After playing with fire in both of its previous road games, Alabama finally got burnt during its trip to Tennessee over the weekend. The Crimson Tide committed a school-record 17 penalties while making several sloppy errors, ultimately resulting in a 52-49 loss to the Volunteers.
“I think that the big thing that our players need to do is learn from this experience,” Nick Saban said after the game, “have more respect for playing with discipline so we don’t get penalties, we don’t help the other team, we don’t make mental errors that help the other team.”
Despite playing below its standard for most of the day, Alabama still had a chance to pull out the victory in the final minute as Will Reichard lined up for a go-ahead field goal with 21 seconds remaining. Instead, the senior’s 50-yard attempt sailed wide right. Two plays later, Tennessee’s Chase McGrath snuck a 40-yard kick over the crossbar as time ran out, releasing a sea of orange onto the field in Neyland Stadium.
Alabama’s 24-hour rule has passed, and players must now focus on this week’s game against Mississippi State. Still, here’s one final look at the loss to Tennessee as we break down five plays the Crimson Tide would like to have back.
Robinson’s punt-return miscue
Things got pretty ugly for Alabama in the first half as it dug itself into an 18-point deficit. The pinnacle of that disastrous start came early in the second quarter when Quandarrius Robinson turned over the ball while attempting to scoop up a punt following the Crimson Tide’s first defensive stop of the game.
After allowing Tennesse to score on its first three drives, Alabama finally forced a three-and-out on the Volunteers’ fourth possession. Down 21-10, the Crimson Tide’s offense was beginning to click, and it appeared poised to cut the Volunteers’ lead to a single score.
Instead, Robinson inexplicably attempted to field the punt after Kool-Aid McKinstry let the ball hit the ground around the Alabama 40-yard line. Looking to scoop the ball up on the run, Robinson couldn’t corral it, allowing Tennessee to fall on it and retake possession.
It’s not clear whether Robinson thought the ball hit off McKinstry or if he was simply trying to advance it himself. Either way, Tennessee went on to score three plays later as Princeton Fant ran in a 2-yard touchdown to help give the Volunteers a 28-10 lead with 11:41 remaining in the half.
