Everything Kane Wommack said after Alabama's second spring practice

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack spoke to local reporters for the first time following Wednesday’s second spring practice. Below is everything he said.

Wommack on expectations this spring… 

“One of the first things that we talked about in Bama fundamentals is effort and finish. Our guys and the effort that they bring, the energy that they bring in all those things are palpable. They feed off of one another. There’s a momentum that is carried in a football game and those are things that we need to be mindful of as we continue to set the tone for what it’s supposed to look like. I told the guys the responsibility of the Swarm D whether run or pass of stopping the offense is placed on all 11 shoulders of the defense, right. And so that’s the mentality they have, but it takes a special effort to do those things and I think we’re getting that done.” 

Wommack on Deontae Lawson’s leadership… 

“Deontae is a great young man. He carries himself with a great presence, he handles things from a professional level. You can tell he’s operating with another level in mind but I thought when he got on the field, I saw a different version of Deontae Lawson; one that I’m excited to go on the field. From that standpoint, our linebacker room is always in my mind going to set the tone for how we do things day in and day out. I think Deontae is a guy that you can point towards right now that’s doing things that are really high level.” 

Wommack on a lack of experience in the secondary… 

“I think experience is finite, so those are things that you have to be able to learn and grow. I think our offensive system, we do a whole lot offensively. We’re very dynamic. I’ve dealt with that over the years, you know I’ve worked with Kalen DeBoer, obviously worked with Nick Sheridan, I’ve seen this offense firsthand. I’ve seen that we’re really aggressive in our installation. We put a lot of things in, show a lot of pictures so when you’re a young player and you’re getting all those things thrown at you early, those are a lot of reps that you’re able to refer back upon as you get into the season. I can’t imagine seeing anybody else in the country installs at a more aggressive rate than what our offense does, those things are going to pay dividends for some of those young defensive backs.” 

Wommack on leaving South Alabama for Alabama… 

“Growing up in the South my dad was a longtime defensive coordinator all over the SEC. I played in the SEC, have always had tremendous respect for Alabama. I think there is a standard that’s been set here, certainly in the last 17 years with Coach Saban. But certainly before that, somebody gave me a pair of shoes the other day and had had 18 and 31 and I didn’t know what that meant; now I do. Those are the things that, that when you look at what this place is, you know there’s a standard here that in college football is respected across the board and you want to be a part of those things.”

“To do that with Kalen DeBoer is something truly special. And for any of you that knew my time at South Alabama, you know what I think about Mobile, Alabama. I absolutely adore that city. I love the university. I love that football team of what we were building there. This was an opportunity I was not going to turn down.” 

Wommack on the differences/similarities of his defense to Saban’s… 

“I think that’s a really good question. There has been a standard of defensive play and it’s been led by one man in the last 17 years and Coach Saban has been incredibly supportive so far. I’ve met with him a number of times, both on the phone and multiple in-person meetings. What I’ve asked is that he helps me with the learning curve, adjust to what we’re doing. As we talk ball, those are fun things for both of us to be able to talk through what they’ve done defensively over the years (and) how our defense is adjusted.” 

“This defense has been around for a long time under my dad. We’ve adjusted and kind of evolved with college football. It’s ever-evolving in terms of the offensive schemes. I would say once (Saban) got to Miami, was a little bit more of a 3-4 structure and then carried that over the last 17 years here. But it kind of evolved to a little bit more of a 3-4 with a nickel. So we say 3-4, but we really mean it’s a nickel to the field, we’re traveling to the boundary, whatever. That’s really how we’ve evolved. My dad was one of the originators of the 4-2-5 defense. We do those things, we still get four down looks, but we move in and out with that outside wolf backer into the boundary. So really, we’ve kind of evolved more towards Coach and he’s probably evolved a little bit more towards us. So the learning curve for our players is less than you would think.”

