Despite a down season for Alabama football in which the team went 9-4, one bright side was the defense’s play. The group allowed only 17.4 points per game, good enough for 10th best in the FBS. Here is how the defense graded out positionally.
Defensive line: C+
“Wolf” Que Robinson and “Bandit” Texas A&M transfer LT Overton were the two most active players on Alabama’s defensive front. Robinson started hot and recorded at least half a sack in each of the team’s first four games, and he was tied with the team lead in sacks with four before suffering an arm injury against LSU that knocked him out for the rest of the season.
Overton was disruptive all season long. According to Pro Football Focus, he led the team with 38 pressures, 19 more than the next closest player. However, despite the large amounts of pressure he created, Overton was unable to finish sacks, recording only two for the season.
Nose tackle Tim Keenan III led the defensive line in tackles for loss with eight and had the second-most sacks of anyone on the unit with 2.5. Defensive tackle Tim Smith had two sacks on the year and five pressures.
The line excelled at pressuring the quarterback but continuously failed to finish off sacks, leading to an underwhelming 13.5 for the group on the year.
Linebacker: A
If there was one unit on the defensive side that had no worries heading into the season, it was the linebacker core, which was led by returning starters Jihaad Campbell and Deontae Lawson.
Campbell was disruptive all season, leading the team with 117 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and five sacks. He was a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award, which recognized him as one of the best defenders in college football.
Lawson didn’t reach the highs of Campbell but still had a productive season, finishing second on the team with 76 tackles and seven tackles for loss with two sacks, earning him All-SEC third team honors. He could’ve added more to his numbers, but his season was cut short with an ACL injury against Oklahoma in late November.
Senior Justin Jefferson replaced Lawson and his green-dot responsibilities. He had seen time in the team’s three-linebacker sets throughout the year but took on a bigger role in the final two games. He had 15 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss in the two games to finish, with 60 tackles, seven tackles for loss and two sacks on the year.
“Day in and day out, he’s been a worker,” Keenan III said. “He’s a guy who embraced that next man up mentality.”
All three linebackers who played significant time on the Alabama defense did so at a high level, helping anchor the Crimson Tide defense throughout the year.
Cornerback: A
The cornerback room had questions heading into the season after losing both starting corners from the previous season to the NFL draft and having 10 more transfer out in the wake of Nick Saban’s retirement.
What followed was a pleasant surprise for Alabama fans. USC transfer Domani Jackson and freshman Zabien Brown quickly took hold of the two cornerback spots and didn’t let up throughout the season.
Jackson had a breakout season as the Crimson Tide’s No. 1 cornerback after a subpar first two seasons at USC. He started all 13 games, had two interceptions and seven pass breakups, and was named a defensive skill player of the week by the Crimson Tide coaches five times.
Brown also delivered in his freshman campaign, starting all 13 games as the No. 2 cornerback beside Jackson. Brown had two pass breakups and two interceptions, including a memorable game-winning pick against Georgia. He was named to the All-SEC freshman team for his efforts this season.
The two former Mater Dei High School teammates provided the Crimson Tide with much-needed stability and great performance at the cornerback position, surpassing preseason expectations and arguably achieving the best-case scenario.
Safety: A-
The safety spot heading into the season was occupied by fifth-year senior and team captain Malachi Moore and Washington transfer Keon Sabb, who took safety Caleb Downs’ spot after he transferred to Ohio State.
Moore was the leader of the defense and played like it consistently throughout the season, aside from a temper tantrum against Vanderbilt. He had 70 tackles, three tackles for loss, two interceptions and a team-high eight pass breakups. Moore’s performance this season earned him All-SEC honors.
Sabb started his career at Alabama red hot, recording two interceptions in the first game of the season against Western Kentucky. But he suffered a foot injury against Tennessee that knocked him out for the rest of the season.
One of the season’s biggest surprises came in Bray Hubbard, who replaced Sabb and performed admirably. In five starts, Hubbard racked up 57 tackles, three interceptions, two pass breakups and a forced fumble, and he was named the defensive skill player of the week by the Alabama coaches twice.
“He was just waiting for the opportunity, and while he was waiting he was getting ready,” head coach Kalen DeBoer said. “That’s a credit to him.”
The “Husky” position early on saw Red Morgan and DeVonta Smith splitting the position, but Smith grew into the full-time starter as the season went on. He finished the season with 30 tackles and five pass breakups.
The safety unit was consistently solid throughout the season, forcing turnovers while not allowing many big plays.
