Alabama’s final four contests, including the national championship because of injuries to Jalyn Armour-Davis and Josh Jobe.

McKinstry is part of a heated cornerback battle in fall camp heading into his sophomore campaign. Saban discussed the position during Alabama’s media day on Sunday.

“I think the good news is, we have competition,” Saban said. “I can't tell you that any guy on the depth chart has sort of separated himself in terms of who’s the most consistent performers, who’s going to give up the fewest plays, who’s going to be the best tackler, but we do have really good competition at all those positions."

“Khyree Jackson, Eli Ricks battle it. Kool-Aid and Terrion Arnold battle it. Jahquez Robinson has shown a lot of improvement to be a contributor at some position. I think Brian Branch could actually play corner if we needed him to. We do practice him some there. So I can’t give you any like it’s a horse race, who’s in the lead, who’s in second, who’s in third. That’s why we have a competition," said Saban.

McKinstry earned first-team reps in the spring and talked about how significant earning extended playing time as a freshman helped with his development.

"The opportunities I did get as a freshman were very big," McKinstry said. "And that will help me going into my sophomore year, being more confident and knowing what I'm doing. Because I've already been out there."