Jaylen Moody assesses his improving chemistry with Henry To'oTo'o

As Alabama linebacker Jaylen Moody continues to battle for a starting position next to Henry To’oTo’o, he has worked to improve the level of chemistry across the formation. After exiting the transfer portal with an opportunity to earn his spot against younger competitors, the veteran special teams contributor has received increased praise from everyone around him over recent months.

During a recent press conference, Jaylen Moody explained how his improved chemistry with Henry To’oTo’o and the rest of the defense has built up his platform in a pivotal season.

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“Me and Henry, that’s my guy,” said Moody. “I try to talk with him every day. Obviously, we’ll be in the meeting room and practicing beside him every day. It just tends to get a feel for how we like each other, and play off each other.

“Our chemistry has improved a little bit over the time. Obviously, as we keep going over the season, we’ll try to keep progressing on that chemistry.”

In addition to great chemistry, it is apparent that Jaylen Moody has great respect for Henry To’oTo’o’s talent. After hearing a question which referenced recent praise from transfer running back Jahmyr Gibbs, Moody offered his own words on the defensive leader.

“Henry is a really smart guy,” said Moody. “He does a lot of tremendous things, and I couldn’t even just say off the field or on the field. But just off the field, in the meeting room, seeing how he diagnoses plays and we break it down with the younger guys – and me as well. I can definitely see that he’s very intelligent on the field, as well as off the field.”

Pete Golding praises Jaylen Moody

As the competition at weakside linebacker continues, Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding recently offered high praise to Jaylen Moody for his improvement, identifying one area for continued growth.

“The biggest thing with Jaylen — and he knows this — is consistency,” Golding said in a recent interview. “There have always been flashes where you’re able to see, ‘Hey, there it is,’ but then he’ll come back the next day and the inability to be able to stack it. The next day it’s like, ‘No, that’s not it. That’s going to get us beat.’ So I think consistency in the decision-making process and then the proper preparation.

“Then once he’s out there, let my rules apply and play fast. I think we’ve seen more of that, but we’ve got to put the pads on and get him in a live environment when we start these scrimmages and really evaluate it to make sure we’ve got the best guy at that spot.”

A three-star recruit in 2018, Moody ranked as the No. 125 linebacker according to On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average. This past season he finished with 11 tackles while also recording the first interception of his career.