Everything Tim Keenan, Deontae Lawson, Ty Simpson said ahead of SEC Championship Game

Alabama captains Tim Keenan, Deontae Lawson and Ty Simpson spoke to reporters via Zoom on Monday as part of the 2025 SEC Championship Game student-athlete teleconference. Each player spoke for 10 minutes. Below is everything Keenan, Lawson and Simpson said.

TIM KEENAN III, DL

Q. The fact that you’ve been in some SEC Championship games before, what does this game mean and what do you tell some of your teammates that are experiencing it for the first time?

TIM KEENAN: This game definitely holds a lot of weight. It’s just the next game. We used to playing in big-time moments, especially being here at Alabama where every week is kind of like an SEC Championship because you know we get everybody best game.

Go 1-0, do what we’ve been doing, keep climbing, keep the main thing the main thing.

Q. Zabien Brown, how have you seen him grow since he stepped on campus?

TIM KEENAN: He’s never satisfied. He’s always working. He might not be the loudest guy, but he’s loud with his work. He’s consistent. He’s a sponge, he soaks up everything.

As long as he keeps going 1-0, keeps putting in the work, he’ll keep being successful.

Q. Gunner’s legs have been a sparkplug for Georgia’s offense since you played them. Is his rushing threat something you guys are preparing more for this week? How did you prepare for that last time?

TIM KEENAN: It’s all about trusting our keys, doing what we need to do, aligning, assigning, going out and playing ball. As long as we focus on the small things, have attention to detail, we should be fine and it should be just a great game.

Q. Tim, obviously you didn’t get to play UGA this year. What stands out to you the most about their offensive line?

TIM KEENAN: I know they’re very sound. Especially in SEC play, the trenches, it kind of get nasty and that. It’s definitely going to be a great battle, one for the centuries, like it always is when Alabama and Georgia plays. I think that’s like the mismatch of the game.

Q. How has the defense, in your opinion, changed or improved since the last time you played Georgia?

TIM KEENAN: Just climbing, trying to get better than yesterday. Especially just not being satisfied. Always striving to do better. If you feel like you went hard last weekend, you can go harder.

With the system and stuff, our weight room is so advanced, they can show us how hard we’ve been going in practice. The rates and stuff have been climbing. That’s all we got to do: keep playing hard and everything is going to take care of itself.

Q. What has Qua Russaw’s return added to your defense?

TIM KEENAN: Bullet in the clip, that’s what I say. Great to have Qua back. He’s feeling better. He’s out there moving good. Definitely will be a great return game for him.

Q. Obviously the main motivation Saturday is the SEC Championship. There’s at least a school of thought that you need to win to assure your spot in the College Football Playoff. Do you think you guys should be in either way?

TIM KEENAN: We’re a 10-2 team in the SEC. We go out and we play hard. Of course, it’s the SEC Championship, it’s a big deal. We’ve already beat this team before. We going to go out there and make sure we do the same thing.

But we going to make sure we handle business on our own end and not leave it up to the committee to make decisions for us.

Q. As a guy from Alabama, what does it mean for you to go out as one of a few guys who is 5-0 in Iron Bowls?

TIM KEENAN: It’s always a great time going against Little Bro, having some fun, going 5-0 with my time here. I feel like that’s going to be the new trend to go undefeated against Little Bro.

DEONTAE LAWSON, LB

Q. With you having played in this SEC Championship game before, what does it mean to you and what are you telling some of your teammates experiencing it for the first time?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Man, it will be a great experience to get them guys in that environment. I’m just telling them another big game, another challenge that we got to get over to get to our goals.

I’m sure we’ll be ready to go when the game comes. It starts with a great week of practice. Obviously I’m fired up, another opportunity to get another SEC Championship. It means the world to me.

Q. Zabien Brown, how have you seen him grow into the player he is now?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Man, Zabien, ever since he first stepped on campus, he always been a pro in the way he went about his business. Not really the loudest in the room, but will definitely say something when he need to this year.

