Kane Wommack Facing Big Decision at Wolf as Qua Russaw Nears Return

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— When starting wolf Qua Russaw went down with a broken foot against Georgia, there were serious questions about whether or not Alabama's pass rush would be able to survive without the redshirt sophomore's production. Those questions were quickly answered with the emergence of Yhonzae Pierre.

After a quiet performance in his first start against Vanderbilt, where he recorded just one tackle, the former five-star has wreaked havoc on offenses, with 17 tackles over the past three games and a monster three-sack game against Tennessee that included a safety of quarterback Joey Aguilar.

"Yhonzae has taken steps in the right direction in just becoming a more consistent football player down in and down out," defensive coordinator Kane Wommack said. "You see some of the production in the passing game and his ability to affect the quarterback, but in large part, you look at the Tennessee game, his sacks were because he was doing his job."

Pierre and Russaw both came into Alabama as highly-touted edge rushers in the class of 2022. They both redshirted in 2023, but it was Russaw who burst onto the scene last year, recording 36 tackles and 2.5 tackles for a loss while developing throughout the year for the Crimson Tide. He appeared primed for a breakout campaign this fall, but it now appears as though Pierre may have supplanted him with these recent performances. Wommack had high praise for Pierre's growth over the past 18 months.

"When you just do your job consistently at a high level, you're going to create more production for yourself," Wommack said. "It's fun to watch Yhonzae and his maturity and how he's grown over the past one-and-a-half to two years I've spent here with him. And he's got a very impressive skillset."

One of the distinguishing factors between Pierre and Russaw entering last season was their respective levels of confidence. As Pierre has continued to improve on the field over the past month, his confidence has skyrocketed, and he is carrying himself to a higher standard.

"That's an earned confidence," Wommack said. "You've earned that confidence to overcome adversity, to go create production, to go do your job at a high level, and we've got to continue to see that."

While Pierre is playing high-level football, Russaw is ahead of schedule in his recovery. While head coach Kalen DeBoer said it was highly unlikely that he would play this Saturday against LSU, Russaw is quickly working his way back to full strength.

"Qua's doing a really good job right now," Wommack said. "Our training staff has done a tremendous job with him and is preparing him to get back as soon as possible. He has done a great job of pushing and hitting all the markers he's needed to hit. Certainly, we expect him to be back sooner rather than later."

It would seem likely that Russaw is ready to go for next week's game on Nov. 15 against Oklahoma, barring any setbacks. This sets Wommack and DeBoer up with a tough decision with regards to who should get the start. It is almost certain that we will see a heavier rotation of the two than we did pre-injury, but it is hard to forecast which of the two will get more playing time.

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