It’s difficult to believe now, but there was a time you could be a star-level player in college football and never really get an opportunity to play in the NFL.

That’s been the case with a number of notable Alabama players over the years, some of whom were All-Americans, but never played a snap at the NFL level. Still others were limited at the next level due to injury, while others chose to pursue other fields.

So who are the greatest Alabama players who never played in the NFL? That’s our list for today.

A couple of disclaimers: First, we’re considering “played in the NFL” actually taking the field in a regular-season game, not merely being drafted or working on a practice squad or playing in a preseason game. Second, we’re excluding players from the 19th century and early 20th century, who never played in the NFL because there was no NFL at the time (or at least not a well-developed one).

Here’s the list, in chronological order (years listed are years played at Alabama):

1. Bobby Marlow, RB, 1950-52

His name is not all that well-known now, but Marlow was a massive star at Alabama in the early 1950s. The Troy High School graduate rushed for 2,760 yards and 27 touchdowns in his three-year college career, averaging better than six yards per carry, while also earning a reputation as a hard-tackling defensive back in those two-way days. Marlow set an Iron Bowl record with 233 yards rushing and three touchdowns in a 25-7 win over Auburn in 1951, and was an All-American as a senior in 1952, when he ran for 950 yards and nine touchdowns in a season capped by a 61-6 win over Syracuse in the Orange Bowl. Marlow was drafted No. 8 overall by the NFL’s New York Giants, but instead signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League for a reported $10,000 bonus. He spent eight years in Canada, rushed for 4,291 yards and was a five-time All-Star. Marlow was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1986, a year after his death at age 55.

2. Pat Trammell, QB, 1959-61

Trammell was a very good quarterback for the style of play in the SEC in the early 1960s, which is to say he was a strong leader and tough runner and was a serviceable passer when the need arose. He was especially adept at not throwing interceptions, and also at picking up short yardage on the ground. He was named SEC Player of the Year in 1961, when he led the Crimson Tide to an 11-0 record and the first of six national championships during the Paul “Bear” Bryant era. Most notably, Trammell was without question Bryant’s favorite player; the coach even said so in his autobiography. Though he was drafted in the 24th round by the American Football League’s Dallas Texans in 1962, Trammell had already decided — or it was decided for him — that he was going to follow his father and older brother into the medical field. Trammell was beginning his third year of a four-year residency in dermatology when he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of testicular cancer. He died Dec. 10, 1968, at the far-too-young age of 28, leaving behind a wife and two young children. Trammell was posthumously inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1975. You can read more about Trammell and his legacy HERE.

3. Bobby Johns, DB, 1965-67

A star quarterback at Banks High School in Birmingham, Johns moved to defensive back during his freshman year at Alabama. He made All-SEC all three seasons of his varsity career, and was an All-American as a junior in 1966 and as a senior in 1967. Among his career highlights were a national championship as a sophomore in 1965 and a Sugar Bowl record three interceptions vs. Nebraska at the end of the 1966 season. Johns was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in 1968, but instead opted for a career in coaching. He was a high school coach in the Birmingham area at McAdory and Erwin (compiling a 53-30 overall record), and spent many years as an assistant on the college level at North Alabama, Valdosta State, Florida State, Chattanooga, Eastern Kentucky and South Carolina. Johns became head coach at West Alabama in 1997, and coached the Tigers for four seasons. He was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.

4. John Mitchell, DE, 1970-71

A Mobile native, Mitchell spent two seasons at an Arizona junior college before making history at Alabama in 1971. During the Crimson Tide’s season-opening win over Southern Cal in Los Angeles, Mitchell became the first African-American varsity football player in the program’s history when he started at defensive end. He was a stalwart on the Alabama defense the next two seasons, in which the Crimson Tide went 21-3 and won back-to-back SEC championships. Mitchell was a two-time All-SEC pick, an All-American in 1972 and Alabama’s first Black football captain as a senior. Mitchell was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 1973, but cut after missing much of training camp due to illness. He immediately went to work on the Alabama coaching staff, again breaking barriers as the first African-American assistant at his alma mater. Mitchell later coached in college at Arkansas, Temple and LSU, and with the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions before embarking on a long NFL career with the Cleveland Browns in 1991. He joined the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1994, eventually ascending to assistant head coach and winning a pair of Super Bowl rings. Mitchell retired at the end of the 2022 season after 50 seasons in coaching, and was inducted into the Steelers Hall of Fame in 2012. He was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2009.

