Everything Alabama Defensive Coordinator Kane Wommack Said Ahead of Kentucky

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Here is everything Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack said on Monday of Kentucky week.

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Opening statement...
“I thought Saturday was really, really good work for our guys. It was great to get out there in the heat and the way they operated. I thought the energy on the sideline was pretty good. I thought we pushed through from an effort standpoint. There were some things that need to get cleaned up there. There were a lot of positives in that regard. I think it’s a credit to Dave Ballou and his staff, Jeff Allen and his staff. There were some tweaks that Coach DeBoer made in the practice faces and schedules for fall camp to get our guys in the best position possible going into the first game. I thought those things worked, and we handled that heat well. Really appreciate our fans. I mean, to go out there and support our guys in a very hot day. Thought the energy was really good at the beginning of the game, and that had a direct impact on our ability to overwhelm them in the first half, so really appreciate our fans in doing that. We were able to play a number of guys in the game, got some really good, quality work. Xavier Griffin’s a good example of a guy that got meaningful snaps as a pass rusher on third downs and got in there as an inside linebacker and did a really nice job. So, some exciting things from some young guys that got meaningful snaps. Thought two areas where we felt like we probably weren’t where we needed to be, or at least consistent enough a year ago, in terms of consistent run defensive fits, D-line being in the right position, linebackers supporting. I thought we took a step in the right direction on Saturday. There were a lot of positives there in just the simple execution, not necessarily the result of the play, but just the execution of guys being in the right place. And then you look up at the end of the game, and the overall result was a pretty good defensive rushing day. And then 0-for-9 on third downs, which was a major emphasis for us coming out of last year, that certainly we took a step in the right direction. Great to have a defensive touchdown, but disappointing to only have one takeaway on the day. So something that we need to improve upon quickly, and we will make sure we continue to emphasize that in practice. Effort across the board needs to improve in certain areas when the ball is on the back side, or when you’re on the back side of a play, continuing to play with a fanatical effort. There were some guys that did. There were other guys that we need to make sure we get that cleaned up. And then we need to clean up a few things in the passing game, the most obvious being an explosive play out of an empty set that should not have happened. We probably had breakdowns in about four different areas there, including I probably could’ve put them in a better situation as well. We’ll get that cleaned up. Phenomenal effort by Zabien Brown, Dijon Lee to get the ball down on the 1-yard line and make them snap it again. But obviously disappointing that they got down there in the first place. Puts us in a position to address some things this week in practice going into our first road test. This team has a lot of momentum right now. There’s a lot of excitement right now, as there should be. I think Will Stein is a fantastic football coach. He’s got great energy, from what it seems, to his team. Those guys seem to be in their first game; they responded with a lot of great energy as a football team. They’re creative in the way they get the ball to their playmakers, and I think they do a really good job of a lot of formations and motions and shifts and things we would call ‘eye candy’ that they give people. And at the same time, they can keep the main thing, the main thing, by getting their playmakers the ball. So they present a number of challenges for us. Both Will and Joe Sloan, who I’ve known for a number of years and think very highly of as well. It will be a great road test in Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday, and look forward to the opportunity.”

On Kentucky's New-Look Offensive Line...

"I think they did a really nice job navigating the transfer portal and the offensive linemen they brought in. I saw Olaus; it's hard to miss his flowing hair out there playing. The tackle, Heard, from Tennessee- I thought he's been fantastic in the league the last couple years, so that was a massive gift for them to be able to bring him on board. I thought in the first game they were relatively - across the board, Week 1, there are always things to clean up - on the same page and played hard up front. They seemed to play as a unit and did a nice job of protecting their quarterback in his first start as well. I think, to me, this is a good group we're facing."

On Miscommunication on the Coverage Bust that Led to ECU's big passing play...

"We did have a miscommunication piece on the opposite side of the ball when we're in that coverage. The ball was in the middle of the field. They were going tempo, and they got to an empty play. I could've put us in a better situation there. I could have put us probably in a better call to start with. Ideally, when they're running four verticals downfield, you want to get a re-route on that No. 2 receiver. We did not get a re-route, so now all the sudden, he's running down the seam quickly. There was a communication that should've been made on the back end with our middle third player, who, when they come out in that formation, we make a certain call to say, 'Hey, there's a threat of them running four verticals here.' That did not happen. So we kind of lost the middle presence of the defense in that regard. Obviously, Bray and Zabien, between the two of them, we've got to do a better job of holding off that seam, the hook-drop, and creating more overlap in the defense as well. A number of things broke down, including, I could've put the guys in a better situation there. It's something we'll address, because whatever you put on tape, you're going to see it again."

Next Defensive Test with Kentucky...

"The first thing that comes to mind is consistency. Anybody can do something well for a play. They can do it well for two or three plays, for a game, but can we do the same high-level job day in, day out in practice, week in, week out in these games? So what I'd like to see is some of the good things we did translate back over to this upcoming Saturday. And some of the things we didn't do well enough that we can have a sense of urgency as a unit to get those things fixed. First, from a run game standpoint and the physicality up front, I thought there were a lot of good things that we saw on Saturday, but that needs to continue, especially as we enter SEC play."

On Luke Metz Taking a Vocal Role on Defense...

Luke has really taken great ownership of the way we're supposed to communicate as a linebacking corps. I think he had great leadership in that from Deontae Lawson and Nikhai Hill-Green when he was here. I think he's taken that to another level, and Chuck Morrell has done a fantastic job with those guys. We talk about the way we communicate as a linebacking corps needs to be demonstrative; that is intimidating to the other side of the ball when you communicate like that. Then we want to play the game with anticipation, so there are a lot of keys and indicators that we get those linebackers clued into that they, as individuals, have to communicate that on the field. Luke did a fantastic job of that; Caleb does a really good job of that as well. So from an effort standpoint, from a communication standpoint, I thought that linebacking corps had a nice first outing."

No. 13 Alabama (1-0) will face Kentucky (1-0) on Saturday, September 12, at Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky.

Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.