He earned the starting job for Alabama’s defense at weakside “Will” linebacker to open last week’s season opener against Middle Tennessee State, but Deontae Lawson was still handing out signals.
The redshirt sophomore made plays throughout the game, assisting the Crimson Tide in limiting the Blue Raiders to 133 passing yards and 78 rushing yards. MTSU averaged three yards per rushing attempt on 26 attempts.
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Lawson made sure Rick Stockstill’s team did not have success in the ground game. He also played a role in affecting Middle Tennessee’s passing game as Alabama created three sacks and six quarterback hurries. Lawson finished second on the team in tackles (seven) and had a team-high two tackles for loss with a sack. He made Tide fans think about Rashaan Evans when Lawson came on a pressure play to the quarterback. Lawson, a native of Mobile, Ala., wants to return dominance at the inside linebacker position. On Monday, Nick Saban stated how he pleased he was with Lawson as a signal-caller and a playmaker.
“He did not disappoint us at all,” Saban said about Lawson. “He’s a bright guy. When we were getting a lot of multiples and a lot of different things in the game on Saturday, he did a good job. He had a good game, he played well, and he was productive.”
Saban said it is important for Alabama to continue to get quality performances from Lawson.
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“Linebacker is such an important position,” he said. “In setting the front, stopping the run, but also getting out in run-pass and being able to match the patterns the way you need to. He has done that extremely well.”
Lawson faces an impressive offense this week in the Texas Longhorns. He looks to shut down Steve Sarkisian’s attack.
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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.
