My Son and Heir was the first one to say it, but over the next hour or so following the end of yesterday's game, I heard several fans express the same sentiment: Things are back to normal when Alabama can beat a team 40-7 and we talk about the things the team needs to do to improve.
Compare this state of affairs to the absurd post-game comments of Auburn's Gene Chizik who hailed last week's overtime win over Louisiana Monroe as a "great victory." I expect he will characterize yesterday's two-point loss to a lethargic LSU with similar hyperbole. We will come back to the Barn later. For now, let's examine the Tide's performance against the Owls of Florida Atlantic University.
Disregarding a fumbled punt, Alabama scored the first seven times it had possession of the football. The offense put together six drives that gained 40 or more yards. The Tide defense held the FAU offense to fewer than 7 1/2 feet per play and did not allow a possession down conversion until the 4th quarter of the game. Until FAU's final drive of the game, the Owls gained more yardage on the ground when the captains walked to mid-field for the coin-toss than they did in more than three quarters of play.
The 2012 Crimson Tide is a very good football team. In four games it has dominated each of its opponents. Still, there is work to do. Ball security remains an area of emphasis, several passes were dropped yesterday, and for the first time this season, the offense got bogged down in the red zone and had to settle for field goals rather than finishing drives with TDs.
Taking into account these and other issues, and factoring in the quality of the opposition, here's how I grade the game:
Offense: B+ Alabama gained 503 yards total offense [256 rushing], earned 25 first downs [16 rushing] and converted 7 of 14 third downs. Offensive efficiency waned after the opening quarter. In the first stanza, Bama converted 5 of 5 third downs but in the second and third quarters the Tide was 1 of 7 in possession downs.
Eddie Lacy rushed for 106 yards on 15 carries mostly in the first quarter. TJ Yeldon gained 63 yards on 10 rushes and Kenyon Drake contributed 35 yards on 5 attempts. Dee Hart ran the ball 4 times for 29 yards and the Pride Of Gordo, Ben Howell, electrified the fans sitting around me with 20 yards and two rushing first downs on 4 carries.
Howell, by the way, can sell a fake better than a street vendor in Chinatown. After three straight runs on hand offs from Blake Sims, Howell had everyone at Bryant Denny Stadium convinced he had the ball for a fourth straight carry while Sims picked up a first down.
AJ completed 15 of 25 pass attempts for 212 yards and three TDs. AJ is 14 pass attempts short of Brodie Croyle's record of 190 consecutive pass attempts without an interception.
Amari Cooper caught 4 passes for 65 yards and Michael Williams added 25 yards on 4 catches. DeAndrew White caught 4 passes for 17 yards and a TD. Kenny Bell caught only a single pass, but it was good for 85 yards and a TD on the third offensive play of the game. Cyrus Jones, Brian Vogler and Christion Jones completed the receiving, each with a solo catch, Jones for a TD at the back of the end zone.
Alabama's 6 long drives [85, 63, 45, 95, 44, 44] produced 4 TDs, a FG and a punt. The 95 yard drive consumed 2:38 of the final 2:45 of the first half.
Defense: A- The Defense limited the Owls to only 110 yards of total offense [76 rushing] but failed to force a turnover and allowed two fourth down conversions in the Owls' final possession that ultimately led to a TD. FAU had 10 meaningful offensive possessions in the game, and apart from the final, 75 yard drive, the Tide defense forced 7 three-and-outs.
CJ Mosley recorded 6 tackles. Tyler Hayes and Damion Square were each credited with 5 tackles. Landon Collins and Tana Patrick each made 4.
Special Teams
Place Kicking: A+ Cade Foster was good from 52 [career high] and 46 while Jeremy Shelley was good from 26 and 30 and perfect on PATs. Jesse Williams blocked FAU's only FG attempt.
Kickoffs A Foster had 6 touchbacks and averaged 41.6 net yards per kick on the few that were returned.
Punting: C+ A lost fumble on a punt return nearly qualifies for an automatic failing grade, however, Christion Jones and Dee Hart combined for 89 yards on 6 returns, which helps ameliorate the effect of the turnover. Cody Mandell was taking a nap over by the training table until the 1:47 mark in the third quarter, at which time he was gently awakened and sent into the game for his only punt of the day; a 29 yarded that he dropped like a sack of beach sand inside the FAU 15 yard line.
Coaching: A The participation report lists 69 players who saw action against the Owls. Bama was penalized 3 times and earned 617 all-purpose yards. AJ, Lacy and Yeldon did not see action after the first possession of the second half. Blake Sims and Phillip Ely each got reps with the first-team offensive line, then substitutions from end-to-end began in earnest.
Unlike the approach to the Western Kentucky game, Coach Saban told reporters that the team had a very good week of practice and was focused on what the staff was working on.
The atmosphere in Tuscaloosa was terrific. The weather was splendid; sunny but mild with low humidity. In all it was a perfect setting to welcome first-year parents to campus on a game day.
When we returned to our hotel, we decided to have a glass of wine and watch TV in the lounge. I thought we were watching an episode of "Cops," but soon the Correspondent From The Tire Store arrived and pointed out that it was really the LSU-Auburn game. What a steaming mess that contest turned out to be! LSU played like it had been reading its press clippings all week rather than preparing to play a road game against a division opponent. And what each team lacked in skill and execution, they made up for in penalties. At one point an official had to be treated for carpel tunnel injury from having to throw so many penalty flags. That game had all the class and finesse of two junkies fighting over a dime bag.
With this loss, Auburn sinks to 1-3 on the year. You start to wonder whether they are going to be able to fill the seats in Jordan Hare Stadium if this keeps up much longer. Maybe that's why the Barn arranges such swell pre-game entertainment. Yesterday, for example, before the kickoff, the crowd was treated to an award ceremony honoring a faculty member for high achievement in poultry science. .... That was not a joke. Poultry science is a valuable field of study. What would covered-dish suppers be like if it were not for this academic endeavor? Thanks to Auburn's contribution to mankind's body of knowledge, we will never have to know.
Elsewhere in the SEC, Georgia defeated Vanderbilt 48-3 handing the 'Dores their worst loss since 2003. I hate to say it, but it makes me start to wonder how long it will take James Franklin to truly make a difference out on West End Avenue.
Tennessee defeated one of the polyesters 47-26 but at one point in the second quarter, Akron led the Vols 23-20.
Florida beat Kentucky 38-0. News reports don't disclose whether Joker Phillips was given a bus ticket after the game to any destination other than Lexington.
Missouri got another lesson in what playing in the SEC will be like as the Fighting Chickens ripped the Tigers 31-10. Connor Shaw completed 20 of 21 pass attempts for 249 yards and added another 21 yards rushing. Evidently, the Carolina signal caller is sufficiently recovered from his shoulder injury sustained in the season opener against Vanderbilt.
Ole Miss comes to Tuscaloosa next Saturday fresh off a 39-0 pasting of Tulane. The Rebs gained 304 yards rushing and scored 4 rushing touchdowns against the Green Wave while their defense held Tulane to only 14 yards rushing and 159 total offensive yards. In August, who would have predicted that Mississippi would be Alabama's toughest September opponent? But after Michigan was exposed as overrated, and Arkansas collapsed into a poorly coached scrum, that is exactly the state of affairs.
The Tide cannot afford to take Ole MIss lightly. The way this team has responded since WKU gives me confidence that the Alabama players will be focused and well prepared to play their best. After all, that is what The Process is all about.
RTR
The Commissioner
The game was very interesting. Enjoyed it
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