Alabama

Here’s how Alabama football’s safeties shape up heading into fall camp

Published

1 year ago

July 30, 2024

Here’s how Alabama football’s safeties shape up heading into fall camp

This offseason, Alabama football was tasked with replacing every defensive back from its 2023 roster aside from Malachi Moore.

At corner, the Crimson Tide returns one member from its 2023 squad in Jahlil Hurley. At safety, it returns three members from its 2023 roster, including Moore, and brings in transfers Keon Sabb (Michigan), King Mack (Penn State) and Kameron Howard (Charlotte) from the portal and two true freshmen from its 2024 recruiting cycle.

Via the transfer portal, the Crimson Tide lost Caleb Downs to Ohio State, who led the team in tackles in 2023 (107). It also lost Jake Pope (Georgia), Kristian Story (Kentucky) to the transfer portal and Jaylen Key to the NFL Draft.

Alabama also brings in coaches Maurice Linguist and Colin Hitschler, who joined coach Kalen DeBoer’s staff over the offseason and are in charge of the Crimson Tide’s defensive backfield under new defensive coordinator Kane Wommack. Wommack will be instilling his 4-2-5 “Swarm” defense at Alabama, brought with him from South Alabama.

Wommack will be introducing new terminology to the Crimson Tide safety room: Rover, the strong safety, and Husky, a more hybrid player who is essentially the nickel defensive back in Wommack’s system compared to that of former coach Nick Saban’s.

Here is how Alabama’s safeties room looks heading into fall camp. Every scholarship player and any notable walk-on is mentioned:

The options for Alabama football at safety

Projected starters: Rover: Keon Sabb, r-so.; FS: Malachi Moore, gr.; Husky: Devonta Smith, r-jr.

Reserves: King Mack, so.; Kameron Howard, so.; Bray Hubbard, so.; Dre Kirkpatrick Jr., fr.; Red Morgan, fr.

Sabb was a huge pickup for the Crimson Tide from the portal. He brings with him two years of elite college football experience, including one as a national champion with the Wolverines. He tallied 28 tackles, one for loss, along with four pass break ups and two interceptions in 2023.

Moore typically manned the-now Husky role for the Crimson Tide last season, but expect to see him perhaps man the free safety position this season. Last year, Moore was named a permanent team captain and started in 13 games, tallying 52 tackles, five for loss, to go with five pass breakups, one interception and one quarterback hurry.

Smith spent the first half of 2023 rehabbing from injury, but was able to see time in four games, where he collected four total tackles.

Howard saw time in nine games for the Crimson Tide in 2023 contributing on special teams. Mack appeared in 13 games at Penn State as a true freshman, totaling three tackles and a quarterback hurry. Howard saw time in 12 games at Charlotte last season and started in two of them, registering 38 tackles with 0.5 for loss to go with two interceptions and one pass breakup.

Morgan comes to Tuscaloosa as a four-star prospect and Kirkpatrick Jr. a three-star, per the 247Sports Composite.

The upside

Wommack’s defense might be a learning curve for the Crimson Tide players but should be one that should be easy for players to catch on to.

Speaking at SEC Media Days in Dallas, Moore spoke of the differences between the two systems, calling coach Saban’s defense “very complex,” while referring to Wommack’s as “a lot simpler.”

“Coach Saban’s defense was a very complex style of defense from making checks to motions and different formations and alignments of receivers. It was a very complex system to be in and you had to be a very good communicator, you had to be very smart,” Moore said. “In this defense, now under Coach Wommack it’s a lot of vision coverage and it’s a lot simpler from people who were in coach Saban’s defense. A lot more eyes on the quarterback allowing you to make plays on the ball and get more turnovers.”

Players will also have plenty of time to adjust between the two between spring practice and fall camp before the season-opener on Aug. 31 vs. Western Kentucky.

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One question or concern

Alabama lost majority of its production at safety from the 2023 season, so of course the question remains as to how Alabama’s secondary will perform this season.

Aside from Moore and Smith, Alabama’s safety room lacks real-game SEC experience. However, the Crimson Tide bring in key transfers, especially in Sabb coming in from Michigan with prior College Football Playoff experience.

Alabama also brings in talent from its 2024 recruiting cycle in Morgan and Kirkpatrick Jr. and with its transfers in Howard and Mack, both sophomores, the Crimson Tide safety room should be in a good position for years to come.

Breakout candidate

Last season, it seemed as if Smith was in line to serve a bigger role for the Crimson Tide. But injuries prevented him from doing so, not appearing in a game until November vs. Kentucky.

This season, Smith is in prime position to start the Husky position in Wommack’s new defense.

Smith, in his redshirt junior season at Alabama, has waited for an opportunity like this one, expect him to be ready.

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Alabama

Alabama Shakes Set Spring 2026 Tour Dates

Published

10 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Alabama Shakes Set Spring 2026 Tour Dates

Alabama Shakes have lined up a string of North American tour dates for 2026. Brittany Howard and the band’s spring run includes multiple stops in Florida and a concluding two-night stint at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver, Colorado. Check out the new dates, plus their previously announced festival shows, European itinerary, and Zach Bryan support dates, below.

