Quick hit: Jaylen Waddle's mom gave him grief for getting tackled by a punter
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Everyone's a critic. Even the mother of Alabama sophomore wide receiver and punter Jaylen Waddle.
On Saturday, Waddle returned four punts for 128 yards, the third-most in Alabama history, and helped the Crimson Tide tally 311 return yards during its 47-28 victory at Texas A&M.
His longest return was 43 yards and nearly broke each return for a score, posting 15, 28 and 42 yards on his other three attempts.
To cap his performance, Waddle also had three catches for 48 yards and his first touchdown of the season in front of hometown fans as he grew up in nearby Houston.
For his efforts, Waddle was named the SEC Special Teams Player of the Week for the first time, and he leads the NCAA in punt returns by averaging 22.3 yards
Yet he still heard about getting tackled by Texas A&M's punter, the reigning Ray Guy Award winner, from his mother.
"Oh, definitely," Waddle said. "She said I got tackled by the punter, so she had some jokes about that.
"She was kind of serious though. She was definitely serious. But it was all good. My mom's my biggest critic, so it was [good] coming from her."
Incidentally, junior wide receiver Henry Ruggs III, who also had a huge day, called getting tackled by Texas A&M’s kicker “unacceptable.”
After Texas A&M started every possession within its own 25, one has to wonder how many more opponents might kick and punt to the Crimson Tide's return men.
Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt, who used to be Nick Saban's defensive coordinator, joked on Monday that the Volunteers might only do onside kicks and go for it on every fourth down when they visit Bryant-Denny Stadium this week (8 p.m. CT, ESPN).
At least we think he was kidding.
Waddle hopes he was. He'd would like some more opportunities to get his mother off his back.
"I hope so," he said. "But every team has a game plan, so if that's in their game plan we've got to adjust and still make it happen."
