Alabama Crimson Tide College Football Pregame Quote, 12/29/2021

I just want to say good morning. It’s definitely a blessing to be here. Another opportunity for us to, like you said, last year, be in the playoffs and compete for a spot in the National Championship after this game if we handle this. So it’s definitely a great opportunity for us.

QUESTIONS:

Just wanted to ask you, during practice, you go up against a lot of good players on the offensive side of the ball. But Jameson Williams. You’ve been here a few years now, you’ve seen some receivers. I’m not asking you to kind of compare, but what makes him so special when you see him from the defensive side of the ball?

To me, he’s a dog. Each and every play, he wants to win, no matter who he’s going against. And I think he shows that mentality in the game as well. So you really see no fall-off when he comes ‚Äì his effort in practice and the game. He treats everything the same. He really develops those great habits that he does in the game and practice. The world’s just starting to see.

What have you seen from Cincinnati’s tight end [Josh] Whyle? Just what kind of challenge does he present in terms of what he can do in the passing game?

I think the tight ends are utilized very well in their scheme. They have very great players. All around the offense, not just their tight ends. So they are all very disciplined in doing their job and executing their game plan. You see the success that they have from that. So, like I said, they’re a very great team, and they’ll present really great challenges for us.

You get to play for Nick Saban and you get to be a defensive leader for the team. Can you take us through the Saban experience in the playoffs, especially with the role that you have?

I mean, it is a new season when you get to the playoffs. You know, you start 0-0 and just wanting to go home. That’s the mentality we got to have as a team. That’s something we really strive on, making sure everybody stays on the same page with. And, of course, playing for Coach Saban is great. It’s a blessing. He’s the greatest coach of all time. And I love learning from him. Any moment where that’s him correcting me, I love that, because at the end of the day, I know he’s making all of us better. And that’s what he wants for us.

Obviously, you played in this defense for a while now, and you’ve gotten to play under Pete Golding. And he was telling us earlier this week that he kind of just doesn’t listen to the criticism. And he says if you’re in this business long enough and you listen to criticism, you won’t be in it very long. Do you and some of the guys on that defense, do you guys take that personal when you hear him catching heat, whether it be social media or fans on sports talk radio? And can you just talk about your relationship on playing for him?

I don’t really pay attention to the external factors, the outside noise, whether they’re criticizing him or not or us or not. I mean, I know at the end of the day, Pete’s a great coach. And I trust him. I came in never playing this position before. And throughout these three years, he’s really done well with developing me and still doing so, even to this day. So he’s a great coach. And I really appreciate what he does for us.

What have you seen from Cincinnati’s offense that makes them slightly different than the teams you may have faced in your career?

I mean, I think all the teams are pretty different in their own way. I think Cincinnati is, like I said earlier, really good in being disciplined with their game plan, whatever their coach calls for them. I mean, they do well with executing it. Like I said, you see their success throughout the whole season of how efficient their offense is able to move, whether that’s in the running, passing game, having a mobile quarterback to not just be able to stand in the pocket. He can move around and extend plays. They have a lot of threats all over the field. And you’ve got to make sure you’re on all 10 toes and be ready.

How would you evaluate the season that you’ve had personally relative to any goals or expectations you might have set for yourself going into it?

Any season ‚Äì I think this season right now, I’m really just focused on where we are right now for the Cincinnati game. I’ve had my ups and downs, but, like I said, I think coming together as a team, we all came together at this point, and we’re locking in to get ready to finish this off for the season. So if we had a rough time in the season, we definitely are making it up.

So from an outsider looking in, obviously, you guys all come to Alabama for these experiences. But do you ever sit back and just think of how surreal that you’re in this moment and the team is as dominant as it is year in and year out?

I mean, it’s truly a blessing. It is pretty cool to be able to go places and play in big games like this. But you can’t let the moment be too big for you or act like you haven’t been there before. At the end of the day, this isn’t a vacation that we took; it’s a business trip. And we have to come in every day and work like we do to practice and prepare for a game like we do any other week. So I’m in the position of a person with more of a business mindset of understanding what’s at stake. It really helps us out.

On that note, though, you guys are in the hotel room. When football is done for day, what are you doing to unwind and let loose a little bit and maybe let off some steam?

We are really around the hotel. So playing a game or just chilling, watching film, or getting recovery in, get some treatment. It’s a time for us to really bond with the team, us just being here a lot and being able to spend time with each other some more. Yeah, that’s really all we do.

Could you talk a bit about Desmond Ridder, the Cincinnati quarterback. He’s had a great year. Is there a way that you plan on containing him this week?

I plan on doing what Coach [Nick Saban] wants us to do. Whatever my job is individually and whatever everybody else’s job is, whenever that play is called, to execute whatever that is. Like I say, he’s a great player. He can extend plays. He can do it all, honestly. So there’s a lot of threats that he presents for us, and we’ve got to be ready for it.

Is there any weaknesses you’ve discovered in his game?

He’s a really great player. I know we got to execute the Coach’s [Nick Saban] game plan and be ready for the challenges he presents for us.