Henry To'o To'o assesses his performance, time at Alabama so far
Henry To’o To’o hasn’t been at Alabama long. After spending his first two seasons at Tennessee, the junior linebacker didn’t choose the Crimson Tide until May of this year. He didn’t even get to go through the spring with his new squad.
Now less than five months later, To’o To’o is starting in the middle of Alabama’s defense. He’s one of the key communicators and has already emerged as one of the leaders in the locker room.
Statistically, he leads the defense in tackles with 25 to go along with 0.5 tackle for loss. Has To’o To’o been perfect? No, he struggled against Florida and didn’t look a lot better against Southern Miss.
But we have to remember this guy is still adjusting to new surroundings. He’s been on campus for less than half a year. Yet, he’s already doing things such as lining up the defense, making sure everyone’s where they’re supposed to be.
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Even with his prior two years of SEC experience, that’s impressive.
On Tuesday, To’o To’o was asked by reporters to assess his play through the first four weeks as a starter for the Crimson Tide. The former Vol responded by saying there are always ways to get better.
“Definitely there is a lot of room to improve,” To’o To’o told reporters. “That’s something that I pride myself on is always trying to find something I can work on. But it’s been a good time, been a great time. But I feel like there’s a lot of room to improve as a team, too.”
To’o To’o is right. Yes, his play has struggled, especially with tackling and missing a few gap assignments, but he hasn’t been the only issue. Far from it, in fact.
A lack of wrapping up ball carriers consistently, committing unnecessary penalties and several other issues have plagued Alabama’s defense as a whole at times. For To’o To’o, it could simply be him trying to do too much.
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Defensive coordinator Pete Golding recently said that his new linebacker was communicating too much before the snap. Sometimes, it might be better for To’o To’o to stop and focus on his own assignments.
The communication has to be faster, which To’o To’o acknowledged on Tuesday when asked if he had spoken to Golding about the issue.
“Definitely. Just sitting down with Pete and trying to figure out how I can better my game,” To’o To’o said. “The faster I can get the call on, get everyone ready, the more productive I can be on the field. Those conversations are huge.”
With the No. 12 Ole Miss offense coming into town this weekend, maintaining communication while also elevating play could be crucial to a victory. It sounds like To’o To’o is ready for that challenge.
