Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr, the French philosopher, not the North East Louisiana State long-snapper, could have had the 2018 edition of the Crimson Tide football team in mind when he pondered how things remain the same even in times of change and turmoil. When I wrote my last set of grades after the end of the 2017 season, Alabama stood atop the college football world with a ferocious defense, and a multi-dimensional offense led by Tua Tagolaivoa. No media pundit could write or blather about the Tide without uttering "quarterback controversy." And Coach Saban, focused on recruiting, conditioning, hiring staff, and doing all other things necessary to improve, was getting tired of answering different reporters asking the same question.
In the intervening months, Alabama has sent a record number of players to the NFL, encountered injuries at key positions, hired a bus load of new coaches to replace others departed to competitor programs. Yet Bama remains the standard by which all other programs are measured. The defense is still tough as a two-dollar steak. The offense can score from anywhere on the field when Tua is behind center. The media remains stuck on the "QB-Word." And Coach Saban remains fed up with answering multiple questions about it.
Readers of this blog probably know Louisville's coach, and several players, gave credulous alums and Twitter followers assurances of a Cardinal victory over the Tide in the season opener. Woof-tickets of that sort have a very short shelf-life even in the best of times. Louisville's brand of big talk was beyond the "sell-by" date only 3:05 into the game as the Tide capped a 7 play, 65 yard drive with a Tua to Jerry Jeudy TD pass calling to mind last season's Vanderbilt game. I certainly hope the Cards got to visit Disney World during their stay in Orlando; otherwise, they will just wonder why they ever made the trip.
Even with enough mental errors, and execution failures to give the coaching staff plenty to work on, Alabama mauled Louisville in every phase of the game. The Tide gained 519 total yards of offense [222 rushing], earned 23 first downs, and converted 10 of 15 third downs. Louisville managed only 16 net yards rushing. The Tide had six sustained offensive drives [40 or more yards]. The Cardinals had 5 possessions that gained zero or negative yards. Bama scored two non-offensive TDs, Louisville converted only 1 of 6 third downs in the first half, and only 3 of 8 in the second half [2 of those second half first downs came by way of Alabama penalties]. In short, it was such a complete defeat that one wag has suggested this is a picture from Bobby Petrino's post-game presser:
In spite of the gaudy statistics, Bama's performance was far from perfect. Coach Saban always warns against complacency. The Tide's play against Louisville guarantees that warning is not going to change any time soon.
So here is now I grade the game:
Offense: B+ I am convinced that if DeVonta Smith had not suffered a forced fumble on the second drive of the game, the offense under Tua's direction would have found the end zone every possession. With Tua at quarterback, the Tide offense is visibly better than at any time since AJ McCarron's tenure. Tua completed 12 of 15 pass attempts for 227 yards and 2 TDs [Jerry Jeudy]. He also scored a rushing TD as part of his 26 net yards gained rushing. Tua was not intercepted. Jalen came into the game in the second quarter for two drives; each ending in a punt. Jalen completed 5 of 9 pass attempts for 70 yards and gained 9 yards on 3 rushing attempts.
A brilliant punt return by true freshman Jaylen Waddle [WR; 5-10, 177; Bellaire Texas/Episcopal HS] set the Tide up at the Louisville 25 with :27 seconds to play in the first half. Saban obviously thought Tua needed game experience in a "two minute" situation. It only took 3 plays to get the ball to Jerry Jeudy in the end zone, and put to rest any controversy whether Tua should be the Tide starter at QB.
Damien Harris led all rushers with 55 yards on 7 carries. Josh Jacobs had an outstanding game gaining 45 yards rushing on 6 runs. Brian Robinson ran the ball 7 times for 42 yards, and Najee Harris netted 30 yards on 8 attempts. Nine different players ran the ball.
DeVonta Smith was the leading receiver with 99 yards on 4 receptions. Jeudy gained 64 yards on 4 catches, while Jaylen Waddle showed his potential as a receiver with 66 yards gained on 3 receptions [long of 49]. Eight different receivers caught passes.
In the first quarter, the offensive line had some difficulty with Louisville's front seven. As the game progressed, however, the O-Line asserted itself, and by mid-way the third quarter, the Louisville defense was ready to catch the bus for EPCOT where watching the fireworks would be loads more fun than themselves getting lit-up by Alabama.
Alabama mounted six sustained drives [65, 63, 55, 75, 63, 70] producing 4 TDs, a lost fumble, and a missed FG.
