NORMAN — Zac Alley came through on his promises to Quae Drake.

During Alley’s second recruitment of the linebacker from Wadley, Alabama, Alley laid out the expectations for Jacksonville State.

Alley also sold Drake on the chance to play weakside linebacker, the position he knew would give him the best path toward an NFL career, after spending the last two seasons as a strongside backer at Louisiana-Monroe.

So in the celebratory aftermath of the Gamecocks’ overtime win over Louisiana in the New Orleans Bowl, Jacksonville State’s leading tackler sought out Alley.

“He told me before I committed that we were going to go to a bowl game, we were going to win it, and I knew I wanted that for my last year,” Drake said. “After the game, we won and we both had mutual feelings. We met on the sidelines and gave each other a big hug.”

Drake has already declared for the NFL Draft, and now Alley is making a move up as well.

Saturday, the 30-year-old Alley was named OU’s linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator, officially taking over for Ted Roof.

"I'm incredibly excited to welcome Zac to our coaching family here at Oklahoma," Sooners coach Brent Venables said in a release. "He's going to fit in really well from a cultural, chemistry and philosophy standpoint. Obviously, there's a familiarity and comfort based on our background together at Clemson. He's exceptionally hard-working and tough, and has earned his way up the professional ladder by going out on his own and establishing himself. He's incredibly bright, innovative and passionate."

More: How much will new OU offensive coordinator Seth Littrell, other assistants, make in 2024?

Roof was let go as the Sooners’ coordinator on Jan. 4 and declined an offer from OU coach Brent Venables to stay on staff in another capacity.

Todd Bates and Jay Valai also maintain their co-defensive coordinator titles as well, though Alley is expected to be the defensive play caller.

Venables announced Valai would have the additional title of "assistant head coach for defense." His title is now assistant head coach for defense/co-defensive coordinator/pass defense/cornerbacks and nickelbacks.

Alley twice recruited Drake.

Back in the spring of 2021, Alley had just been hired by Lousiana-Monroe as the youngest defensive coordinator in the FBS, while Drake was at Butler Community College in Kansas looking for a path to major college football.

Butler’s 2020 season was pushed into the following spring due to COVID, helping Alley’s recruitment.

It didn’t take long for the connection to blossom.

“We would talk every other day about me coming out,” Drake said. “He gave me a linebacker offer there and I took it.”

When Drake arrived in Monroe that summer, Alley made a quick impression.

“He’s a hard worker,” Drake said. “That’s the first thing that stood out to me. He’s a hard worker and he cares about his players a lot. The whole defense, the whole team, his whole unit — he cares about them a lot.”

Then there was Alley’s defense, which struggled some early but then improved drastically as the year went on in 2021. That improvement included a late-season loss to LSU where the Tigers managed just 27 points against Alley’s unit.

“It’s an aggressive defense, a multiple defense,” Drake said. “He can do a lot of different things. To me, that was what I was looking for because I feel like I’m the type of player who can be versatile and play multiple positions.”

Alley spent 2011-18 at Clemson as first a student assistant and then a graduate assistant.

Venables arrived there as the Tigers' defensive coordinator in 2012.

"Everything I do is based on what Coach Venables did at Clemson," Alley said in the release. "That's been the foundation for how I've built defenses. I always respected how he handled himself as a coach and as a man, and I wanted to emulate that as best I could. From the moment I met him, I always wanted to be like him, have a career like this, lead the best defense in the country like him. He's obviously had a huge influence on me and I'm excited to be back with him."

More: Former OU two-sport star Ryan Minor remembered for athletic ability, humanity in memorial

Alley often talked about his time at Clemson working alongside Venables and Drake saw that not only in the complexity of the system but also in Alley’s confidence in the direction he wanted the defense to take.

“I feel like that gave him an advantage whenever he got to ULM,” Drake said. “He was already comfortable in his system. That helped him out, being young (but) he’d already been under a great coach and already had learned the defense already.

“He’s a winner. He hates losing. He’s going to work hard no matter what, no matter the circumstance that he gets into.”

More: Lincoln Riley like 'proud father' ahead of Jalen Hurts vs. Baker Mayfield NFL playoff clash

After just one season at ULM, Alley left to join Rich Rodriguez’s Jacksonville State staff, and after his first season there, Alley jumped at the chance to bring Drake back into his fold.

Drake called the move to Jacksonville State a “no-brainer.”

Drake knew the lead-up to the New Orleans Bowl and the game would be his and Alley’s final moments as player and coach, so he savored the experience.

After a stop that ultimately helped the Gamecocks come out on top, Drake and Alley met with a leap on the sidelines.

The jump was captured in a photo that Alley later sent to Drake.

“He didn’t really jump that high. I outjumped him a lot,” Drake said, laughing. “He says that he’s a good basketball player, but he didn’t jump that high.”

But while the photo highlights Drake’s jumping ability over Alley’s — Drake’s posterior is planted just beneath Alley’s shoulder — it also illustrates the bond they’ve built, and the bond Drake said he expects Alley to build with his players at OU.

“He’s a players’ coach,” Drake said. “He doesn’t mind correcting you and he doesn’t mind going the extra mile to help one of his linebackers or help anybody to learn the scheme. As long as he sees that you’re trying and working hard, that’s all he can ask for.”

Their regular talks, both about football and everything else in life, will continue to shape Drake.

“I’m proud of Coach Alley,” Drake said. “I’ve watched him be the first in the facility and the last one to leave. … I know he’s going to be successful at that level. He’s going to continue to do the things that led him to get there. I know that was probably a dream for him to coach at that level and on that stage so I’m excited for him. I’m excited to see what’s in store for him.”

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football names Zac Alley linebackers coach, co-defensive coordinator