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

Small coastal Alabama town elects first Black woman mayor

Published

1 week ago

September 23, 2025

Press Room

Small coastal Alabama town elects first Black woman mayor

Prichard, a small town north of Mobile struggling with a water and sewage crisis, ousted its mayor from office Tuesday night.

Carletta Davis, a community activist, won the runoff for mayor of Prichard. Davis received 2,191 votes, and incumbent Mayor Jimmie Gardner received 714.

Davis is the first Black woman elected to the office, according to Prichard City Councilmember Stephani Johnson-Norwood. Prichard is 88.7% Black.

After Tuesday’s elections, four out of five members of Prichard’s city council are women, in an overhaul of the town’s leadership.

Davis leads We Matter Eight Mile, a community action group. She has been active in Prichard’s numerous water and sewer difficulties.

The town’s water and sewer utility has been under control of a receiver for the last two years after it defaulted on a $56 million loan from a bank.

The utility loses 60% of the water it purchases, and millions of gallons of raw sewage spills in the town every year.

Issues with water and sewage service, along with concerns about crime, dominated this year’s elections.

Nine provisional ballots have not been counted, but they will not be a decisive factor in the race. The town came under fire for its handling of provisional ballots during the August 23 general election.

Issues in last election

Davis ran against incumbent Jimmie Gardner and Lorenzo Martin, a former city councilman, in the general election in August.

Davis and Gardner advanced to the runoff, with Davis receiving the most votes. However, Gardner led Martin by just a few votes, 635 to 631 to get into the runoff, according to WKRG.

Davis received 951 votes in the general election.

However, between 13 and 23 provisional ballots cast in the August 23 race were not counted. Martin filed a challenge in Mobile County Circuit Court, asking for those ballots to be counted.

A provisional ballot is one cast by a voter whose eligibility cannot be proven on election day.

The provisional ballots in question were left behind at a senior center and delivered to the Mobile County Board of Registrars more than 24 hours after the election. The Mobile County Board of Registrars discounted 13 provisional ballots.

Mobile County Circuit Court Judge Michael Youngpeter dismissed Martin’s claim, in part because of a “failure to file security for the necessary costs.” Martin paid a $10,000 bond as part of his challenge.

“A qualified elector must not be punished, if you will, with blatant misconduct enabled by a public official cognizant of all applicable laws related to fair elections,” Martin’s motion to reconsider Youngpeter’s dismissal says. “This surely is unconstitutional.”

The ACLU of Alabama issued a scathing report earlier this month, highlighting issues with elections around the state, including Prichard. In their report, the civil rights group said provisional ballots were not available at polling places, and poll workers wrote “provisional” on standard ballots.

The Prichard City Clerk’s staff was not available throughout election day August 23, the ACLU said, despite concerns about ballot access.

City Council races

Prichard city councilmembers Annie Williams, in District One, and Johnson-Norwood, in District Two, were reelected without opposition.

In District Three, Traci Hale defeated Mario Yow, Sr., 326 votes to 168 votes.
In District Four, leader of voting advocacy group Teresa Fox-Bettis defeated incumbent George McCall, Jr., 316 votes to 193 votes.
In District Five, Roy Smith II defeated Anthony Barry, 304 votes to 283 votes. Smith will be the lone man on the city council.

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Alabama

Badgers snap counts vs. Alabama in Week 3: Defense

Published

2 weeks ago

September 15, 2025

Press Room

Badgers snap counts vs. Alabama in Week 3: Defense

The Wisconsin Badgers had a rough day at the office on Saturday, losing 38-14 to the No. 19 Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, falling to 2-1 on the season.

Here are the defensive snap counts from the Week 3 loss to Alabama.

