Jefferson Shining This Season is 'Rewarding,' Says Wommack

Alabama linebacker Justin Jefferson was granted an extra year of eligibility following Diego Pavia's lawsuit against the NCAA, and he's making the most out of his unforeseen extra year of eligibility with the Crimson Tide.

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Through the first five games of Alabama's season, Jefferson leads the Crimson Tide in tackles with 29, while also adding one sack, one pass breakup, one interception, and one forced fumble on the year. On Monday, Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack said it is 'rewarding' to see the redshirt senior linebacker making the most of his extra opportunity with the Crimson Tide.

“I remember when it was some time around maybe Thanksgiving or something like that when we found out that he was going to have the chance to be eligible. Maybe it was later than that, actually, when I think about it, maybe in December. That was a special moment. I remember calling Chuck Morrell at that time, and that was big because we were looking at linebackers out of the portal," Wommack said. " In fact, I think it was December. But certainly we were all excited, and I got a chance to call him and let him know that he was going to get to come back for another year because you knew he was going to have great impact on our defense in this season. And certainly, Saturday was a great example of that.

"Justin has a great feel for instinctive tracking. He can track the ball really well, and then obviously, he’s a very physical player. He is a very fast player. He can create. He can take space away from ball carriers. We work creating takeaways every single practice at the beginning of practice, and you talk about textbook… You show exactly what he did in practice that week and exactly what showed up on game day of stripping that ball loose. Well, we do that over and over and over again, and it’s just so rewarding for those players to be able to show that, ‘hey, it showed up on game day in a very critical moment.’ So very proud of him, and the effort that he’s bringing, and the energy he’s bringing to our defense, and I think he’ll continue to build off those things.”

Jefferson will continue to try to increase his draft stock before the NFL draft in April, and if the back half of his season is anything like his first half, the redshirt senior could see a future in the NFL.

Alabama will travel to Columbia, Missouri, to take on the Missouri Tigers on Saturday, October 11. Kickoff is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. CT.

Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.