Why Alabama football had 'uncharacteristic' pass defense vs Florida State
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Kane Wommack appreciated Alabama football's win against Florida State. But the Crimson Tide defensive coordinator made it abundantly clear it was in spite of Alabama's pass defense.
"I think (it was) the worst that I've seen since we have been here," Wommack said Monday, Sept. 21. "Really proud and appreciative of our offense keeping us in that game. I thought they did a fantastic job of continuing to gain the momentum even when we gave it back. And that obviously is something that our guys, that's not characteristic of who we are in the secondary. I think our guys have a lot of great pride in the way they play."
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Alabama allowed 377 passing yards to Ashton Daniels and the Florida State passing game: over 80% of the Seminoles' 471 yards in the second game of the Kalen DeBoer era where the Crimson Tide allowed more than 400 yards.
While Wommack lamented Alabama's struggles, he also believed wholeheartedly all the struggles in the defensive backfield are fixable.
Of the nine explosive Alabama allowed, none were from missed assignments, Wommack said. They were out of position not because of the call or structure or communication, but because players "didn't have their eyes in the right place."
It came down to fundamentals.
"We got everyone on the same page prior to the snap," Wommack said. "It was a fundamental execution error, or it was a guy probably trying to do too much in the moment. Just do your job and your one 11th."
Through three games, Alabama has completely flipped its defensive narrative, one Wommack is aware of. In 2024, Alabama had the 19th best pass defense in the country. In 2025, the Crimson Tide was ninth.
Through three games, Alabama has allowed 222.7 passing yards per game, good for 95th best in the country behind teams like Hawaii, Northwestern and Kentucky. Alabama has the No. 63 scoring defense nationally, allowing 21 points per game, and the No. 34 total defense with 280.7 yards allowed per game.
"We've had two great years of pass defense, and really have put ourselves in position this year to do a really good job there," Wommack said. "And we did not get it done as a coaching staff and a group of players."
But Wommack is confident it will get fixed.
"I have great confidence in our players," Wommack said. "I have great confidence in our coaches. We are in this together to get those things cleaned up, and I would imagine we will get those things fixed quickly."
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected] or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter or Instagram @colingaytnews.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Why Alabama football had 'uncharacteristic' pass defense vs Florida State