SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE FOOTBALL MEDIA DAYS

July 22, 2026

Zabien Brown

Alabama Crimson Tide

Press Conference

ZABIEN BROWN: Zabien Brown, excited to be here and love playing in the SEC. Can't wait for the season.

Q. You've been a starter on this defense since your freshman year. What does it mean to you that Coach trusts you enough to execute at such a competitive level?

ZABIEN BROWN: I mean, it means the most that I have my coach's trust and confidence in me. Allows me to play, play harder, play faster and knowing that people got my back.

Q. Obviously at the top of your list are team goals, but what are your individual goals that you set to help get to your team goals?

ZABIEN BROWN: I want to be working on being a great leader every day, making personal connections with guys on the team, on my side of the ball, other side of the ball. And I think things like that will go a long way for us.

Q. You've been a part of some of the bigger interceptions in recent Alabama history, notably the interception that beat Georgia in 2024, the pick-6 against Tennessee at the end of the half and another pick-6 against Oklahoma to tie the game in the College Football Playoff. Is that something that's always been natural to you, being around the ball at the right time? Or is that something that's been coached through you since arriving to Alabama, or even since high school?

ZABIEN BROWN: I feel like I'm a natural ball player. I grew up playing on the other side of the ball, so catching the ball, having the ball in my hand, it's just natural to me.

Q. You went up against Georgia twice last year, beating them at home and then losing in the SEC Championship game. What challenges does this Coach Smart-coached program pose?

ZABIEN BROWN: They're an extremely well-coached and disciplined team. We know what they're gonna do, they know what we're gonna do, and it's about who can do it better. And it's about making the play when it's right in front of you, catching the ball when it's in front of you, making the tackle when it's in front of you. So things like when the game comes down to only a few plays, everything's important.

Q. You guys have a saying, couple years now, LANK, let a naysayer know. There's a lot of people that kind of talk about DeBoer in this program where it is now after Saban retired a couple years ago, despite a lot of the success you guys have had with DeBoer. Can you just kind of talk about that and what you guys see from DeBoer in the locker room?

ZABIEN BROWN: We're not really worried about the outside noise. I love playing for Coach DeBoer. He's a great person. He's a great leader. Our success is tribute to him, really. He's just one of those people that you just want to play for. When he talks before the game, you can't wait to go out there.

Q. What's a story you like to tell about your defensive coordinator, Coach Wommack?

ZABIEN BROWN: Like a specific story?

Q. Something you like to tell people that they should know about him.

ZABIEN BROWN: He's a great guy. He makes a lot of personal relationships with all the players. We all love him. We all love playing for him. If somebody were to ask me about him, I would just say he's a great guy. He cares a lot about his players and makes us play a lot harder.

Q. You guys have beaten LSU a couple years in a row. What does it take to win that game specifically that you guys have done a good job of?

ZABIEN BROWN: Just playing our game, just sticking to our game plan. Every game in the SEC is a rough game, it's a one-score game. That's how it always is. That's how it always will be. And we look forward to playing those tough games.

Q. Isaiah Horton transferred to Texas A&M this past season. Can you just talk a little bit about the competition you had with him in practice and what kind of player the Aggies are getting?

ZABIEN BROWN: Yeah, he's a great player. He knows me. I know him. We know how each other play. We had a lot of great battles in practice. And I can't wait for that match-up. It's going to be a great night.

Q. Saturday afternoon, Tuscaloosa, you're in the tunnel again at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The field's named after Nick Saban. You see all this crimson all over the place. Do you still get goosebumps?

ZABIEN BROWN: Every time. It doesn't fail. Being in Bryant-Denny Stadium is the best stadium in the world. Being recruited, I never went to a Bama game until the first one I played in. I love it. I love being there.

Q. You guys like to say you take it game by game, week by week, but with Alabama having a top five defense in the SEC, which other conference team do you see giving you the biggest challenge on the offense side?

ZABIEN BROWN: Life in the SEC is a one-score game every week, every Saturday. So you never know which Saturday -- you never know what holds, you know what I'm saying? And they're all one-score games. They're all tough. It's all going to come down to the fourth quarter.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about Dijon Lee? He was a freshman last year. Now he's going to have a little more of a significant role. What have you seen from him in practice?

ZABIEN BROWN: Dijon is a great player. He's grown and matured as a player on and off the field so much since this offseason. I love the way he works. He motivates me. He's got a gift, and he's an amazing athlete.

Q. I asked your teammate Ryan Coleman-Williams earlier about what it would mean for him to be a team captain and what the process would be like for him to become one of the four men to have their hand and foot stomped into Denny Chimes after the football season. Is that a personal goal of yours, or are you just specifically focused on being the best defensive back in the country?

ZABIEN BROWN: I mean, obviously that would be a blessing if that does happen. But as of right now, I'm just focused on how I can get my team better, how I can get myself better, how we can better each other.

And so yeah, I wouldn't say that's my immediate goal, but obviously being part of history would be nice.

Q. Obviously a lot of reps between you guys and the defensive backfield. Is there still a lot of talk, a lot of communication, or is it pretty much unsaid that we know what everybody else is going to do because you have played together so many times? What is the communication like in the defensive backfield knowing that you guys have played a lot of reps together? Is there a lot more communication, is there less?

ZABIEN BROWN: Yeah, with more trust and the more time we spent together, we've been able to communicate more of being, me personally, more comfortable with being like, what did you see right here, and when you see this, tell me that. Just little things like that, being able to build our trust definitely builds our communication.

Q. How do you feel being chosen to represent Alabama here at media days?

ZABIEN BROWN: It's a blessing. I'm extremely excited. I love being here, representing my school, the Script A. It truly means a lot to me.

Q. Over the course of your time with Ryan, how have you seen him grow as a receiver? Kind of could you scout your approach, what he does well as a receiver, things like that?

ZABIEN BROWN: He just continues to get better. He never is staying the same. That's what I admire so much about him, taking reps against him. You didn't used to do that. You know what I'm saying?

So being able to grow alongside him is definitely special. I'm extremely blessed to be able to share the field with him for so long.

Q. Over your time at Alabama, what's been the most fun or loudest game at Bryant-Denny that you've played in?

ZABIEN BROWN: My most fun, personally, was the Tennessee one this last year. Just the environment, how loud it is, the cigar smoke afterwards, and going back out on the field and jumping in the stands and just being with my family out on the field after the game, it was an amazing experience.

Q. Curious your view of this quarterback competition right now, what are the biggest strengths from Austin and Keelon from going against these guys in practice?

ZABIEN BROWN: Two amazing guys on and off the field. And they do have different skill sets. They provide different strengths to the offense. Mack, he's not going to make a wrong decision. And Keelon, he's lightning in a bottle. So really can't go wrong.

And I love being around those guys, and I'm thankful to call those guys my teammates.