Alabama Football Lands Two on Lott Trophy Watch List

Two Crimson Tide defenders have won the Lott Trophy, DeMeco Ryans in 2005 and Will Anderson Jr. in 2022. Could one of these players add their name to the list?

The Alabama Crimson Tide is expected to have a much improved defense in 2023 under new defensive coordinator Kevin Steele. 

Steele will lean on a handful of veterans to re-establish the "Bama Standard" on defense. Two of those veterans were honored on Friday by having their names added to the 2023 Lott Trophy watch list.

Kool-Aid McKinstry and Malachi Moore were both named by the Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation as one of the 42 players to watch for this season's award.

The Lott Trophy is given each year to college football's defensive player of the year who best exemplifies the IMPACT acronym: Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity.

McKinstry and Moore have been staples of the Alabama defensive backfield over the past few seasons and both are looking to make an impact in 2023.

McKinstry has appeared in 28 games for Alabama, totaling 18 pass break-ups with two interceptions. He was named All-SEC First Team for his efforts in 2022.

Moore has appeared in 39 games and accumulated 16 pass break-ups with four interceptions throughout his time at the Capstone.

Both defenders are expected to be high selections in next spring's NFL Draft.

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