As someone who has seen and studied it all in my nearly 67 years on this planet, I was not prepared, and in fact, am not able to fully process what just occurred in Tuscaloosa Saturday night.
I mean, I, and every decent sports writer expected a war, and why not? That just seems to be the norm when these two knock helmets. This was not just the typical war however as much as it was a test to see if Alabama’s new coach, Kalen DeBoer really had a strong clue and a firm grasp of what he had taken on in taking the reins of this Bama team from Nick Saban’s hands. Was he going to have himself and this team ready for this level of war in his first big SEC contest?
Well, the answer was a resounding yes to that. DeBoer was cool, calm, and collected. He had assembled a great coaching staff and came into this game with a game plan that collectively used the talents of everyone on that sideline. Georgia had no answers for either the offense or the Bama defense in the first half and his only fault may have been at halftime, not driving home the point the game was only half over despite a mind-numbing and heretofore unthinkable 30-7 lead.
In the other locker room, Coach Kirby Smart assembled his coaches. He did a much better job adjusting their plan and then sold that plan lock, stock, and barrel to his players who came back in the second half to not catch up, but pass what Bama had piled on them so embarrassingly in the first half.
What I, or nobody else but the players themselves know, is did Alabama become complacent or was Georgia’s comeback plan really that good? I can only think it was a mixture of both. But one thing is clear. Georgia was playing to win, and Alabama was trying not to lose, going through the motions and sitting on their lead and hoping the clock would run out.
Georgia went for it on fourth down five times and converted all five. It was all or nothing for Georgia. DeBoer and the Tide only went for two fourth-down conversions, completing only one. And that was in the first half when they were running away with the game. They never tried to do that in the second half. They were playing not to lose. The difference between these two philosophies is dangerous to the team not trying to win.
It wasn’t until Bama found themselves down and almost out that they gave themselves a slap in the face and may have said something to the effect of, “Screw this! Let’s do what we do best!” And calling up the history of so many last-possession drive miracles, like Tua to Donte for the National Championship and last year’s Milroe to Bond last-second Auburn win, Milroe came out after Georgia took the lead with less than three minutes left executed another miracle that found the freshman phenom, 17-year-old Ryan Williams for a one play 75-yard touchdown to score the game-winning points.
But it wasn’t over yet. With just over two minutes left in the game, Beck started the Bulldogs back down the field, and with 43 seconds left in the game and the ball in the red zone at the 20-yard line Carson Beck heaved what was to have been the game-winning touchdown, but Zabien Brown, another young freshman, played his defense perfectly and intercepted the ball preserving the win.
The takeaways from this game are that Kalen DeBoer is indeed a great fit at Alabama. He recruits like Saban, has Saban-like intensity, as we saw on several sideline shots of him reacting to different penalties, and if they don’t already, the rest of the SEC should fear him as they did Saban. He is going to sustain this program and their winning ways. Time will only tell how far and how many championships that may bring, but he is a winner and I can think of no one else who could have been hired and do better.
Secondly, Jason Milroe is the real deal. He is not a running quarterback. He is a gifted throwing artist who can also run like a gazelle. If there was a better performance by a quarterback who showed these facets so well this season, I must have missed them. Especially when they were done against the opponent they were done to in this game. He is Heisman-worthy. He is a championship-caliber quarterback. You can’t argue this point with almost 500 yards of just his rushing and passing against a team that had heretofore not allowed a touchdown.
The secondary for Bama is still a work in progress. They almost lost the game for Alabama, but then in the end, they won the game for the Tide. So much youth is a risk. There’s an old saying that goes, “For every freshman you start, you can expect that many losses.” But that may not be true if the freshmen have the talent level of the ones that are starting in Tuscaloosa. They did bend, severely in fact, but in the end, they did not break. They only allowed Georgia two pass plays of over 20 yards all night long, and those were the only two explosive plays the Dogs had all night.
Yes, Bama gave up 34 points, 27 in the second half, and the huge lead, but not until going into prevent mode in the second half. Had they continued the tough quarterback pressure and no cushion pass coverage they did in the first half, it may have been a different game. But give Georgia credit, they took everything Bama gave them and used it in a big way to their advantage. Bama was counting on the clock being their biggest ally and that didn’t work for them. Georgia’s defense finally got to their feet and made some stops when they really needed to and Bama had too many quick no-production offensive drives. Georgia quit letting Milroe run rampant on them and forced him to beat them with his arm and he did.
The defensive front for Alabama is for real. Georgia has a better-than-average offensive line and running back group. However, Alabama held them to just 80 yards rushing all night long, for just a three and a fraction yard per carry. They forced Georgia to beat them passing and they almost did.
If you’re an Alabama fan, you can only hope the coaches and players both learned that if you take your foot off the gas against a good team, and most teams in the SEC are good teams, bad things can happen. Bama should be ashamed to have done so and for letting Georgia get back into the game after a first-half curb stomping.
We may have just witnessed the real national championship game early in the season. Should Georgia take care of business as I expect they will, then these two may meet again after all the smoke has cleared.
Lastly, this Alabama team as a whole seems to be a championship contender. They are one of just three teams at the top of the heap. The other teams in the top 20 are simply still a work in progress. Yes, Bama could and should win the SEC. Yes, they can give Ohio State a battle for the crown. And yes, they can get better. With so much youth in starting positions, they are only going to continue to learn and get better. They have not peaked yet. If that doesn’t scare the hell out of teams, nothing will.