5. Terry Davis, QB, 1970-72

Alabama’s original wishbone quarterback, Davis helped restore the Crimson Tide to glory after a number of down seasons in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The Bogalusa, La., native was starting quarterback for two seasons, in which Alabama went 21-3 and won the SEC championship both years. Davis’ claim to fame during his time as Crimson Tide quarterback came in November 1972, when he appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated after a three-touchdown performance in a 35-21 victory over LSU. He was the SEC Player of the Year that season and finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy balloting. In his Alabama career, Davis threw for 1,328 yards and 14 touchdowns while also rushing for 865 yards and 16 scores. Listed at 6-foot and 178 pounds, Davis did not fit the prototype of an NFL quarterback, and went undrafted in 1973.

6. Leroy Cook, DE, 1972-75

Freshmen became eligible for varsity play in 1972, just in time for Cook to begin his Alabama career. The Abbeville native was a contributor as a sophomore on the Crimson Tide’s 1973 national championship team, but came into his own the following year. Cook was an All-American in both 1974 and 1975, totaling 166 tackles, nine tackles for loss, 15 sacks and six forced fumbles in his final two college seasons. He was named Defensive MVP of the Orange Bowl and SEC Lineman of the Year his junior season, and SEC Player of the Year by the Atlanta Touchdown Club as a senior in 1975. However, it was toward the end of that season that Cook suffered a devastating knee injury in the closing minutes of the Iron Bowl that would derail his football career. He played through the injury in the season-ending Sugar Bowl win over Penn State, but underwent reconstructive surgery shortly thereafter. Cook had shown enough on film that the Dallas Cowboys drafted him in the 10th round in 1976, but he missed that entire season while rehabbing his injury. He returned for training camp in 1977, but his skills had diminished such that the Cowboys cut him. Leroy Cook never played a down of professional football, leaving him as one of the all-time “what ifs?” in Alabama football history. You can read more about Cook in this 2017 AL.com profile.

7. Major Ogilvie, RB, 1977-80

A state champion his senior year at Mountain Brook High near Birmingham, Ogilvie played on three SEC titles teams and two national champions during his time at Alabama. Sharing carries with Tony Nathan, Steve Whitman and various quarterbacks in the Crimson Tide’s wishbone offense, he rushed for 1,718 yards and 25 touchdowns in four seasons for teams that went a combined 44-4. Ogilvie also holds the distinction of scoring a touchdown in four straight bowl games — the 1978, 1979 and 1980 Sugar Bowls and the 1981 Cotton Bowl. He was a first-team All-SEC pick in 1979, a second-team pick in 1980 and the MVP of the 1980 Sugar Bowl win over Arkansas. Ogilvie was drafted in the 12th round by the San Francisco 49ers in 1981, but was cut near the end of training camp and retired from football. He was inducted into the inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2014 and the Sugar Bowl Hall of Fame in 2017.

8. Tommy Wilcox, DB, 1979-82

A standout quarterback in high school near New Orleans, Wilcox was a four-year starter and two-time All-American during the final years of the Bryant era at Alabama. The Harahan, La., native started on the Crimson Tide’s 1979 national championship team as a freshman, and was named SEC Freshman of the Year after totaling 49 tackles four interceptions. Wilcox finished his Alabama career with 243 tackles, 10 interceptions and 25 pass breakups, earning All-America honors in both 1981 and 1982. He was also picked first-team All-SEC and second-team All-SEC twice each. Wilcox was undrafted by the NFL, but later played two seasons in the USFL before he was forced to retire after suffering a serious neck injury. He later went on to become host of a popular outdoors television program, which often featured prominent sports and entertainment figures such as Nick Saban and Hank Williams Jr. hunting or fishing alongside Wilcox.

9. Philip Doyle, K, 1987-90

A record-setting kicker and standout baseball player at Birmingham’s Huffman High School, Doyle was Alabama’s starting placekicker for four consecutive seasons during the Bill Curry and Gene Stallings eras. He scored a then school-record 345 points in his Crimson Tide career, including a record 19 on six field goals and an extra point vs. Southwestern Louisiana his senior season. Most famously, Doyle kicked the game-winning 47-yard field goal as time expired to lift Alabama past heavily favored Tennessee 9-6 in 1990. A two-time first-team All-SEC pick and a unanimous All-American in 1990, Doyle went undrafted the following spring. He signed as a free agent with the New York Giants, but was cut during the 1991 preseason. Doyle finished his football career with one season as kicker for the Birmingham Fire of the World League of American Football, the precursor to NFL Europe.

10. Kevin Jackson, DB, 1995-96

A Dothan native, Jackson spent two seasons at a Mississippi junior college before joining the Alabama team in 1995. He started all 24 games of his Crimson Tide career, twice earning first-team All-SEC honors and being chosen as a unanimous All-American in 1996. Jackson set a school record with three interceptions vs. Georgia in 1995, and finished with 12 picks in his career — an SEC-best seven as a senior in 1996. Despite all those accolades, Jackson went undrafted by the NFL in 1997. He signed as a free agent with the Arizona Cardinals, but was waived during training camp. Jackson later played a number of seasons in the Arena Football League.

