Alabama continues remake of secondary with addition of ex-Penn State DB

Alabama is still overhauling the secondary, picking up another defensive back out of the portal Friday evening.

The player is King Mack, a former 4-star recruit who spent the 2023 season at Penn State. Mack was a top-100 prospect in the 2023 recruiting class and appeared in 13 games with 3 tackles as a true freshman.

1000% committed #RollTide pic.twitter.com/4dkimSjoso

— King Mack (@kingmack2004) May 10, 2024

Mack certainly was in line for a growing role at Penn State this season so it will be interesting to see how he is utilized in Tuscaloosa. Even if he serves a rotational role this fall, he should be line to be a serious contributor in 2025.

New faces in the secondary

The secondary was a big area of need for new head coach Kalen DeBoer, especially after the Crimson Tide lost some important pieces coming out of the 2023 season. That group included a trio of NFL Draft picks.

Star cornerbacks Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry were selected in the first 45 picks of the draft. Safety Jaylen Key was also drafted, coming off the board with the final pick as Mr. Irrelevant.

Along with the NFL Draft departures, Caleb Downs headlined a key group of players leaving the program via the transfer portal. CBs Dezz Ricks and Trey Amos also departed, opening up a big void in the secondary.

The good news is DeBoer and his staff have done the necessary work in the portal, picking up Domani Jackson (USC), Keon Sabb (Michigan), Kam Howard (Charlotte) and DaShawn Jones (Wake Forest) to go with Mack.

Paul Harvey

Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.