Defensive coordinator Pete Golding blamed himself for how Alabama performed last year, but one cannot deny it was missing a special ingredient on the field.
The Crimson Tide had veteran players, yet it did not have Dylan Moses.
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A native of Baton Rouge, La., the former five-star via the 2017 signing class not only takes football seriously, he takes Alabama football seriously.
Although he enjoys having fun, he is all about business, execution and winning on the field.
After watching great players command the defense at middle linebacker before him, he was ready for the responsibility in 2019. Everyone, including Golding, was on Moses’ shoulders — until a serious knee injury early in August camp sidelined him for the whole campaign.
Not having its communicator, emotional leader and best player on the field hurt the Crimson Tide’s confidence — especially in big matchups.
Despite it finishing in the top-20 in college football for scoring defense (18.6 ppg) and total defense (324.4 ypg), Moses did not see the dominance the program is known for.
Instead of declaring for the NFL Draft, he choose to return to school for his senior year and affect his teammates in the right way. He knows how difficult last year was for Moses; however, Golding witnessed the leader he inherited a day before the mishap.
“This is a true story,” Golding said. “It was the first time we met as linebackers after practice. This was the first time I ever saw him (Dylan Moses) grab somebody by the facemask, really get in their stuff and let them know that’s not how we do it here. That was what I had been waiting on and what we have been waiting on.”
To be honest, with so many laid back personalities on the team a season ago, Alabama was missing that “get right” mindset.
It is something Moses has as a veteran player and per Golding, his attitude was exactly what the young inside linebacker room needed.
“They wanted somebody to do that for them and for them to follow,” Golding said.
“It was the first time since I have been here that I saw him (Moses) wear his emotions on his sleeve and poured it out. He came to me after practice and I told him ‘Dylan, that is it. You busted your butt and you have done everything you are supposed to do to this point, but if he doesn’t… it don’t matter. You have to bring the other 10 guys with you.’ It was unfortunate for him that the next day he had the injury, but when decided to come back it was the Dylan I saw after practice that day.”
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He went through a grueling rehab and used 2019 to get his school work up, but Moses is ‘all in’ on returning Alabama to having the best defense in the nation.
“This offseason, he (Moses) had his pen and paper out every day in those Zoom meetings,” Golding said. “He got the freshmen on there and was quizzing them. He would send them tests. He said if he came back, he would bring everyone with him and it has been awesome to see. He has worked his butt off and I hope he stays healthy and has a great year.”
Regardless of knowing the first-round draft value he has- especially if he has a strong season — Moses is focused on winning a College Football Playoff National Championship.
He wants to punctuate his career at Alabama on the right now, and getting back to that stage with a trophy is what his mind has locked on to.
Tide fans are happy to see him flying around the field again and are ready to watch him in the fall.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