Yeah, his play is just on the rise. He’s definitely trending in the right direction. It’s great to have him out there on the edge. I know he’ll just continue to get better.

Q. As a captain, older guy on the team, what are you telling your teammates going into the SEC Championship game, trying to get a Playoff spot as well?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Yeah, I think the biggest thing is just don’t let the game be bigger than what it is ’cause with kind of games like this comes a lot of outside noise or external factors that you don’t want them to get heavily involved in.

Just don’t let the game be bigger than what it is. At the end of the day you still got to control what you can control. That’s what goes on between the white lines. That’s really the biggest focus.

It just starts with a great week of preparation. I know we going to be all fired up to go.

Q. As you prepare for Georgia, I assume you’re looking at film from the last game, how much have you seen this defense grow?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Yeah, well, I just think we have more reps under our belt. Obviously we playing faster. We’re anticipating things at a high level. That’s really what stands out to me on film.

Man, we practice hard every week. I think we meet new – what I can say – like a new landmark of how hard we’re practicing every week. I think that goes into effect also. We emptying the tank every week trying to be better, never being satisfied. I think that’s the thing that stands out. We’re just still starving, yeah.

Q. Do you start from scratch in terms of preparation or do you go based off of building off what you saw before?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Well, you can look at that. Obviously they have improved as an offense. You can’t really just base it off that game.

You don’t have to start from scratch. I mean, you can only change so much. Like we know them, they know us. It’s just going to come down to who has the most physicality, who is more detailed, honestly who wants it more. That’s what it’s going to come down to.

Q. It seems like so many times this defense has been able to make game-winning plays. Is there a clutch identity of this team, something you take pride in? What would you credit it to?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Man, we always talk about being elite in clutch situations. That’s what we pride ourself on. I mean, I’m sure everyone in the country practices those situations in practice. I just think we kind of have a different demeanor how we attack those situations in practice.

Man, we also just got confidence in each other. I think that’s the biggest thing, too, is just being confident in the person that you’re next to, that they’re going to do their job so you can just do your job full speed.

In those moments, we know someone going to step up and make a big play. That’s what we bank on.

Q. What does it say about this new coaching staff to get back into the SEC Championship?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Yeah, I mean, man, it says a lot. To replace Coach Saban obviously is definitely not easy for anyone that would have did it. I think Coach DeBoer handled it great, better than some people would have.

Last year I feel like Coach DeBoer, we followed him, but he wanted the players that was here the whole time or the leaders of the team to kind of run the team in a way, like be more player-led.

Basically us – how can I say this – leading the team, honestly. This year he just put his stamp on this team, how he wants things to get ran.

Obviously we still have great leaders and are player-led. He kind of has his standard or what he wants to see. He let that be known after the bowl game on January 14th. Just says a lot about him, his character, his resilience as being a coach.

I think the guys, man, we just bought into what he was preaching to us. We pride ourself on being unbreakable. That’s the theme for this year. I think that played a big part, as well, us being back in the SEC Championship.

Q. In terms of film study, how important is that from the linebacker room, setting up the defense?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Can you ask that one more time?

Q. From a film study standpoint, how important is that role in just kind of setting up the defense properly, the overall communication?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Yeah, I mean, it has its ways. With the (indiscernible) connection, I got Coach Wommack in my ear talking to me, just trying to get everyone aligned, trying to pick up on any tendency that they have to let us anticipate faster.

It’s kind of natural, honestly, to get everyone lined up or anything and also be able to hone back into my key so I can do my job. It’s kind of natural, something I’ve kind of grown into.

I don’t really have as much challenges as I used to have. I definitely have to stay locked in, for sure.

Q. You gave Georgia its first home loss in six years. What kind of bragging rights would it be for you guys to beat them twice in their home state?

DEONTAE LAWSON: I mean, when you look at it, was like you said, that was the first time they lost at home in a minute. But Mercedes-Benz, Alabama and Georgia played there numerous times. I’m sure Alabama is up on there. I wouldn’t really say it’s bragging rights in that way.

