Alabama football defensive coordinator Kane Wommack got to play the role of Santa this past Christmas.
On Christmas Day in 2024, Wommack called one of his linebackers, Justin Jefferson. He had good news and a gift to deliver.
I didn’t want to call and tell you anything until I knew it was for real.
Jefferson, Wommack said, could stay for one more season.“I just started crying because I knew what it was,” Jefferson said this week on the Crimson Drive. “There wasn’t no doubt in my mind, coming back. Do it one more time. A little more experience ... I feel like it’s going to be pretty fun.”
Jefferson was set to have his eligibility expire, but a court ruling opened the door for former junior college players to obtain one more season of eligibility. Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia made that possible after he filed a lawsuit against the NCAA.
Players who competed at non-NCAA schools can have at least one more season of eligibility in 2025-26, including Jefferson. He played for Pearl River Community College before transferring to Alabama.
In 2024, Jefferson played in 12 games and started three. Jefferson provides a veteran option for Alabama that also returned Deontae Lawson and added Nikhai Hill-Green in the transfer portal. When healthy, all three figure to receive snaps on defense.
Alabama has solid, experienced options to man the middle of its defense. So Jefferson wasn’t the only one with a reason for joy this past December.
“It was a pretty good Christmas for sure,” Jefferson said.
