There were moments during Alabama’s wild 31-29 victory over Florida on Saturday where time seemed to stand still. Then there were a few minutes when it literally did — at least on the scoreboard.
A malfunctioning scoreboard clock inside of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium forced the final minutes of Saturday’s game to be kept by the officials on the field.
The 90,887 fans in attendance, as well as the majority of both sidelines, had little clue how much time was remaining as Alabama looked kill off the game while clinging to a two-point lead.
“It certainly didn’t help any,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban with a relieved chuckle following the game. “It’s nice to know if the clock is running or the clock is not running.”
Instead, Saban had to inform quarterback Bryce Young when the clock was running and when it wasn’t as Alabama used the 40-second play clock — which was working — to keep track of time.
The complications began at the start of Alabama’s final possession after the Tide snuffed out a two-point conversion attempt by the Gators to preserve its lead.
Alabama originally took the field with 3:10 remaining in the game. However, officials then corrected the clock to 2:59 as an announcement was made over the PA system for the operator to turn off the clock in the stadium.
If that wasn’t enough, the raucous road environment didn’t make life any easier for the top-ranked visitors as Alabama looked to kill off the game and stave off an upset in The Swamp.
“Crazy atmosphere,” Young said. “Those fans were really loud. You know, we knew it was going to be a hostile environment coming in, and they lived up to it for sure. Fans were super loud, and there was a lot we had to deal with. This was a really good team we just played and a really tough environment. It was tough, but I’m super proud of us.”
Making his first road start, Young handled the adversity with poise. The sophomore quarterback didn’t attempt a pass on the final possession but was able to get snaps off while allowing his offense to milk precious seconds away.
“I think our players did a pretty good job of managing it,” Saban said. “The one time we got it down to one and I was running to call a timeout, and we got the play off. We just need to do a little better job in those situations. We [need] to be out of the huddle at 15 [seconds] and be ready to run the play at eight, and snap it at three or four.”
Young referred to the clock malfunction as an "external factor," stating, "That's something we can't control."
"That was something that we just had to manage," he said. "We knew the situation. They were keeping the time on the field because the clock wasn’t working, but that was just another piece of adversity we had to overcome.”
Perhaps the most crucial moment of the possession came on a third-and-2 as Alabama handed the ball off to Brian Robinson Jr. who picked up the necessary yardage to extend the drive. Earlier in the game, the senior back punched in a 3-yard score on fourth-and-1 to give the Tide its final touchdown.
“B-Rob has proved it countless times, not just in games but in practice and the offseason,” Young said. “We have complete trust in our O-line to get the yards we need to. I have trust in all my backs, really. But it’s really a product of the work that not everyone sees on Saturdays. In the offseason, during the week, that’s how you build the trust of the players and coaches.”
Alabama was able to run the clock down to 10 seconds before punting it to Florida. The Gators got the ball back for one final play from their own 24-yard line. However, quarterback Emory Jones was brought down by linebacker Jaylen Moody to end the game as Alabama escaped with the victory.
“It was a great experience,” Battle said. “Obviously the stadium was very loud. As you heard, the commentator, they said it was like the fifth-largest crowd in The Swamp. Obviously, it was a great experience in The Swamp. … It was a great way to sustain for the offense.”