Man, that’s nothing that we can control. All we can control is going out there and emptying the tank and being detailed, just flying around the field.

We’re not even worried about having bragging rights or anything. We just know this is another steppingstone on our way to get to where we want to go. That’s really our main focus.

Q. You spoke about not making this game bigger than it is. Do you have any concern that you need to win to assure yourself of a spot in the Playoff?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Man, I feel like honestly we’ve kind of had that mindset ever since our first loss. I don’t really think anything would change in our mindset or anything. We know that we don’t want to put it in no one else’s hands.

Just control what we can control, and that’s doing our best to win the game, leave nothing up for chance, so…

Q. Hearing from Tim earlier talking about going against Georgia’s offensive line, when you look at the defensive linemen in front of you, how much confidence do you have in those guys?

DEONTAE LAWSON: Man, I got full confidence in those guys right there. You got T.K., you got Edric, you got James Smith. You got guys that’s dying to get dirty. That’s how I can say it.

Those guys, they practice hard. That’s why it shows up on game day. They hold the double-teams up. They just anchors in the middle. So yeah, I got full confidence in those guys.

I know they’ll be excited ’cause Georgia likes to run the ball. That’s what we want to defend. We know they kind of caught us on a couple big runs in the first game that we played.

Yeah, that will definitely be something on our minds, for sure.

TY SIMPSON, QB

Q. First big game with Ryan Grubb on the sideline. Eastern Illinois, as well. How is that experience for you? How did that help you?

TY SIMPSON: It was great. Like you said, the first time it was Eastern Illinois, so it was a little different.

I think it really gives not just me but our whole offense in general a sense of confidence for him to be up and down on the sideline, talking to us, telling us what he sees, giving us some boost of confidence, words of encouragement. Kind of brings the whole guys in the unit together.

He sees things as well that you can’t see from the box, demeanor and things like that. We’ve really enjoyed it so far.

Q. What is something that you want to make sure you do again against Georgia and something you want to improve from the first matchup?

TY SIMPSON: Yeah, right? I think just thinking about the game the first time, we were really good on third down. I think we were like 7-7 at one point. I think that’s what sets us apart and helped us out in the game.

One, being able to convert on third down. Two, I think goes back to being good on second down, as well. I think last game we were not good on second down, that’s why we weren’t good on third downs because we had a lot of third-and-longs.

We have to have efficient plays, stay positive in the yardage, kind of take each play as it is.

Q. What did you see from the running backs on Saturday, especially when Jam went down? How big has Daniel Hill been for you guys?

TY SIMPSON: The whole room in general has been big, right? Jam definitely is the leader of that group, is the core. Guys like Daniel Hill, Kevin Riley, AK Dear, Richard Young, Jay Washington, all those guys stepping up and coming up big when we need them most, right? Everyone was questioning our run game. We come out and run for over a hundred yards on the best rush defense in the SEC, right? Just really, really credit to those guys.

I know playing running back’s hard, get hit every play, ask them to run, block and catch. Being able to do all three like those guys can is really important for us.

Q. Now that you have a chance to watch the film from Saturday, how would you assess your own performance against Auburn?

TY SIMPSON: Right? Love to clean up some stuff, just like anybody would. I need to be better in post-snap recognition, be better just in general of drifting in the pocket. I thought there were some good plays that were made and some plays that you can learn from.

That’s all every game is, right? It’s different experiences each and every time. That’s all I can ask for. I know this game coming up is going to be different than the last time we played Georgia at their place.

I’m just learning and trying to be the best I can be.

Q. What do you remember about opposing Ellis Robinson a couple months ago? What have you noticed about his growth?

TY SIMPSON: Yeah, funny story about Ellis, right? Tyler Booker, who is my best friend, used to go here, first-round draft pick. Ellis, who is from New Haven, Connecticut, where Booker is from, went to IMG where Booker went. Came up here on visits a lot of times with recruits. Would hang out with me and Booker.

