It’s fair to say that Alabama suffered a bit of a letdown today, but fortunately they were able to do enough to bring home another road victory.
Give the defense credit as they came to play from the jump. Vanderbilt could get very little going on offense, and it was a good thing because Alabama’s offense in the first half was enough to make you pull your hair out. The Tide moved the ball a bit here and there, but there was no running game to speak of and Keelon Russell’ accuracy seemed off after getting
the surprise start. Executing anything competently seemed a bridge too far.
Late in the second quarter, Russell was intercepted when the ball was batted up in the air by a blitzing corner, setting Vandy up in scoring territory. Thankfully, the defense held up yet again and forced a field goal, but Alabama trailed 3-0 with very little time left in the half.
The offense finally came to play at that point. Daniel Hill got going between the tackles, Russell hit a couple of throws downfield, and the Tide dominated the “middle eight” for touchdowns going in and coming out of the half to lead 14-6. Marshall Pritchett and Lotzeir Brooks did the honors, each catching a touchdown pass.
Vandy was able to move it well enough to convert a 57-yard field goal, but Dijon Lee answered with a 80-yard kickoff return to set Russell up again. He found Brooks again, this time on a highlight reel catch.
The ensuing defensive series was quite costly for the Tide. As Vanderbilt drove the field, Devan Thompkins and Dijon Lee went down with injuries. To their credit, the Alabama defense managed to hold on fourth down in scoring territory, to maintain a 15-point advantage.
Alabama’s offense fizzled out again after Russell was sacked on first down, and Vandy QB Jared Curtis moved the ball back across midfield. Thompkins and Lee were able to rejoin the action, and Justin Hill stepped up with a sack to put Vandy in a 3rd-and-21 situation. This led to a missed 50-yard field goal after old friend Cole Adams made a catch over the middle to get the Commodores in range.
The offensive line wasn’t great for much of the day, but it was utterly putrid in the fourth quarter. Russell took a beating on several plays, and eventually coughed up the football on a sack/fumble to set Vandy up. The guy who made the hit was a free runner, but Jayvin James allowed his man to get inside of him to take away any room Keelon had to maneuver. We saw this on too many occasions today.
Vanderbilt moved the football deep into Alabama territory after the fumble. Vandy QB Jared Curtis scrambled for what looked like a first down inside the 5, but a holding call brought it back and the Tide held one more time from there. The Commodores were quite generous with the penalties on the day, racking up 13 for 92 very helpful yards. Had they been just a bit more disciplined, this one could have been quite hairy.
It wasn’t pretty as it was, but the Tide survived on the back of the defense.
There is plenty of ball on for you the rest of the day. Schedule courtesy of CFBGrid.com.
Roll Tide.
