Kane Wommack was back in Mobile on Monday for one his first public appearances since leaving his job as South Alabama head coach to become defensive coordinator at Alabama.
The Crimson Tide is on its first of two bye weeks, allowing Wommack to get back to his old hometown to see old friends, do some recruiting and meet with fans before getting back to work in preparation for the Sept. 28 showdown with Georgia. He spoke with the media prior to an appearance Monday night at the C Spire 1st & 10 Club meeting at Moe’s Original Bar-B-Que.
“It’s great to be back in Mobile,” Wommack said. “I was telling (wife) Melissa, you’re doing so many things, getting prepared for the season and getting ready to go and all of a sudden you hit a bye a week and there’s other things, obligations and recruiting and then certainly an opportunity to come down here and speak. I thought, ‘Man, I’m going to Mobile today.
“… I miss this place in so many ways. So many great friends, great memories. It’s always hard when you pick your family up (from) a place that was so supportive, so great to us and a place that we really call home now. So it’s great to be back and spend a little bit of time here.”
Wommack went 22-16 in three seasons at South Alabama before he joined old friend Kalen DeBoer’s Alabama staff in mid-January. The Crimson Tide defense has allowed just 26 points in three games, though the team’s offense has gotten many of the headlines.
In addition to quarterback Jalen Milroe, perhaps the signature player for Alabama this season has been freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams, who has four touchdowns in three games. Wommack is of course familiar with Williams having seen him star locally at Saraland the last two years, and is not surprised the 17-year-old freshman has made such an impact.
“It’s fun for me specifically seeing young men from Mobile accomplish things at a really high level,” Wommack said. “I got to see Ryan as a young player and people start talking about him in this community. And then all of a sudden, you start hearing about him in the college football world and then on the national level. It was very evident when Ryan walked in the door in summer workouts that this young man has something special about him.
“I’ve been so impressed by how consistent he is, his ability to retain information in our offense. … He’s been able to hold those things and when he makes a mistake, he’s been able to fix it and then keep that correction moving forward.
“When the ball comes his way, he’s a playmaker. We all know that in Mobile, but I think the rest of the country is starting to figure that out. I’m certainly glad that he’s on our side and that we don’t have to defend him on Saturdays.
Speaking of Mobile-area recruits, several top high school prospects were on-hand for Wommack’s appearance Monday night, including Theodore offensive lineman Micah DeBose, Vigor edge rusher Jabarrius Garror and St. Paul’s edge rusher Anthony “Tank” Jones. DeBose and Garror are already committed to Alabama for 2025, while Jones is being heavily recruited by the Crimson Tide, Auburn, Georgia and other schools for 2026.
Another Mobile-area native in a prominent role for Alabama is linebacker Deontae Lawson, a former Mobile Christian School star. Wommack said Lawson has become “my voice on the field,” especially now that in-helmet communication between coaches and one player on offense and defense is now allowed under NCAA rules.
“Deontae has been so impressive to me,” Wommack said. “I think his elite skill set is his ability to communicate, to anticipate what is coming, diagnose and then get that communicated to the rest of the players on the field. This is the first year that we’ve had the ‘green dot’ communication where we can now communicate to somebody on the field via wireless communication. And so, he’s really my voice on the field. He’s my guy that can communicate what needs to happen on this upcoming play.
“… He can recognize formations, backfield sets, (has) situational awareness so that we can play with anticipation. That’s the difference between you know, a (pass breakup) and an interception. It’s the difference between a quarterback hurry and a sack/fumble. I think his ability to communicate to some of these younger players has made the difference over the first three games.”
Two members of Wommack’s defensive staff also have roots at South Alabama. Defensive line coach Freddie Roach coached the same position with the Jaguars under former coach Joey Jones in 2013-14, while safeties coach Colin Hitschler worked under Wommack in Mobile in 2016-17.
And in Tuscaloosa, Wommack has access to one of the greatest defensive minds in college football in former head coach Nick Saban. The two meet regularly and did so as recently as Monday morning, Wommack said.
“Coach Saban has been a tremendous resource to me,” Wommack said. “I didn’t realize when I took the job, how much access he would allow. He’s been really helpful for me to kind of lessen the learning curve from what they have done defensively over the last 17 years to what we’re going to do defensively. There’s similarities in those things, but also some things that have really helped for me to understand why he did things the way he did them. It’s allowed me to make tweaks within our defense that I think are most advantageous for our players.
“We met again as early this morning, spent time together. He’s been really great and just a huge support system for me and the rest of the defense.”
Alabama and Georgia kick off at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 28 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The game will air live on ABC.
