TIDE-VOLS: Cigars glowing as Bama pulls away from Tennessee
Alabama knocks off Tennessee for the 15th consecutive time on Saturday. (UA Media Relations)
By GRAHAM DUNN
The headlines in other places might read “Bama escapes past Tennessee,” all of it based on allowing a couple of long pass plays and a blocked punt that kept the Volunteers within striking distance for three quarters.
But the fog of cigar smoke in the fourth quarter at Bryant-Denny Stadium said something else.
The Crimson Tide won for the 15th straight time against Tennessee on Saturday.
Alabama closed out the victory outscoring the Vols 28-7 in the final frame to pull away for a 52-24 victory in the annual battle known as “Third Saturday in October.” The win meant fans and players alike were lighting cigars in traditional fashion and in the case of the fans, well before the clock struck zero.
“You know, we did some things that, you know, we need to get fixed, obviously,” stated Nick Saban. “Busted a couple of coverages on defense, fumbled the ball on the 9-yard line, got a punt blocked, roughed the punter on fourth and 30. I mean, just some, really, things that we shot ourselves in the foot. And I think those things really need to get corrected or, you know, they’re going to cost us at some point. But I told the players, look, man, we’ve got a bye week coming up, we’ve got a real team we’ve got to play in two weeks, we need to get some rest, we need to recover, but we also need to focus on what we need to do to finish the season and getting some of these things corrected is, obviously, the thing that we want to focus (on).
“But I’m not going to be negative about the game, I’m not going to be negative about our team. I’m really positive about the way they went out there and kept competing in the game and even though everything wasn’t perfect, we made the plays that we needed to make to win the game. So I’m excited, I’m happy, I’m pleased.”
Tennessee did something it hadn’t done in 11 years – lead this game by seven points. That came by virtue of a 57-yard pass from Hendon Hooker to JaVonta Payton with 26 seconds left in the first quarter.
The Tide allowed the Vols to linger before taking the lead for good on Bryce Young’s 6-yard pass to John Metchie with 2:34 left in the first half.
“Obviously, I felt like going into the fourth quarter we had an opportunity to compete and find a way to win the football game,” UT coach Josh Heupel said. “I’m proud of the effort and strength that our guys played with all night long. We just didn't play smart enough, in particular on the offensive side of the ball. I thought after the first quarter, give credit to Alabama’s defense too, we did things that hurt us and put us in a tough position.”
The Bama defense held Tennessee well under its average in several categories including points per game (39.3) and rushing offense (249.1), giving up 64 yards on the ground.
Tennessee was held to just two third down conversions in 13 attempts.
Hooker also threw his first interception after 140 consecutive passes without one that would lead to another fourth-quarter touchdown for the Tide. Jalyn Armour-Davis ended that streak.
““I thought Hendon battled all night long,” Heupel said. “You know, I thought he was really efficient, for the most part, during the football game. Some of the early drives we got stopped in short-yardage situations but the ball wasn’t necessarily in his hands. You know, I thought he continued to fight and play in the second half and had some big-time plays. Didn’t get enough going in the running game during the course of the early part of the game and that’s a big part why the game played out the way that it did. On that play, in particular, those guys were just on different pages there.”
But the naysayers will point to the negative, providing evidence of the Tide’s demise allowing a blocked punt or two long passes in the first half.
Saban wasn’t fazed by those issues.
“There are just some things we need to do better,” he said. “I still think that we shouldn’t need to be humiliated to go out there and play the way we’re capable of. We should be a team that, you know, wants to beat other teams because of who we are, what our DNA is, what our disposition is, what we want our identity as a team to be. And we’re going to keep working on that. But it’s a great win for Alabama, it’s a great win for the state, for the people in the state, and, you know, all of our fans and supporters and our players.”
Alabama has a week off before playing host to LSU. First the first time since 2010, the game will not be played at night on network television according to CBS scheduling.