UAB Helps Diezel Wilkinson See the Game Differently
By Steve Irvine
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - September 1, 2026
The instincts that UAB safety Diezel Wilkinson haven’t been built up over a lifetime of football on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, those instincts are somewhere in the neighborhood of two years.
You see, the Spokane, Wash. native spent all of his time playing on offense. He wasn’t exactly well versed at the safety position when he arrived for his first college season at Idaho.
“When I got to college, I didn't know the difference between cover two and cover three, I kid you not,” said Wilkinson, who begins the UAB portion of his college football career on Thursday night at Illinois.
At East Valley High, a 2A school in Spokane, he played receiver, running back and quarterback. He had more than 5,000 yards and 46 touchdowns during his high school career. Wilkinson said he got some interest to play receiver in college. But a couple of schools saw him as a defensive player.
“Idaho and Washington State had told me that they just see so much potential with me at safety,” Wilkinson said. “I ended up really trusting, really trusting Coach (Jason) Eck and his staff at Idaho with what they told me I could do at safety. When it came time to make my decision, it was really like, do I want to be a receiver with a low ceiling or do I wanna be a safety with a really high ceiling and the chance to develop?”
The answer led him to Idaho where he played in 12 games as a true freshman and was credited with 14 tackles. He got an education watching and working with All-American teammate Tommy McCormick. He also got an education by diving into the deep end.
“Really when you get thrown in that fire, you either sink or swim, you know what I mean?” Wilkinson said. “It's either you gotta believe in yourself and play full speed or you're gonna fail. So right when I step on that field, I feel like I get a switch in the mindset of like, all right, it's time to go.”
Eck left to take the head coaching position at New Mexico following the season. Wilkinson had to decide whether he wanted to stay.
“I was thinking to myself, I either stay at Idaho and learn a new defense or I go somewhere else and learn a new defense,” Wilkinson said. “Montana was only three hours from home for me. I loved that whole staff. They offered me at receiver in high school originally. I already had connections with the coaches over there and it was a seamless transition. It felt like the right move for me.”
The move certainly paid off. Wilkinson finished with 78 tackles, which was third most on the team, three sacks and three tackles for loss. Montana advanced to the FCS playoff semifinals before dropping a 48-23 decision to rival Montana State. It was just the second loss of the season for Montana with both coming to Montana State.
Wilkinson was back in the portal after the season. He ultimately chose UAB.
“Really for me, it was truly God's plan,” Wilkinson said. “Like every sign I got told me to come to UAB. There was lots of prayer and just lots of talk with my family. It just ended up being the best opportunity for me to showcase what I can do. I'm really happy to be, to be here. I'm grateful to be a part of this program and I'm excited for what this season holds.”
Thursday’s opener at Illinois offers Wilkinson a chance at a reunion with former Montana head coach Bobby Hauck, who is now in his first season as the defensive coordinator for the Illini. Playing against his head coach from a year ago won’t feel awkward, according to Wilkinson.
“I feel like in this day and age of college football it's not too weird,” Wilkinson said. “My freshman year I was at Idaho and then transferred to Montana and played Idaho the next season. So I was kind of used to it. But I'm really excited to play against Bobby. He's a great dude. Hopefully I’ll get to say hi to him after the game or something like that. He taught me a lot of things. He's just been doing it so long and doing it at a high level for a very long time that I was able to pick up some things that I've definitely took with me over here.”
Now, Wilkinson is concentrating on elevating his game to another level at UAB. A productive spring has turned into a starting role at free safety.
“Coming here, especially with Coach Todd Grantham here, he just helped me elevate my football IQ to the next level,” Wilkinson said. “Last year I felt like my athleticism was taking me most of the way and now that I've gotten here, I feel like I understand where my help is around me on the defense. That's allowed me to play my zones better, play my man technique better. Just understanding where everyone is on the field and what their job is has totally elevated my game completely.”
It’s also allowing him to live up to his unique first name. He said it was his mom’s idea to name him Diezel, partly because she was a fan of Vin Diesel. She also added the letter z in there to make it unique. Wilkinson said he’s never met another Diezel.
“Growing up with it, I mean, it's definitely cool with a name like that,” Wilknson said. “You kind of got to live up to it, you know what I mean? It definitely puts a fire under you a little bit.”