It’s always a good day to beat Tennessee, and last night was no exception. Alabama controlled the action throughout the evening. It wasn’t a completely stress-free affair, but the Tide generally maintained a two score lead in the second half. It was nice, wasn’t it? A few impressions:
This game was much closer than the score, because of the run game on both sides
As I wrote in the victory thread, the scoreboard doesn’t tell the tale in this one. Had Tennessee gained that one yard at the end of the first half rather than throwing that fateful pass, we’d have been looking at yet another nail biter as Alabama navigates this brutal slate. It’s always great to get a win, especially over Tennessee, but nobody should get overconfident based on the 17 point margin.
Alabama couldn’t get anything going in the run game until very late in the contest. Jam Miller was able to return after clearing concussion protocol, but managed a forgettable 20 yard effort on 13 touches. Meanwhile, Alabama’s defense served up DeSean Bishop’s 14/123/2 that was reminiscent of Georgia RB Chauncey Bowens’ big night against the Tide three weeks ago. Conventional wisdom has always held that running the ball and stopping the run is the championship formula, but Alabama keeps winning despite not doing either particularly well. They did show progess on defense against Mizzou’s Ahmad Hardy so perhaps there is hope going forward, but that success did not carry over last night.
But, Alabama’s pass defense is elite
This secondary was billed as the strongest unit on the team in the preseason, and that looks to be the case at this stage. Aguilar was under duress all night, particularly from Yhonzae Pierre who reminded everyone that he was a five-star edge coming out of high school. When Alabama sealed the game on Daniel Hill’s touchdown run with six minutes to play, the Vols had roughly 170 passing yards. Even with garbage time added in, Aguilar’s 6.1 yards per attempt was easily his worst of the season. And, of course, Zabien Brown changed the game with that pick six.
It has been well publicized that Alabama is the first team in SEC history to beat four ranked teams in consecutive weeks, and in all four of those contests the opposing QB was held well below his season averages. That is an exciting trend that can carry the Tide a long way.
What more can be said about Ty Simpson?
Last night wasn’t Ty’s best effort. In fact, the past two weeks he has looked a bit confused at times and it’s undoubtedly because he has put some tendencies on tape that the SEC analyst armies have noticed. Still, the dude just keeps making big plays. That 3rd and 13 play from his own end zone early in the game to turn a bad situation into a 91 yard touchdown drive was a thing of beauty.
Ty is in complete command of this offense, from setting protections to getting in the right play, and he’s delivering exceptional passes time and time again. Barring something very unforeseen, he will be gone after the season and hear his name called in the first round. Hopefully he gets himself a ring before he goes.
We need last night’s version of Ryan Williams for the rest of the season
Perhaps Williams enjoyed a bit too much success right out of the gate last season, which created expectations that were difficult to manage for such a young player. His struggles against FSU are well documented, but he seems to be rounding into the player that this team needs. Williams’ role in this offense is to threaten the defense with his speed down the field, allowing Germie Bernard to play his swiss army knife role and Isaiah Horton to be the big red zone target.
It’s a perfectly crafted WR group, and that’s no accident. GM Courtney Morgan has Derek Meadows and Lotzeir Brooks in place and ready to take over the respective roles of NFL-bound Horton and Bernard next season.
Rotating players has paid dividends
At times, there have been rumblings that Kalen DeBoer has pushed the envelope a bit by rotating so many players at key positions, but at this point in the season it has paid off with depth. Michael Carroll started the game at right tackle, but Wilkin Formby came in and held his own. Dijon Lee started the game at cornerback, but Domani Jackson still played quite a bit as well. Cam Calhoun had his hands up in Aguilar’s face on Brown’s pick six. Red Morgan had perhaps his best game as a collegian. Pierre doesn’t look like a guy who was listed third on the depth chart in week one.
For teams with championship aspirations, the college football season is long and grueling. Teams that develop depth have a much better chance to go on deep playoff runs. There is still plenty of ball left to be played, but Alabama appears to have some.
In this era of conference consolidation and playoff expansion, a one point win is as good as a 30 pointer. All that matters is that Alabama won another game, and will almost assuredly advance into the top 5 with Ole Miss and Miami losing. There is no room for complacency, but this team has put itself squarely into national championship contention and the disastrous opening act feels like a long time ago.
May they continue to progress next week in South Carolina.
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