How a Car Metaphor Fueled Alabama's Will Anderson to Further Success this Postseason
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Around this time last month, Clifford Fedd could tell something wasn’t quite right with his former star defender. Will Anderson Jr. was back home in Georgia with friends and family celebrating being awarded the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, but it was clear the Alabama edge rusher had something weighing on his mind.
This season’s Heisman Trophy finalists had just been announced, and despite leading the nation in both sacks and tackles for a loss, Anderson didn’t join teammate Bryce Young as one of the four players selected to travel to New York for the award’s trophy presentation. Never one to harp on individual success, the linebacker didn’t say anything about the snub. However, his former high school head coach knew it was time to step in.
“I wouldn’t say he was in a bad headspace, but it wasn’t a good one either,” said Fedd, who coached Anderson at Dutchtown High School. “I knew it was bothering him a little bit, so I just kind of started talking to him about what’s next.”
Searching for a way to get through to the college sophomore, Fedd told Anderson to view himself as a vehicle.
“He was telling me that your body is your engine. And I’m a car,” Anderson recalled Monday. “And the only thing you need to get going is that engine. And anything else that comes with it, any accolades, anything else, that’s just to make you look nice. As long as your engine is going in your car you’re fine.”
According to Fedd, Anderson’s recent Bronko Nagurski Trophy was “just a pair of rims” while the Heisman finalist tag would have been like “new tint on the windows.” Both are pretty cool, but they don’t make too much of a difference in getting to the final destination.
“We don’t care about that stuff,” Fedd told BamaCentral. “We’ve got to make sure the engine stays strong and the truck keeps moving. The vehicle you’re operating in doesn’t have parking, and it doesn’t have reverse. We don’t have any rear-view mirrors on the side either. We can’t look backward.
“What’s happened has happened. It’s water under the bridge. The water’s done dried up, and now it’s turned into a sand dune. We’re not worried about that. Let’s go get this national championship.”
Anderson took the message to heart.
Fueled by his former head coach’s words of encouragement, the outside linebacker was back to his disruptive ways during last week’s Cotton Bowl, recording six stops including a pair of sacks during Alabama’s 27-6 victory over Cincinnati. Now fully revved up, Anderson is ready to lead the No. 1 Crimson Tide to its second straight national title as it takes on No. 3 Georgia in the national championship game next Monday in Indianapolis.
“When he broke that down to me and explained that to me, I think that was one of the best things he could ever do,” Anderson said. “He really opened my eyes to me. It was, like, man, you were right. As long as I've got my engine, that's all I need for my car to keep going. Anything else that comes along with it that makes it look nice. … But as long as you have the engine, in the bigger piece, the bigger picture that we wanted to reach, the three goals we set when you come to college – as long as you have those things, that's all we wanted.”
According to Fedd, those three goals include playing top-tier football, winning national championships and getting a degree. While the latter will come later in his career, Anderson is right in line with the first two items on his list.
Through 14 games, Anderson leads the nation with 17.5 sacks and 33.5 tackles for a loss. He also tops Alabama with nine quarterback hurries and has recorded a pair of pass deflections.
That’s the type of production Fedd expected from his protégé when the former five-star recruit signed with the Crimson Tide as the No. 1 weakside defensive end in the 2020 class. And with another year left before Anderson is eligible to enter the NFL Draft, the high school coach believes Alabama hasn’t even seen the best of its prized pass rusher yet.
“I do believe there’s another level to Will,” Fedd said. “Every year Will manages a way to get better. After he does a great job on Monday during the national championship game, Will won’t take much time to get back into the weight room and start working on his training. Will’s never content, he’s never settling or doing just enough. He’s always in his own head with a strong desire to be the best that he can be.”
Anderson referenced himself as a car while reciting Fedd’s metaphor on Monday. However, Alabama running back Brian Robinson Jr. envisions his teammate as something more powerful.
“Will is more like a dually truck, one of those big old mud-tire, driving trucks,” Robinson said with a laugh. “I can’t really explain, but he’s one of them guys who can get real dirty, get himself up and get ready to do what he did all over again. That’s what you use those big dually trucks for, off-road type of stuff.”
Fedd couldn’t agree more.
“He’s one of those big duallys with four wheels in the rear,” he said. “With that being said, I have no doubt in my mind that next year with another offseason, he’ll probably have six wheels back there. He may even be an 18-wheeler.”
