Kalen DeBoer appears set on a new defensive coordinator.
South Alabama head coach Kane Wommack has accepted the position on DeBoer’s staff at Alabama, it’s now confirmed. According to sports writer Creg Stephenson, Wommack informed the team this morning after talking to his staff last night.
Can confirm that Kane Wommack has now told the South Alabama team he is leaving to become defensive coordinator at Alabama.
— Creg Stephenson the First (@CregStephenson) January 16, 2024
There was also a coaching update made from the official South Alabama Football Twitter page confirming that Wommack has indeed resigned from his position as the head coach:
South Alabama Football Coaching Update:
📰 https://t.co/mAmSbuWIIv pic.twitter.com/De74CaME0V
— South Alabama Football 🏈 (@SouthAlabamaFB) January 16, 2024
Much speculation has been made over what DeBoer would do with the defensive coordinator position after rounding out his offensive staff largely with coaches from Washington.
Following the departure of defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson to Georgia followed by his subsequent near return but ultimate decision to stay in Athens, the clock was ticking for DeBoer to make a hire.
By landing on Wommack, DeBoer reunites with someone he previously worked with at Indiana in 2019, when he was the offensive coordinator for the Hoosiers and Wommack the defensive coordinator.
RELATED: DeBoer hired, now what?
Wommack remained at Indiana in 2020, helping them to a 6-2 season and leading the 12th ranked defense in the nation.
Most recently, Wommack’s South Alabama Jaguars were ranked 15th in the nation this season in total defense after being ranked 26th in 2022. He led South Alabama to its first ever 10-win regular season in program history in 2022.
Wommack has SEC ties, having played at Arkansas from 2005-2006 and serving as a graduate assistant and defensive backs coach at Ole Miss from 2012-2013.
As transfer portal scenarios run rampant, Wommack will have to get after it in Tuscaloosa to help DeBoer retain the defensive roster.
Michael Brauner is a Senior Sports Analyst and Contributing Writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP
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