Alabama’s defensive line must set a dominant tone in the fall, and Jeheim Oatis is the centerpiece.
Oatis, a native of Columbia, Miss., had an impactful freshman season and a good sophomore year. He captured his first Southeastern Conference Championship ring in 2023 and made the College Football Playoff in Nick Saban’s final season as head coach. Oatis had Kevin Steele as a defensive coordinator last year, but now he gets to work with Kane Wommack.
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Wommack, a Hattiesburg (Miss.) native, has known Oatis a long time. After he missed spring practice with an injury, the former four-star has been on the field for the first two days of fall camp. The 6-foot-5, 320-pounder is moving well and Wommack is pleased with how Oatis took care of his body in the spring. He is in line to have a marquee junior campaign at defensive tackle.
“Jeheim was maybe 415 pounds when he got here as a freshman,” Wommack said.
“Think about how easy that would have been for him to climb the ladder back up the wrong way when you are injured and you are not going through the workouts. I think he did a tremendous job of taking care of his body. He stayed in the weight room, he stayed in the meeting rooms learning our defense, and so far I have seen him pick things up quickly.”
Oatis had 26 tackles, a tackle for loss, half a sack, two quarterback hurries, and two pass breakups in 2023.
He is a beast in the middle, but he will not have to worry about simply eating space.
In Wommack’s defense, Oatis can win one-on-one matchups and affect the quarterback with pressure.
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Stephen M. Smith is the senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