Wommack on having more ‘Wolves’ than ‘Bandits’…

“Wolves. We have a wolfpack. We do. We have a number of outside linebacker bodies and frames. I’m excited to see what we’re going to be able to do with those things, in terms of sub-packages that we can carry on the field. When you have speed like that, and you’ve got Q Robinson, you’ve got Qua Russaw, you’ve got Keanu Koht, Yhonzae Pierre, a number of those guys that are in those outside linebacker core, and then some special guys that have a ton of experience as well — I’ve been really impressed with what I’ve seen from those guys, and we have to find creative ways to get them in one-on-one matchups.”

Wommack on moving Keon Keeley to the defensive line…

“When you look at Keon, you see his frame and how he’s developed. He’s got a frame that’s going to grow more into that Bandit role for us. That Bandit position can play a 9-technique, a 5-technique, can reduce down and play a 4i at times. I think as you see what Keon is developing into and may develop into at the next level, that’s more of better fit for him.”

Wommack on his own energy and effort…

“I think the responsibility, as the defensive coordinator, is to set the tone of what you’re looking for. I write in my notes every single day before we go out, you set the standard. You are the standard for how you want things done. I think leaders lead from the front, and they serve everyone else around them, but they also set the example and the tone of how things need to be. If I ask my players to bring energy every single day, I need to bring energy every single day. Ultimately, my job is to set the standard, cast vision, and then hold everybody accountable to the relentless detail that it takes to accomplish that vision.”

Wommack on Malachi Moore…

“Malachi Moore is an unbelievable professional. He carries himself with the body language and a demeanor that every coach wants to work with and wants to compete with every single day. He has a hunger to get better. He’s not satisfied with where he is, and he’s done a tremendous job as a football player. We’re really excited about what he’ll bring from a leadership standpoint, especially with these young defensive backs that are very talented, but they need that leadership and they need that experience to be able to win the play.”

Wommack on going against Kalen DeBoer’s offense in practice…

“As you’re going through these things, you want reps in different formations with different motions in different schemes, both in the run and pass. From my perspective, when you can see those things and you can put those things on tape, then correct errors and mistakes, praise the good things that you’ve done well, it just lessens the curve of things that you may see. Defense is inherently reactionary, but we’re trying to play with anticipation as opposed to reaction. When you’ve seen a lot of different looks and a lot of different formations, motions, all those things, you can play with anticipation, and I think going against this offensive scheme helps.”

Wommack on Domani Jackson…

“Domani has experience, and most of those things carry over from one university to another, one scheme to another, but also learning some of the cultural things that we’re doing here, and we’re all learning those things under coach DeBoer. There’s certainly some staples and standards that have been here for the last 17 years that we’ve carried as well. He’s learning those things, but the experience level is certainly going to be able to help. 

“Jahlil Hurley has been here for a number of years and has a tremendous work ethic. I’ve been so impressed with him through the Fourth Quarter Program and the things that he’s done, just to elevate himself into a position to go compete for a job, and then there are a number of freshmen that are extremely impressive.”

Wommack on if Deontae Lawson will wear the green dot…

“Those are things that we’re working right now in practice. We’re going through those things. I think those are things, from a communication standpoint, I’m trying to figure out how much I want to communicate to the on-field player, and how much feedback does he want in-between plays, what communication is positive and what is not, and then certainly, it cuts off at 15 seconds, so you’ll have all the same things you’ve done in the past. Those are things that, we’re seeing what sticks on the wall right now, and we’ll figure that out. We’re listening and talking to a lot of guys in the NFL just to see how they work.”

Wommack on the accountability circles…

“The accountability circles is something we’ve done for a really long time. I got it from Larry Fedora years ago, who I played for. We hold young men accountable for their effort and their finish. When they do not meet the standard and expectation, that is in the form of a loaf, we hold them accountable in the next day’s practice for a loaf. We don’t hold them accountable immediately. We go in, we chart it, we look at it, and then we give them the opportunity for production in the next day’s practice. 

“If they get a PBU, they get a sack, they get a takeaway, those are minus-loafs, and at the end, those loafs are paid in up-downs. When you step up to the middle of a circle of guys, and you say, ‘My name is Kane Wommack and I let Swarm D down five times,’ those guys pay the up-downs for you. You have to stand there and watch your teammates pay for the things you didn’t do to meet the standard. There’s real accountability in that, and I think we’ll see significant improvement from day one to day two.”

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