South Jersey’s Keon Sabb has a ‘quiet swagger’ that has been an advantage for Alabama’s defense

MADISON, Wis. — In the midst of a 10-play opening drive, Wisconsin’s offense crossed into No. 4 Alabama’s defensive territory, on the doorstep of striking first in Saturday’s marquee Big Noon Kickoff game on Fox. So on a pivotal third-and-10 from Alabama’s 35-yard line, backup quarterback Braedyn Locke fired a pass across the middle of the field, well past the first-down marker.

But what he didn’t account for was Crimson Tide safety Keon Sabb, who was aligned 18 yards off the ball, to drive so quickly on the pass. Sabb, a Glassboro native, nearly made Locke pay for a late middle-of-the-field pass, one that the redshirt sophomore nearly collected for his third interception of the season. Despite the drop, Sabb had slammed the door shut on the scoring threat and sent Wisconsin a clear message: Don’t throw his way.

“I had just seen his release, and I was just trying to stay inside [and] try to cut him off, to catch the ball,” Sabb told The Inquirer postgame. “But I’ve got to flip my hands the other way, just got to be professional and catch the ball.”

Sabb laughed and added: “Definitely frustrating [to not catch the interception] … but I’m going to just let them come to me.”

But Sabb’s imprint on Alabama’s 42-10 rout of Wisconsin continued. In the second quarter, he got his hands on another football, blitzing from 7 yards out at the snap to knock away a throw to the left sideline. He then showed his tackling ability, assisting on a tackle for loss on a second-and-goal run during Wisconsin’s lone red zone trip.

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He finished the day with six tackles, the aforementioned two pass deflections, and a lot of praise from his first-year Tide coach, Kalen DeBoer, who watched Sabb stymie his Washington Huskies in last season’s College Football Playoff championship game as Michigan’s starting safety.

“I think a lot of people have a lot of confidence in him out there, that he’s going to be in the right spot,” DeBoer said of his starting safety. “He’s instinctive, he sees the field really well. … I just don’t know if he’s out of position, ever. I’m sure there’s details that we’ll find, but I just trust him.

“I love the quiet swagger that he has about him. He just goes out there, and it’s a businesslike approach. He loves the game.”

The DeBoer-Sabb pairing has been fruitful so far for the Crimson Tide. The 6-foot-1 Sabb intercepted two passes in the season opener vs. Western Kentucky, while DeBoer, who joined the program to be Nick Saban’s successor after he retired, has the Crimson Tide’s offense scoring 49 points a game. Sabb, who collected 28 tackles, six passes defended, and two interceptions in 14 games (five starts) with Michigan last season, credits his defensive coordinator, Kane Wommack, for his early success.

Said Sabb: “Coach Wommack put me in at the free [safety] position to be able to make plays and just do what I can do. They just put me in the right positions to be athletic, make different plays, and see different things.”

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In front of Sabb along Alabama’s defensive front seven is linebacker Jihaad Campbell, an Erial, N.J., native who starred at Timber Creek before making the jump to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. That’s where Sabb and Campbell first met, two South Jersey natives, hundreds of miles away from home playing alongside a number of highly ranked recruits. Sabb had previously played for Williamstown and Glassboro.

Before defensive coordinator Brent Venables left Clemson for Oklahoma, both Sabb and Campbell made their oral pledges to the Tigers and would have joined Philly-area native Jeremiah Trotter Jr., but instead, Sabb opted for Michigan and Campbell chose Alabama.

But three years after they went their separate ways, Sabb joined the Crimson Tide in January, reuniting the pair as both entered pivotal seasons for their NFL futures. And there they were on Saturday, trading big plays: a drive after Sabb’s dropped interception in the first quarter, Campbell stuffed a second-down run; after Sabb’s pass breakup in the second quarter, Campbell followed with a tackle for loss on second down, then made a tackle in coverage on third-and-long to halt Wisconsin’s drive. In the third, after Sabb recorded a tackle for loss near the goal line, Campbell held firm and stood up Wisconsin’s Tawee Walker to force a fourth-and-goal. Campbell finished with a game-high eight tackles.

That playmaking knack for both players carries into their off-the-field relationship, too.

“We’re like brothers,” Sabb said of their relationship. “You always find yourself back with the people you’re supposed to be with. … I can count on him for anything, and he [can] count on me for sure.”

“God had a plan for us to be here to be together again. We’re both from Jersey, too,” said Campbell, who made his 11th start at inside linebacker for Alabama. “So I salute to that guy for just coming here and executing and joining the brotherhood and being who he is.”

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With No. 2 Georgia on the horizon for a date in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Sept. 28 (7:30 p.m., 6abc) that has early CFP implications, Sabb and Campbell are keeping the “chip on their shoulders” they developed growing up in South Jersey.

“People don’t say we don’t play football out there,” Campbell told The Inquirer. “To all the Jersey football players out there, man, keep going. The sky’s the limit for y’all, and don’t stop no matter what.”

“Coming down from the East Coast, coming down South, [Alabama] is definitely taking care of me,” Sabb said. “I love Southern hospitality, just being able to make plays out there, knowing the fans, coaches, and everybody [have] my back.”