The Wisconsin Badgers are preparing to face off against the No. 19 Alabama Crimson Tide this weekend, with kickoff set for 11:00 a.m. on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Ahead of the big game, we spoke with our friends over at Roll Bama Roll to give us the latest on the Crimson Tide before Week 3.
Q: Kalen DeBoer has been the subject of controversy since coming to Tuscaloosa. How do you evaluate the DeBoer era so far through a season plus?
Brent Taylor: I gave DeBoer a lot of grace last year. Alabama
was already showing a lot of issues in 2022-2023 even with Nick Saban, and DeBoer came in to a team in turmoil to try to make the best of it with the remnants of a roster. Still, he started last year strong and we saw a lot of promising things. That final 4-game stretch last year was tough to watch, though. Still, there was a lot of optimism this offseason that, with a full year under his belt and the roster mostly players who wanted to be a part of the program with the new staff, Alabama would be back to being a top contender.
Unfortunately, whatever that was we saw in Week 1 against Florida State was atrocious, and most of the fanbase was ready to fire DeBoer in Tallahassee. In a vacuum, it’s not a bad loss. A week one loss to a team made entirely of veteran transfers and a new offensive scheme with Gus Malzahn, a renowned trick play wizard, isn’t some unforgivable loss. But combining it with the way Alabama ended last season and comparing it to the Tide’s last 17 years of football…. And you have a fanbase on the verge of rioting in the streets.
I personally still think that most of Alabama’s issues are systemic and mental (a crushing internal pressure to live up to the previous era), and they were already there before Saban retired. I like a lot of what DeBoer is doing, but can he survive in Tuscaloosa long enough to get the program out from its own crushing weight? We’ll see. I’m not sure there is any coach on this planet that can pull it off, so that’s definitely not a knock on DeBoer.
Still, there are a few concerning things outside of the existential dread of finally being knocked off the perch of college football. The penalties and undisciplined, bordering unsportsmanlike, play reeks of players playing with insecurity, and that’s worrying because it doesn’t seem to be getting corrected. The defense also hasn’t figured out how to tackle a scrambling QB yet in two seasons, so there’s clearly some schematic flaw there.
On the other hand, I really like how Alabama’s WRs and DBs are developing under this staff, and the recruiting has been really strong and even innovative. So there are some real positives there.
Q: Ty Simpson is the QB after patiently waiting his turn. What have you seen from him over the first two games, and what do you make of the QB room as a whole this season?
Brent Taylor: Ty is interesting. He gets glossed over as a dual threat because he’s following Jalen Milroe, but Ty’s best attribute is probably his scrambling. He’s faster than most any defensive lineman and can dodge tacklers in the open field. He’s also quite accurate in the 10-20 yard range. However, we haven’t gotten a good look at his deep ball yet (FSU took away both of his attempts by just holding the receiver and taking the penalty). His biggest issue, though, is that he’s inviting a lot of pressure on himself by not getting the ball out of his hands quickly. He’s doing a lot of scrambling when it’s not necessary, then struggling to complete some high-difficulty passes on the move. There are a lot of tools there, but the pocket work may doom him if he doesn’t speed up his internal clock.
Alabama’s other two QBs, Austin Mack and Keelon Russell, are both capable in their own right, and I think they make a strong overall room. Mack is 6’6″ with a cannon arm and a lightning-quick release. We got our first real look at him last week, and how fast the ball gets out of his hand is impressive to see. His placement wasn’t great on the short throws (the poor running back was having to catch laser beams on a flat route), but his throwing over the middle in rhythm could be a real cheat code.
Then there’s Russell, the #1 or #2 overall recruit last year. He’s clearly a true freshman, but he’s a next-level thrower of the football with insane talent and overall field vision.
Ty Simpson has the job and brings a veteran presence with plenty of former 5-star recruit tools, but if he struggles this season, Mack and Russell likely are not far behind him.
Q: Jam Miller suffered a collarbone injury in fall camp. What’s his status ahead of Week 3, and what will the run game look like with/without him?
Brent Taylor: He’s, in theory, a game-time decision this week. I’ll be surprised if he plays – it seems a bit soon for that, and there’s a bye week next week. Miller was fine, but not special, last season, so I’m not sure I’d view him as a make-or-break player for this offense. Alabama’s run game was underwhelming last year, and it’s been pretty similarly underwhelming so far this year. Richard Young seemed like the next man up, but has struggled to make much of a splash. Interestingly, Kevin Riley is a guy who most thought was at the bottom of the depth chart this offseason, but has added some juice to the run plays so far. Riley is smaller, at a bit under 200 pounds, but he hits holes at a different speed than the rest of the Tide’s backs and has done a good job of twisting and writhing through tacklers to turn 3-yard gains into 6.
Q: If Alabama shockingly loses or has a closer-than-expected game, what will be the reason?
Brent Taylor: Lack of a functional offense.
Alabama’s defense has had some struggles against rushing QBs, and Gus Malzahn’s attack in week 1 really exposed them. Still, they’ve been rock solid most of last year against everything else, and I don’t see any reason to suspect that’s just fallen by the wayside. They’re an exceptional pass coverage squad and do well enough against the run as long as it’s not a QB or a WR reverse.
The offense, though? They were abysmal through the end of last year, and abysmal in week 1 this year despite changing QBs and coordinators. Then they were suddenly perfect last week. Do you trust that? I sure don’t. They could be great. They could decide to be a dumpster fire on wheels, driving the wrong way on the interstate. Who even knows, week to week.
Q: Score prediction?
Brent Taylor: 27-10 Bama. It’s gonna be an ugly one with two generally inept offenses slap-fighting each other, but Alabama comes out with a few more scores because they have some really good wide receivers that can do cool things.