11. Tyrone Prothro, WR, 2003-05

Prothro is one of more the tragic figures in Alabama football history, with a catastrophic injury robbing him not only of long-lasting stardom in the college game, but any shot at a pro career. The Heflin native was a multi-faceted star at Cleburne County High School, but became a wide receiver and kick-return specialist at Alabama. Prothro scored just four touchdowns in his first two seasons at Alabama, though one was a 100-yard kickoff return vs. Kentucky in 2004. He became a key part of the Crimson Tide offense in 2005, making a legendary catch behind the defender’s back at the 1-yard line against Southern Miss (a reception that won an ESPY for College Football Play of the Year), and totaling 134 yards and two touchdowns receiving vs. Florida (he also had a punt return for a touchdown called back by penalty). But it was in the game that Prothro’s career ended on a fourth-quarter play in which he leapt to catch and pass in the end zone, but landed awkwardly on his left leg. Both of his lower leg bones gruesomely snapped on impact, and Prothro never played football again despite several attempts at a comeback.

12. DJ Hall, WR, 2004-07

A Florida native, Hall was arguably the best overall offensive player of the Mike Shula era at Alabama. He totaled 194 receptions for 2,923 yards and 17 touchdowns in four seasons, all of which were school record at the time. Hall went over the 1,000-yard mark in both 2006 and 2007, becoming the first Alabama receiver to accomplish that feat. He was a three-time second-team All-SEC pick and was the first Crimson Tide player to record five straight 100-yard receiving games. However, he was suspended for parts of his senior year by new Alabama coach Nick Saban, likely leading him to go undrafted in 2008. Hall signed with the New York Giants, who waived him late in training camp. He also spent part of that season on the Oakland Raiders’ practice squad. Hall later played in the CFL and with a number of indoor league football teams.

13. John Parker Wilson, QB, 2005-08

Wilson was a two-time state championship quarterback at Hoover High School, but took a grayshirt offer to join an Alabama football program that was still recovering from NCAA sanctions. After backing up Brodie Croyle his freshman year, he started the next three seasons — one under Shula and two under Saban. Wilson led the Crimson Tide to an SEC West championship his senior year, and finished his career with school records (since broken many times) for passing yards (7,924) and touchdowns (47). Wilson was not drafted in 2009, but drew an NFL paycheck for four years as a third-string or practice squad quarterback with the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars, though he never played in a regular season game. Wilson returned to Alabama after being cut by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2013, and later spent five seasons as the Crimson Tide’s radio color analyst alongside play-by-play man Eli Gold.

14. Blake Sims, QB, 2011-14

A Gainesville, Ga., native, Sims flip-flopped between running back and quarterback during the early years of his Alabama career before finally being given the opportunity to start as a fifth-year senior in 2014. He blossomed under the direction of new offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin, passing for 3,487 yards and 28 touchdowns while also rushing for seven scores as Alabama won the SEC championship and played in the inaugural College Football Playoff. However, at just 5-foot-11, Sims was not considered much of a pro prospect as a quarterback, and went undrafted in 2015. He tried to latch on with a number of NFL teams as a running back, and also played briefly in Canada. In 2019, Sims signed with the Birmingham Iron of the upstart Alliance of American Football, but was unable to play due to injury. After one more season in indoor football, Sims retired to become a high school coach.

15. Dylan Moses, LB, 2017-2020

Nearly every player who made All-American during the Saban era of Alabama football has gotten a least a taste of the NFL, with Moses being the most glaring exception. A highly touted recruit from his freshman year of high school in Baton Rouge, La., he was a 5-star prospect in the 2017 class and was named national player of the year by at least one publication. Moses was a contributor on a national championship team as a true freshman, and was a second-team All-American and Butkus Award finalist as a sophomore first-year starter in 2018 (when totaled 86 tackles and 10 tackles for loss). A knee injury suffered in the preseason cost him the entire 2019 season, but Moses returned to become a first-team All-SEC pick and third-team All-American for Alabama’s 2020 national championship team despite playing through another knee injury most of that season. He had another year of eligibility remaining due to his 2019 redshirt year, but elected instead to enter the 2021 NFL draft. Moses went undrafted, and later spent the entire 2021 season on injured reserve. He later tried to catch on in the CFL and USFL, but never played in a regular-season professional football game.

Creg Stephenson has worked for AL.com since 2010 and has covered college football for a variety of publications since 1994. Contact him at cstephenson@al.com or follow him on X at @CregStephenson.