Defense: B+ The stop-troops could have earned a much higher grade. Eleven tackles for 32 lost yards [3 sacks], 2 interceptions [Deionte Thompson, Shyheim Carter] including a pick-six [Carter], 6 pass break ups and 3 hurries, while holding a pass-happy opponent to less than 300 yards total offense and only 4 of 14 on third-downs is the stuff of stellar marks on the grade sheet. Against Louisville, however, the D accounted for the vast majority of Alabama's 10 total penalties. Two of those infractions came on back-to-back third downs allowing Louisville to sustain its longest drive of the night [75 yards; TD]. More worrying however is that on the plays following the penalties, Louisville got away with a chop-block nearly ending a D-Lineman's season.
New-comer Saivion Smith [Jr.; DB; 6-1, 200; Gulf Coast Comm. Coll.] led all defenders with 5.5 tackles. Mack Wilson made 4.5 tackles as did Redshirt Soph. Quinnen Williams [DL; 6-4, 289; Birmingham].
Special Teams:
Punting: A+ Skyler DeLong [Fr.; 6-4, 180; Fort Mill, S.C.] punted 3 times for an average of 36.3 yards. Each punt was fair caught. Jaylen Waddle returned 4 punts for a combined 80 yards. His longest return was 31 yards. But for a completely bone-headed blocking penalty the speedy true freshman would have returned a punt for a TD.
Kick Offs: A Austin Jones [Sr. PK; 5-10. 215; Orlando, FL] and Joseph Bulovas [R-Fr. PK; 6-0, 206; Mandeville, La.] shared kick off duties and combined for a gross avergae of 59.1 yards with a net average of 38.6. Three kicks were touchbacks. The coverage team allowed 110 yards on kick returns, with the longest return allowed of 61 yards. Josh Jacobs returned a Louisville kick off 77 yards for a TD.
Place Kicking: D Jones had accuracy problems all evening. He was successful from 39 yards for a FG, but missed from 27 yards, and missed a PAT.
Coaching: A- The decision to start Tua was clearly correct. The Tide was penalized 10 times for 111 yards. The participation report lists 65 players who saw action in the game. With so many players taking the field, it was a challenge keeping track of names. Among those newcomers playing in the second half were: Markail Benton [R-Fr; LB; 6-2, 231; Phenix City] Tevita Musika [Jr. DL; 6-1, 338; Milpitas CA; College of San Mateo]; Cameron Latu [Fr. LB; 6-5, 246; Salt Lake City, UT]; and Phidarian Mathis [R-Fr. DL; 6-4, 310; Monroe, La.].
Officiating: D For "Don't get me started!" I expect the Tire Store Report will address this topic in a more comprehensive fashion, but oh, my word! This Big 10 crew were nothing short of horrible. Some botched calls were reversed after interminable video reviews, but the outright missed flags cannot be fixed. Take for instance: Saivion Smith got his face mask yanked as he went out of bounds on a tackle, and then the Cardinal player slapped him up-side his helmet. The ref then threw a flag ..... ON SMITH! Good grief!
The Media: F As in "For goodness sake, get over yourselves!" It's Labor Day and ESPN is STILL yammering about Nick Saban telling the on-field correspondent he was not going to answer any more questions calculated to provoke a response that could then be blown up by an on-air gas-bag as disrespecting one of his star players.
I understand that lots of sports reporters feel like they are second-class citizens in Mediaville. They have an inferiority complex comparing themselves to "political analysts" and "journalists."
Well, here's some news for y'all: You've got it all wrong. The folks want sports reporters to deliver reports on sports. You know; stuff like scores, schedules, standings, stats. Stick to the basics. Add the occasional human interest story showing how sports can transcend adversity. Have a self-deprecating sense of humor. The people you cover will deliver hard news if you just wait for it; see, e.g. Urban Meyer. Be more like Jason Gay .... not Keith Olbermann.
Well, I'm glad to get that off my chest. Not that it is going to make any difference. The sports media is like everything else....resistant to change, no matter how much change goes on in the wider world.
For the 2018 Crimson Tide, however, I suspect we may be witnessing another one of those changes Nick Saban has made during his tenure. Like Coach Bryant before him, Coach Saban has shown the wisdom to recognize when he needs to make a change, and the skill to execute it. Remember how Bryant changed from a pro-set offense to the wishbone? Recall how Saban's 3-4 defense anchored by a massive nose tackle like Terrance Cody was replaced with a more flexible defense in response to the fad of Hurry Up No Huddle offense? Sustained performance at the highest level is achieved by those, like Saban, who know what to change, and what to keep unchanged.
I look for this season to feature electrifying play-makers all over the field. If the Louisville game is a glimpse of Alabama's potential on offense and in the return game, if the defense can continue to improve, and if we can avoid bad injury luck .... well they might have to make an early change to Bryant-Denny Stadium; the score board will have to be programmed to display a home team score in triple digits.
It's going to be fun, y'all.
Roll Tide
The Commissioner
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