Everything Alabama Defensive Coordinator Kane Wommack Said Before Oklahoma Game

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- No. 4 Alabama prepares for the final SEC home game this weekend as the program plays host to No, 12 Oklahoma on Saturday. Crimson Tide defensive coordinator Kane Wommack spent time with the media on Monday discussing what his unit did well in this past Saturday's victory over LSU and different aspects he'll be preparing for this week before the matchup with the Sooners.

Opening Statement

"Well, looking back at last week's game, I think defensively, I told the guys, I think we're playing as fast as we have played to this point in the season. I think the guys are playing with a good bit of confidence. They seem to really enjoy playing the game with each other. I think there's a swagger and an energy that we're playing with right now, and that needs to continue as we navigate through the regular season here. I think, you know, there's some opportunities that we're creating from a pass-rush standpoint that we're improving in. We still left a lot out on the field in terms of pass rush opportunities that we were not able to capitalize on. And so there's some things that we've just got to continue to push and work. But I do think that we're trending in the right direction there. And then just the way that we're playing in the red zone right now has given us a chance, you know, to get off the field, and then certainly our ability to create some takeaways, I think, all those reps that we have worked in the off season and throughout the season in our takeaway circuit, I mean, you had a couple plays in the game the other night that really, I mean, they're textbook teach tape plays. So that was really encouraging to see in terms of ripping the ball out, punching the ball out. And so I think we're taking steps in the right direction there.

"When you look at this opponent in Oklahoma, obviously, they're a very dynamic offense — a quarterback that, you know, can do a lot with his feet. He's got really good arm talent, kind of puts the ball all over the yard. He's got a lot of different arm angles in the way that he gets the ball out in the RPO game and the quick game, and being able to scramble and create and extend plays. You look at some of their off-schedule plays, are some of their most explosive plays, and so that's something that we got to do a great job of having 11 bodies that are swarming to the ball, play in and play out. I really like their running back room, I think they do a really good job — physical, big. When they get out in space, they've been able to hit, hit you for explosive plays. And then, you know, there's a couple guys in the receiving core that are pretty dynamic with the ball in their hands as well. So it'll be a great challenge for us, like it is every week in the SEC and looking forward to the week of work ahead."

How has the inside linebacker trio played over the last few weeks?

"I think those guys are doing a good job. I mean, you look at Deontae, he's just coming back from where he was a year ago, and he's just gotten better and better coming off of that injury from last season. I think he's playing some of his best football right now, which is really encouraging. He's playing fast, he's playing aggressive. And then just the leadership that he brings to the table and the in the peace of mind, I think that the rest of the team has when he's out there on the field from a communication standpoint, getting everybody on the same page — a large part of good defense right now is not losing games by errors and mistakes and MA’s. And you see that really across the country right now, when you look at defensive play. And I think right now, one of the things that we're doing at a fairly high level is just executing to consistency, and he's a big piece to that as well. But I thought Nikhai Hill-Green probably played his best game of the season so far. Those guys are trending in the right direction and certainly that's what you want. Good good teams get better, good defenses get better. And we've just challenged our guys to take, you know, little steps in terms of improving their game as we're going along. I think that group is doing that."

Are playmakers born, or are they made?

"Typically, when you make plays on the ball, there's a confidence that you have in doing your job at a high level, and so you know what to do. You play with anticipation. I've told you guys this before, defense is inherently reactionary, right? Offense comes out and play. We react to it. But if you start to understand what we're doing at a high level and you recognize what the offense is getting ready to do, then all of a sudden you can play with anticipation. And anticipation creates production. And so I think we've got guys that are playing with more anticipation as we go throughout the season, or seeing more football. A lot of times you see the things that show up on tape that you've put out on tape, you're going to see those things again. Teams have a style of how they maybe want to try to game plan and attack us and our kids, I think, are very aware of the weak points and weaknesses of a certain coverage or a certain pressure or whatever it may be. And so they're ready for those things and playing at a high level. And then some of it is just great instincts, and in the moment can you think to punch the ball out or create a strip in the moment? And I think you got guys like Bray Hubbard and Nikhai and Deontae Lawson, you know, to name a few, that are doing those things."

On defensive tackles having equal snap counts?

"I think Freddie does a good job of keeping those guys engaged, and to me, they do a good job in the week of practice and the week of preparation, and then they get out there on game day. We try to be mindful of, like, you want to play those guys early because as the game goes on if there's one guy that has a hot hand or you know going into a game that there's a guy who is clearly the better player, you want to make sure that dude is available in the fourth quarter. We try to really push ourselves to an uncomfortable position of getting guys on the field, simply because you want to make sure when you get into that game like we had against South Carolina, we played a lot of lot of players in the earlier part of that game. I think at the end, you saw some of our best players step up and make plays in big moments like Tim Keenan and Deontae Lawson. At the beginning of the season, I don't think either one of those players would have been in position to do that just from a rep-base standpoint. So we try to be mindful of that as we navigate through a game."