Brandon Lane – Snap Count: [27]

Jay’Viar Suggs – Snap Count: [26]

Ben Barten – Snap Count: [24]

Parker Petersen – Snap Count: [22]

Dillan Johnson – Snap Count: [5]

Mason Reiger – Snap Count: [43]

Sebastian Cheeks – Snap Count: [37]

Darryl Peterson – Snap Count: [25]

Tyreese Fearbry – Snap Count: [11]

Aaron Witt – Snap Count: [7]

Christian Alliegro – Snap Count: [52]

Tackett Curtis – Snap Count: [48]

Cooper Catalano – Snap Count: [6]

Mason Posa – Snap Count: [3]

Ricardo Hallman – Snap Count: [55]

Geimere Latimer – Snap Count: [48]

Omillio Agard – Snap Count: [28]

D’Yoni Hill – Snap Count: [27]

Austin Brown – Snap Count: [48]

Preston Zachman – Snap Count: [38]

Matt Jung – Snap Count: [25]

Wisconsin cut down its rotation across the board on Saturday, as you saw fewer overall reserves get snaps, but some of the top reserves got more reps than in previous weeks.

Along the defensive line, the rotation cut down to just five players, with Brandon Lane, Jay’Viar Suggs, Ben Barten, and Parker Petersen being the clear top group.

At linebacker, it was almost exclusively Christian Alliegro and Tackett Curtis, while true freshmen Cooper Catalano and Mason Posa got a few snaps at the end of the game.

At cornerback, it was just the top four players getting reps. Omillio Agard and D’Yoni Hill had an even split of the 55 defensive snaps. Ricardo Hallman played the whole game, and nickelback Geimere Latimer saw 48 of the 55 defensive snaps.

At safety, Wisconsin cut down its rotation. Matt Jung has emerged as the clear No. 3 safety, and he saw his biggest snap share yet. As a result, Matthew Traynor did not play at all on Sunday at safety, while Preston Zachman saw a few of his snaps taken away.

We’ll see how the Badgers shift when they start conference play next week against the Maryland Terrapins at Camp Randall Stadium.

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Alabama

Ty Simpson delivers again as No. 19 Alabama handles Wisconsin for the 2nd straight year, 38-14

Published

3 weeks ago

September 13, 2025

Press Room

Ty Simpson delivers again as No. 19 Alabama handles Wisconsin for the 2nd straight year, 38-14

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Ty Simpson threw for 382 yards and four touchdowns, including two to returning star Ryan Williams, and No. 19 Alabama overpowered Wisconsin for the second consecutive year, 38-14 on Saturday.

Simpson completed 24 of 29 passes, with two of his misses being drops by Williams and freshman Lotzier Brooks. Williams finished with five receptions for 165 yards after missing last week’s game because of a concussion.

Simpson, who was equally solid last week against Louisiana-Monroe, joined Mac Jones (2020) as the only quarterbacks in school history to complete at least 80% of his passes and throw three TDs in consecutive games.

The Byrant-Denny Stadium crowd erupted as Williams took a screen pass and went 75 yards on the first play of the second half. It gave Williams his first 100-yard game since facing Georgia last September.

Bray Hubbard’s two interceptions led an Alabama (2-1) defense that held Wisconsin to 209 yards. The Crimson Tide notched four sacks.

Danny O’Neil, subbing for injured Wisconsin starter Billy Edwards, completed 11 of 17 passes for 117 yards. His 41-yard TD pass to Jayden Ballard was one of the few highlights for the Badgers (2-1). Vinny Anthony II also returned a kickoff 95 yards for a score.

Key injuries

Alabama defensive end LT Overton left the game in the third quarter with an undisclosed injury and did not return. He walked to the locker room without assistance.

Alabama defensive back Bray Hubbard (18) celebrates an interception against Wisconsin during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Credit: AP/Vasha Hunt

Poll implications

The Crimson Tide are expected to continue to climb in next week’s AP Top 25 college football poll.

The takeaway

Wisconsin: The injury-riddled Badgers couldn’t find a rhythm on either side of the ball and have dropped consecutive games to Alabama by a combined score of 80-24. Getting healthy, particularly at QB and along the O-line, is critical before conference play.

Alabama: The Crimson Tide have outscored their last two opponents by a combined score of 111-14, potentially turning a corner after losing the opening at Florida State.