Kalen DeBoer credits freshman who returned 19 days after arm surgery to play in Kentucky game
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Nineteen days ago, during the Alabama Crimson Tide‘s preseason camp, Jireh Edwards broke his arm. The injury would have kept most players out for a significant period of time. Edwards, though, is not most players.
Edwards, the former 4-star safety out of Upper Marlboro, MD, recorded a sack in Alabama’s 45-17 victory over the Kentucky Wildcats. His mere presence on the field, let alone playmaking, earned rave reviews from his head coach.
“We got some tough dudes,” Kalen DeBoer said after the Tide’s massive win.
Alabama trailed Kentucky 17-13 at halftime on Saturday. Quarterback Keelon Russell’s SEC road debut got off to a rough start, with two turnovers on his first two drives against the Wildcats’ defense. But he orchestrated five second-half scoring drives, resulting in 32 unanswered points for the Crimson Tide to turn what was a competitive contest into a blowout.
Defensive coordinator Kane Womack’s defense allowed just 55 total yards of offense to Kentucky in the second half. The unit forced two punts, corralled two fumbles and created a turnover on downs in the final two quarters of play. Alabama’s special teams also stopped a fake punt for another turnover on downs.
The Crimson Tide carries momentum into a matchup with the Florida State Seminoles next Saturday (3:30 p.m. E.T., ABC). On the same day, the Wildcats head to College Station to play the Texas A&M Aggies (3:30 p.m. E.T., ESPN).