On having only one missed tackle vs. LSU, via Pro Football Focus?

"I think good defenses trend in the right direction from a tackling efficiency standpoint. As the season goes on, if you're not efficient in tackling, it's gonna show up. I think we're getting better and better at that. I think structurally, the way we play more of a vision-style defense, there's a lot more vise tackles. There's not a lot of yards after catch or yards after contact. That structurally kind of helps us a little bit as well. But I think our players -- go back to the point I made in the beginning -- that was probably the fastest I have seen us play as a defense to this point in the season. One of the keys to our victory going in, because they were so dynamic in their receiving corps and their athletes was that we really had to swarm the ball. I think our players, they played hard and they played fast. When you do that, two things tend to be the case: you're gonna do a good job of tackling, and limiting yards after contact and then you're also going to create takeaways. Effort always creates takeaways."

On facing Oklahoma offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle in the New Orleans Bowl at South Alabama?

"We got our ass kick is what happened. I appreciate you bringing that up. I needed a little edge this morning. That's good. No, I feel like we have faced this offense and this system a number of times over the years, and I think they do a great job just schematically. They attack you vertically down the field, they're aggressive, they got great RPO answers into their run game schemes and they always have little one-off runs that you got to defend. They do a good job of changing those things up. I think Ben did a great job in that game and has done a good job in his first year there at Oklahoma. It will be a good challenge for us. This is the SEC. You face really good offensive minds every single week, and you have a body of work that you put on tape that you have to answer for. Some of those things are good things that we put on film and some of those things are not, and if they're not, they're probably gonna show up in the game plan. Those are things we really try to be mindful of ourselves in terms of how we can fix those things. But certainly they'll present a number of schematic challenges for us this week."

On Nikhai Hill-Green's game and growth?

"Yeah, I think he’s, again, he’s playing some of his best football right now. Nikhai is, the players joke, they call him ‘Unc.’ I think he’s the oldest guy in our defense, 24 years old. He’s just so solid and so steady and he knows where his eye progression is supposed to be, where he’s supposed to be from a landmark standpoint. Alignments pre-snap. He does all the things right before he has to make the play so he gives himself the best opportunity to make the play. He’ll tell you, he’s not the fastest guy out there, he’s not the most athletic guy out there, but he’s athletic enough and his elite trait is his ability to diagnose before he has to go make the play, and he’s doing that at an elite level right now.

What makes Oklahoma good in the red zone and how to stop it?

"They do a really good job with the one-plus quarterback run. You know, usually when you look at an offense that can run the ball from the quarterback position, they’re gonna be more effective in the red zone. Because oftentimes, because you can’t stretch people vertically in the passing game, right? You need that extra piece in the run game. I think they do a really good job of mixing that up. They also have a great RPO system so they can still attack you laterally when they’re still threatening you with the quarterback one-plus run game, so they do a really nice job of using all of their bodies and also using all of the width of the field in those situations. So, they’ll be challenging for us.

"I think we’ve done a really nice job in the red zone defensively. I think our guys have a lot of fight. I think more than anything, there’s just a confidence that our players have whenever we get down in that situation. We talk about the whole Yibambe, the hold fast the line. Our kids believe those things. THye believe that not matter how they got down there, kind of the illustration that I always create for them in fall camp is, you’re dragging your opponent into deep waters, and at that point you’re drowning them out, and that’s what our guys are doing a good job of."

On what Brent Venables is good at as a defensive coach:

"Yeah, you know Brent obviously had a great career as a defensive mind and has done a really great job. Myself being a head coach at a time, I didn’t get to call plays, and you kind of miss those things and I’m sure he’s enjoying getting back into that as being the playcaller again now. He’s doing a tremendous job of it. When I watch them, there’s been some crossover opponents so we’ve gotten to see them defensively, they do such a good job of mixing their front, they do a good job of putting some of their playmakers in position to be the most effective and and most productive, especially from a pass-rush standpoint. But what’s probably one of the most impressive things is how versatile they are in terms of what they ask their guys to do schematically, and they don’t make a whole lot of mistakes. I think that’s one of the things that I’m seeing right now across the board, is that there’s teams that do a lot around the country defensively, and it’s really good scheme, but ultimately you can point to two, three, four times in the game where they misexecuted their scheme and gave up explosive plays, and some of those for touchdowns. Oklahoma has done a really good job of having a great volume of scheme and yet they’re still executing at a pretty high level. And so, that’s a credit to Brent and his staff and certainly the players and their ability to execute."