Lane Kiffin preparing for Tide defense not coordinated by infamous ex-AU DC

Lane Kiffin is preparing for an Alabama defense that isn’t coordinated by the infamous former Auburn football defensive coordinator said to be part of Gus Malzahn’s exodus from the Plains, Kevin Steele, when Ole Miss takes on the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa on September 23. The Rebels head coach believes he’ll be facing another former AU coach and Tiger alum in the NFL, Travaris Robinson; once a graduate assistant in his first post-pro playing career gig at Auburn in 2006-2007 and later a defensive backs coach in 2015.

“We’ve been against Kevin a number of times,” Kiffin prefaced before saying, “(We) worked with him at Alabama and against him at Auburn and LSU. There seems like there’s been a change there. I don’t know what happened after the Texas game, but our guys watching the TV copy and schematically in this last game, certainly seems like T-Rob’s now calling the defense. We played him before at South Carolina, so we’re preparing accordingly for him calling the defense. He’s done a good job, too, and they’ve got really good players.”

After ceding 34 points to Texas in Week 2, Alabama continued its defensive crusade against its non-conference opponents; giving up a combined 10 points combined to Middle Tennessee and USF Weeks 1 and 3. Ole Miss is a beast of a different nature, though, sitting in the top 10 through the first three weeks (four, counting Week 0) of the season.

Former Auburn football DC Kevin Steele’s defense — or Travaris Robinson’s defense — is not the problem for Alabama

There is a very clear issue in Tuscaloosa, and it’s not Steele and Saban’s defense — it’s an offense that has no clear alpha under center.

Jalen Milroe is the closest thing to an SEC-level QB, with Tyler Buchner failing hard in his Tide tryout and Ty Simpson still having no significant SEC experience under his belt. Dylan Lonergan may be their best option, and he’s a true freshman.

When you have up to five QBs in the mix for a starting job, you don’t have a true starter. In the wake of Bryce Young’s NFL departure, Alabama is undermanned at the sport’s most important position in a way it has never been in the Saban era.