SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE FOOTBALL MEDIA DAYS

July 17, 2024

Malachi Moore

Alabama Crimson Tide

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We have Malachi Moore.

Q. Malachi, how important was it for you and your teammates, get everybody together and make sure you stay in Tuscaloosa and not enter the transfer portal because that's common when you get a new head coach?

MALACHI MOORE: Right, it was very important. It was our main focus when Coach Saban made his decision and the leaders on the team tried to get everybody together and get a level head and don't make any rash decisions.

Q. Malachi, talk about being named a permanent team captain, what that means to you and your legacy, helping this momentum shift with the coaching change moving forward.

MALACHI MOORE: Right, it definitely means a lot. My teammates picked me to be a permanent captain at the end of the year and it's something that I definitely have a high regard to. It's definitely a great honor be appointed by your teammates, your brothers, somebody that you go to work with each and every day for just being yourself and them recognizing you and your leadership, it was a special moment.

Q. Malachi, what's been the biggest difference in philosophies between Nick Saban and now Kalen DeBoer? And then who's got the better fit here, you or Jalen?

MALACHI MOORE: That's a great question. Coach Saban and Coach DeBoer, they have two different coaching styles. Both of them work and are very effective but, like I said, they have two different ways of going about it and Coach DeBoer is more of a player-led type of coach. He kind of lets his players take over and lead a team. When he has things to say he definitely voices his opinion and let it be known and things on his mind.

Best fit? I would have to say me. Jalen got a little all black going on, I got a little color. So I'm going to have to go with myself.

Q. As Oklahoma enters this conference they understand that every Saturday, especially on the road, it's going to be a dog fight. What can they expect in the SEC with road football games? What has been the toughest road game you have been to during your career playing at Alabama?

MALACHI MOORE: I can tell Oklahoma and Texas coming in that playing a road game on the SEC, there is nothing like it, there is nothing like it, the conference is second to none and everybody is going to be ready to go each and every week. Despite anybody's record, each and every Saturday you can be beat if you don't bring your best game and the fans are going to be tough for sure.

The toughest away game? I don't know, man, every SEC away game is kinda the same for me. It's loud, rowdy and my head is rattling after the game. But it's a fun environment to play in. Going away to somebody else's territory is always fun.

Q. Amari Jefferson is a freshman from our area that came in this summer. From your point of view, how has he adjusted and do you see him being a contributor down the line?

MALACHI MOORE: Amari has been doing a great job of coming to work each and every day. I think him coming in right now, his main focus needs to be just trying to learn the playbook and learn from the older guys that are there and try to use that in his way of seeing the field. All of our young guys are doing a great job of coming in and taking the coaching advise that the older guys are giving to them and I think this is one of the best young groups that we've had, talking about people coming in and be accepting of corrective criticism and not taking it to heart and knowing that we just want the best for everybody on the team.

Q. Malachi, keeping up with that, Ryan Williams is someone your teammates praised this week. What have you seen from him since he's on campus this summer?

MALACHI MOORE: Ryan, it's crazy to see how mature he is at such a young age. You talk about a kid who skipped his senior year to come be a freshman in college. You don't see that every day and when I seen him at practice the first time I see why he did what he did, but he's an electrifying player and he's very smart and skilled at a very young age. He understands coverages, and it's just -- like I said, going back to his age, just to see how mature he is is really wonderful.

Q. Tyler said he never doubted the 2023 Iron Bowl for a second. I would love to get your take as Alabama came back and won the game?

MALACHI MOORE: Never any doubts. The last play of the game, 4th and 31, I told everybody in the offense, anybody who had a chance to catch the ball I was going to tell them, look, Bro, the ball come your way you can do it. After I did that, I was in the sideline, I turned around, put my head down, put a towel on my head, I didn't want to see and all of the sudden I heard cheering, and it's not that loud though, and I looked up and it was our fans cheering and I was like, what happened? What happened? But it was a crazy time.

Q. You had a chance to play Texas two years in a row. I'm curious playing them two seasons in a row, how do you think their talent compares to the SEC?

MALACHI MOORE: They're a talented team. I think Coach Sark has done a great job coming in and brought in a winning culture that wasn't there before, and the way he took them the first two years of being there and last year they made it to the College Football Playoffs. And they are a talented team on defense, special teams, and the offense and it's great to have them in the SEC.

Q. We talked with Tyler and Jalen as well about the end of the season and how you guys are using the Rose Bowl as motivation going into this year as one of the leaders on this team. How are you reflecting on how the season ended and using that going forward?

MALACHI MOORE: I think about the Michigan game almost every day, so to say. Even fresh off of wake-up, 6:30, it's the first thing on my mind coming to work every day. I think that's one of our main driving factors. Everybody that was here has that bad taste in our mouth that we didn't finish and we were right there. So that's definitely a determining factor, whenever we get tired or think about not doing a rep or something like that, we remind -- everybody on the team like don't forget how that felt. Like, let's not lose sight of what happened last year and how we felt after that game.

Q. Kind of a fun question for you. The Olympics are at the end of this month, I'm curious, if you weren't playing football and you were going to the Olympics in Paris, which sport do you think you would be playing?

MALACHI MOORE: I got this question earlier. It's crazy but I'm going to say basketball because I feel like that's the closest thing that I could be an Olympian to, if that makes sense.

Q. We all hear stories about Coach Saban on the practice field, you guys have told it the past few years. Got any good ones of Kalen DeBoer in the short time here, to tell the fans?

MALACHI MOORE: Okay, it's not really like a story, it's more like me observing but Coach Saban, you know he always had a straw hat at practice, he always wore the same thing, if it was hot, khaki shorts and a little vest and little shirt. So you always knew who Coach Saban was based off his attire. But Coach DeBoer he has a regular Alabama hat on, Alabama tee shirt and shorts so the first couple of practices he would be standing by me and I would be like oh that's Coach DeBoer, that's the head coach right there, I didn't know he was standing right there. I think that's the biggest thing, seeing him move around the field and Coach Saban being on the defensive side, that was a big change for me.

THE MODERATOR: Great job. Thank you very much.

MALACHI MOORE: Thank y'all.