10/21/2018 football Edit

10 things we learned following Alabama's Week 8 win over Tennessee

Tony Tsoukalas • TideIllustrated

Managing Editor

Forums: Talk of Champions | Recruiting with Andrew Bone

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — For a 12th straight year, a thick cloud of cigar smoke filled the Alabama locker room as the Crimson Tide celebrated another win over rival Tennessee. Alabama made easy work of the Volunteers in a 58-21 victory Saturday. Here are 10 things we learned from the game.

1. Despite setbacks, Tagovailoa continues Heisman pace

It turns out even a banged up Tua Tagovailoa is too much for defenses to handle. Wearing a brace and battling a sprained right knee, the sophomore quarterback tore apart Tennessee Saturday night, completing 19 of 29 passes for 306 yards and four touchdowns.

Tagovailoa still hasn’t played a snap in the fourth quarter. At this rate, he might never need to. The Heisman frontrunner led the Crimson Tide to touchdowns on its first four possessions and then put together a flawless two-minute drive before the half to put Alabama up 42-14 heading into the break.

Tagovailoa’s performance didn’t come without a brief scare. He was slow to get up after taking a shot from Tennessee linebacker Daniel Bituli on a 41-yard touchdown pass to Henry Ruggs III in the third quarter. Tagovailoa did not return after the play but could have if he wanted to.

“I think he stepped on my leg, and then my knee kind of just buckled,” Tagovailoa explained. “That was it. Other than that I was fine."

The 300-yard passing performance was Tagovailoa’s third of the season, tying a school record. He is five touchdowns away from the school’s single-season passing touchdown record and is also on pace to break the school’s single-season record for passing yards in a season.

2. No Smitty, no problem

Tagovailoa was without one of his biggest receiving threats as DeVonta Smith missed Saturday’s game with a hamstring injury. That wasn’t a problem as Smith's replacement, Jaylen Waddle, tallied a team-high 117 yards and touchdown on four receptions.

Waddle, a five-star freshman, gained the bulk of his yardage on a 77-yard touchdown from Tagovailoa for Alabama’s third score of the game. Tagovailoa stepped up in the pocket, dropping in a perfectly placed pass that allowed the speedy receiver to beat defenders down the right sideline.

“Their safety poached, but he kind of poached too far over and it kind of left Waddle open,” Tagovailoa said of the play. “That play was more for Jerry Jeudy, but Waddle was open, so we ended up getting it to him for a touchdown.”

Waddle’s 100-yard performance was his second of the season. He also tallied a 138-yard game against Louisiana-Lafayette. Through eight games, Waddle has 21 receptions for 457 yards and three touchdowns.

3. Saban schooled another former assistant

Alabama head coach Nick Saban moved to 15-0 against former assistants as he got the best of Jeremy Pruitt and Tennessee. Pruitt, a former defensive coordinator who helped lead the Crimson Tide to back-to-back national championship games the past two seasons, didn’t have an answer for Alabama’s No. 1-rated offense.

The Crimson Tide piled up 545 yards of offense and 30 first downs and scored the most points its ever recorded against Tennessee. Meanwhile, Pruitt’s offense only mustered up 258 yards, including just 31 on the ground.

"If you look at their sideline and look at our sideline, it don't hardly look the same," Pruitt said.

Pruitt might still turn Tennessee around. Two weeks ago, he snapped the Volunteers’ 11-game SEC losing streak with an upset victory at Auburn. However, Tennessee is quite a ways off from competing with the likes of Alabama.

4. There’s a battle at left guard

Could Alabama have a new left guard? Deonte Brown made his first career start Saturday, replacing Lester Cotton on Alabama first-team offensive line. The redshirt sophomore from Decatur, Ala., didn’t disappoint either, helping to clear the way for Alabama to average 5.2 yards per carry.

“He went out and executed,” said center Ross Pierschbacher. “We had confidence in him going in. He had a big week of practice. Just communication is the biggest thing, just making sure he knows what to do. I think sticking him in between me and Jonah helped him out for sure. I think he performed well tonight.”

Brown, 6-foot-4, 344-pounds, is Alabama’s biggest offensive lineman and is best known for his push in the running game. However, the Crimson Tide’s offensive line also provided plenty of protection for Tagovailoa, not allowing a sack on the afternoon.

“There were a couple of plays where we had a lot of time,” Saban said. “If we were in a 7-on-7, I would tell the offensive guys they were cheating with me being a defensive guy."

Cotton, a senior, started Alabama’s previous seven games this season. However, he is battling a sprained ankle and has struggled at times lately.

5. There might be one at punter, too

Alabama might have found the answer to its early punting woes. Entering Saturday’s matchup ranked No. 128 out of 130 Division I teams in punting average, the Crimson Tide made a switch, handing the reigns to walk-on Mike Bernier.

The Madison, Ala., native put together a solid performance, with two 41-yard punts on the day. That’s a step up from the 34.4 yards per punt freshman punter Skyler DeLong has been averaging this season.

“Nobody’s entitled to a job, everybody’s in competition,” Saban said. “We need to help [DeLong], who has a lot of talent, become a better punter. I think he gets a little anxious in the game and sort of loses his technique a little bit. You give him some time to cool off a little bit, maybe that will help him see things from a little different perspective. But I also thought Mike did a pretty good job tonight as well.”

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