Kalen DeBoer reveals what Kane Wommack brings as Alabama defensive coordinator

Kalen DeBoer hired former South Alabama head coach Kane Wommack to be the first defensive coordinator of his Alabama tenure.

Speaking to the media for the first time since his own introductory press conference, DeBoer explained what he expects to see from Wommack tasked with leading the Crimson Tide defense during 2024.

“I just know he’s really good,” DeBoer said on Wednesday at the Senior Bowl. “I saw him every single day in practice in 2019, going against him. I think he’s continued to take those steps forward the year after I left. Him being a head coach, and especially understanding everything down here — Alabama, the state — I know he’s a relationships guy.

“He brings a lot of energy and organizational skills that I know are going to really important for our program. I think it says a lot about the University of Alabama to pull a guy like Kane with the things he had going for him here at Southern Alabama.”

Before being hired by DeBoer earlier this month, Wommack has spent the last three seasons at South Alabama, where he compiled a 22-16 record and had the Jaguars ranking inside the top 30 in scoring defense across the NCAA.

The relationship between Wommack and DeBoer goes back to Bloomington, where the two were on Tom Allen‘s staff at Indiana for the 2019 season. DeBoer was the offensive coordinator while Wommack served as the defensive coordinator. While DeBoer moved on to be the Fresno State head coach, Wommack stayed during the 2020 season and was a Broyles Award finalist and made the jump to be the head coach at South Alabama the following year.

Now, the two reunite in Tuscaloosa to help usher in a new era in Alabama football history. DeBoer used his previous connections to also hire his offensive coordinator in Ryan Grubb.

DeBoer and Grubb have been together across multiple stops dating back to the mid-2000s at Sioux Falls. Grubb followed DeBoer to Fresno State where they became the most potent offensive in the Mountain West Conference. They moved on to Washington together, where Grubb eventually left to become one of DeBoer’s first hires when he was first named head coach.

As DeBoer continues to piece together his initial staff, the Kalen DeBoer era kicks off on Aug. 31, 2024, against Western Kentucky inside Bryant-Denny Stadium. The first SEC game of DeBoer’s tenure will come on Sept. 28 against Georgia.