Nick Saban gives high praise to Alabama linebacker Henry To'o To'o

NS_headshot_clearbackgroundby:Nick Schultz•09/27/22•

NickSchultz_7

Henry To’oTo’o proved to be an important piece of the Alabama defense almost immediately after arriving in Tuscaloosa last year. The former Tennessee linebacker garnered some big-time praise from Nick Saban this week, too.

To’To’o is in his second year with the Crimson Tide after arriving via the transfer portal last season. He led the team with 111 tackles in 2021 and ranks third this season with 23 through four games heading into this week’s tilt against Mizzou.

DJ Dale called To’oTo’o a “genius” last week, and Saban also discussed his intelligence and how important that is on defense during his Monday press conference this week.

CLICK HERE to subscribe for FREE to the On3 YouTube channel

“Henry’s a perfect fit for the position,” Saban said. “He’s very instinctive, he’s a great communicator, he’s a signal caller. I think he makes everybody around him play better because he’s very instinctive, he understands, very football-savvy, understands exactly how he’s supposed to fit on the runs and ends up in the right place. We try to play team defense and the linebackers should make a lot of tackles, and he certainly hasn’t disappointed in any way. He’s played very well for us.”

Nick Saban: Henry To’oTo’o ‘gets it’ on defense

This isn’t the first time Saban has spoken highly of To’oTo’o recently. After making a joke about Dale’s “genius” comments last week, he also discussed To’oTo’o’s preparation for games and how that rubs off on the rest of the Alabama defense.

“Henry’s just a really instinctive, smart football player,” Saban said. “But he does a really good job of preparing for games and I think Pete does a really good job with the linebackers understanding how they fit relative to whatever the call is.

“Henry is one of those guys that, he gets it. He sees it almost like a coach. He’s a great communicator, so I think because he makes calls up front, that really makes the other part of the front seven feel more comfortable and confident in what they’re doing and how we can execute together as a group.”