I know Ellis pretty well. I know he’s a good player. Seeing how fast and long he is, really good play-maker on the ball, can go up and get it. I saw this last pick that he had against Georgia Tech. Just all around really, really good ballplayer. Reminds me a lot of Kool-Aid when he was here, the other big-time DBs that we’ve had. I mean, just very, very impressed with how far he’s come as a player.

Q. What do you remember about those visits?

TY SIMPSON: He was a little young kid. I just remember us going to eat, Booker being like this is my young bull. It was like a little brother type thing to Booker. Come to find out he’s a starting DB at Georgia and a really, really good player.

Full circle moment, for sure. Makes me feel old (smiling).

Q. Ty, I assume you’re watching film from the Georgia game a couple months ago. As you watch yourself, how much do you realize or do you kind of sense you’ve grown with more game reps? What’s the biggest point of growth that you see in your game?

TY SIMPSON: Yeah, right? I think it goes back all the way to Florida State to now. One, just the way that I prepare and go through everything, right? I kind of know what to expect through a game week and a game day.

Two, it goes back to, okay, how is my mindset going into the game? Was I worried about this or that? Was I thinking about a certain type of thing too much? Was I just playing free?

The third thing is just being disciplined and just playing underneath myself. That comes with, like I said, learning and new experiences, just reps and time, right?

I look back at the Auburn game, think about all the pressure that they brought on third down and stuff, think about times in games to where I didn’t pick that up and I had a negative play.

It’s just instances like that and situations like that to where, right, reps and just keep on putting them in your memory bank, right? Everything that you go through, everything that you experience is just another thing that you can learn from and know what to do.

That’s why I’m just appreciative of the growth in my journey of being here.

Q. Same opponent, different stage. What’s been the message as you see the same opponent but on a bigger stage?

TY SIMPSON: Yeah, right? This is the SEC Championship, right? This wasn’t something that a committee picked or whoever picked, right? We earned this. We went through a tough schedule to get to this position. But we also got to understand that this isn’t the same team that we played a couple months ago, right?

They’ve found a new identity. They’ve got it rolling. We got to go in and understand that our mindset doesn’t need to change, that this is going to be a heavyweight fight.

Last year, last time we played ’em, none of that means anything, right? They’re going to have a chip on their shoulder and something to prove. We know what’s at stake. This is why you come to Alabama, what you dream about as a kid, playing in the SEC Championship. That’s what we need to make sure that we kind of see it like that.

Q. How are you feeling at this point in the season physically? Looked like you took a couple big hits in the Iron Bowl.

TY SIMPSON: Yeah, got to love getting hit, right (laughter)?

Everybody at this point of the season, everybody is sore. I feel great. I’m ready to roll. What a great opportunity. So fired up to play in a game like this and so blessed.

Our message to the offense is what a great opportunity. We need to go get it, you know? Our message as a team is pretty much just it’s all about us, right? It’s about nobody else, it’s all about what we do, how we go throughout practice, how we go through meetings, how our mindset is.

That’s what it’s been all season of just how we do everything, how we do anything. It starts with our head coach and it goes down to everybody.

Our message is all about us. It’s all about what we do and nobody else.

Q. Could you talk about what that balance is like as you try to balance being an athlete as well as a full-time student?

TY SIMPSON: Yeah, it’s definitely a challenge, for sure, just because as much time and effort you want to put into football, you came to college to get a degree and you’re here for a bigger reason.

All the times that I want to stay longer in the facility and longer watching film, I may have to cut that short and go do some homework, right? It’s all about planning and all about having a weekly schedule.

Today, like Monday, our off day, I try to get all my homework and schoolwork done just so I can go through the week and have my mind on the game.

Q. Y’all have finals starting on Monday. With this week leading up to a huge game, when are you going to find the time to study?

TY SIMPSON: Yeah, so we’re a morning team, right, practice team. We’ll practice in the morning and get everything done at that time. I try to block out that time for football and then carve out at least an hour and a half to study towards the back end of the day, whether it’s before meetings or at night after meetings and I go to bed.

The biggest thing is just planning, just having a routine and making sure that even though your routine might get changed, you’re still disciplined in everything that you do.

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