Sooners defensive coordinator Zac Alley nominated for national top coaching award
Another Oklahoma Sooner has been nominated for a top collegiate award for the 2024 season. OU defensive coordinator Zac Alley was officially nominated for the Broyles Award, which is awarded to the top assistant coach in college football. Alley is in his first year at Oklahoma and joined the staff in January this year. He […]
Another Oklahoma Sooner has been nominated for a top collegiate award for the 2024 season. OU defensive coordinator Zac Alley was officially nominated for the Broyles Award, which is awarded to the top assistant coach in college football.
Alley is in his first year at Oklahoma and joined the staff in January this year. He was previously the defensive coordinator at Jacksonville State, guiding them to a top-ten finish last season. He started his coaching career as an assistant at Clemson under Brent Venables and when former defensive coordinator Ted Roof was let go at the end of the 2023 season, Venables called Alley, wanting to reunite in Norman.
What a terrific move that has been. It is still Venables' defense, but Alley has complete control of the playcalling and has offered his own spins and twists to the defense.
That marriage has paid off, orchestrating one of the greatest defensive turnarounds in recent memory. The Sooners are sixth in EPA/Play, fourth in beta_rank, 23rd in scoring, fifth in tackles for loss, 11th in sacks, and 16th in total defense. After a decade of being the butt of many jokes in college football, Oklahoma's defense is one of the best in the nation.
This culminated in Oklahoma's dominant 24-3 win over the Alabama Crimson Tide last Saturday. The Sooners suffocated the Tide, allowing just 234 total yards and generating nine tackles for loss.
Alley also serves as the linebackers coach, guiding players like Danny Stutsman, Kip Lewis, Dasan McCullough, Kobie McKinzie, Lewis Carter, and Jaren Kanak to successful seasons this year.
He is one of 65 nominees for the Broyles Award. The winner is expected to be announced shortly after the end of the regular season. The Sooners have only had three winners in their history: Mark Mangino (2000), Kevin Wilson (2008), and Lincoln Riley (2015). Interestingly enough, Brent Venables also won the award in 2016 as the defensive coordinator at Clemson.