Support for the headline shows comes from Joy Oladokun, Mon Rovîa, Lamont Landers, and JJ Grey & Mofro. For every ticket sold, $1 will go towards nonprofits around the United States via the Alabama Shakes Fund, a press release notes. There is, as yet, no word on a follow-up to the band’s 2015 album, Sound & Color, but they did sign to Island this year and release their first single since that record.

Alabama Shakes:

04-16 Richmond, VA – Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront ~
04-17 Asheville, NC – ExploreAsheville.com Arena ~
04-18 Charleston, SC – High Water Fest
04-22 Memphis, TN – Grind City Amphitheater +
04-24 Atlanta, GA – Synovus Bank Amphitheater at Chastain Park +
04-25 Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater +
04-26 St. Augustine, FL – St. Augustine Amphitheatre %
04-28 Tallahassee, FL – Adderley Amphitheater %
04-29 Boca Raton, FL – Sunset Cove Amphitheater %
04-30 Clearwater, FL – The BayCare Sound %
05-02 New Orleans, LA – New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
05-24 Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre #
05-25 Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre #
06-13 Manchester, Tennessee – Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival
07-01 Leeds, England – Millennium Square
07-02 Wasing, England – On the Mount at Wasing
07-03 London, England – Alexandra Palace *
07-05 Ghent, Belgium – Gent Jazz Festival
07-07 Lucca, Italy – Summer Festival
07-09 Lisbon, Portugal – NOS Alive Festival
07-10 Bilbao, Spain – BBK Live
07-11 Madrid, Spain – Noches del Botanico
07-25 Eugene, OR – Autzen Stadium ^
09-19 Dover, DE – The Woodlands ^

~ with Joy Oladokun
+ with Mon Rovîa
% with Lamont Landers
# with JJ Grey & Mofro
* with Tyler Ballgame
^ supporting Zach Bryan

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Alabama

Jacob Crews scores 20 for Missouri in 85-77 win over Alabama State

Published

22 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Jacob Crews scores 20 for Missouri in 85-77 win over Alabama State

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Jacob Crews scored 20, and Anthony Robinson II added 19 in Missouri’s 85-77 win over Alabama State on Thursday night.

Crews shot 7 of 9 from the field, including 6 of 8 from the 3-point arc. Mark Mitchell added 15 points for Missouri (9-2), and Sebastian Mack added 10.

The Tigers had a 15-0 run in the first half, heading into the locker room up 52-39. Alabama State was held scoreless over a 4:19 drought in the middle of the second half to open a 9-0 run for the Tigers. The Hornets (3-8) responded with their own 10-0 run to bring the game within eight, 74-62. The Tigers regained control, though, to keep their eight-point lead the rest of the game, handing Alabama State their fourth loss in a row.

The Tigers shot 65% (33 of 51). Both teams shot 50% from the free-throw line.

Alabama State outscored Missouri in the final period, 38-33. Asjon Anderscon scored 23 for the Hornets, leading all players in scoring.

Up next

Missouri hosts Bethune-Cookman on Dec. 14.

Alabama State travels to Cincinnati to face the Bearcats on Dec. 17.

___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

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Katie Windham Highlights Alabama Areas of Improvement on The Joe Gaither Show

Published

1 day ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Katie Windham Highlights Alabama Areas of Improvement on The Joe Gaither Show

Let’s crank up a Thursday edition of “The Joe Gaither Show on BamaCentral” with Mason Woods and Katie Windham as we start getting ready for next week’s College Football Playoff game between Alabama and Oklahoma. Windham detailed how the Crimson Tide can improve over the next few weeks, we discuss the team’s health and look back at our last road trip to Norman. The show then discusses the Heisman Trophy finalists before addressing a Kalen DeBoer coaching rumor.

The program opens by power ranking the holidays before discussing Windham’s three areas the Crimson Tide can improve over the next week. Our trio picks the easiest area the team can improve and how Alabama must perform in Norman. Windham details our last trip to Oklahoma as we go down memory lane to the Sooners’ 24-3 victory last season.

The show continues on by getting Windham’s thoughts on Alabama’a College Football Playoff selection and if the Crimson Tide actually deserved its place in the field. She brings up a unique aspect of Alabama’s blowout loss in the SEC Championship and how it played into the program’s inclusion in the College Football Playoffs.

We move from next week’s game into a small discussion on Notre Dame’s reaction of being left out of the field and how it relates to Alabama’s future home-and-home dates with the Fighting Irish. Will the two esteemed programs still face off in a few years?

The show heads into the only college football action of the weekend by highlighting the strong Heisman Trophy finalist field. Who brings home the bronze statue?

Lastly, we spend the final bit of the show talking about Michigan firing Sherrone Moore and the reports of the Wolverines considering persuing Kalen DeBeor for their next head coach. Will DeBoer leave Tuscaloosa for Ann Arbor?

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