Advertisement
football Edit

Monday Morning QB: Defense adjusts, offense rolls in rout of Kentucky

Advertisement

Related

What we learned: Alabama gets glimpse of the future in rout of Kentucky

Alabama's offense finds a new weapon in blowout over Kentucky

Game MVPs

After an unexpected midseason break, Alabama made up for lost time over the weekend, shaking off some early rust before rolling to a lopsided 66-3 win over Kentucky.

Now that we’ve had enough time to process the victory, let’s break down what went right and what went wrong. Welcome back to Monday Morning Quarterback where we revisit key sequences, evaluate players and analyze trends in Alabama’s performance.

GOOD: Pete Golding’s defensive adjustments

It’s not easy being Pete Golding. The Alabama defensive coordinator is constantly judged on the Tide’s proud defensive history despite being in the midst of an era in college football where his head coach admits defense is all but dead.

Golding’s not always without fault, but during times of trouble, he’s often at the other end of pointed fingers from Alabama fans. That was again the case early Saturday afternoon as the Tide allowed Kentucky to drive deep into its territory on multiple occasions.

The Wildcats held the ball for more than twice as long as Alabama in the first quarter, outgaining the Tide 121-79. Even without leading rusher Chris Rodriquez, Kentucky’s running backs averaged 5 yards a carry as the Wildcats frustrated Alabama’s defense with motions and shifts.

However, just as Golding began to receive the brunt of message-board discontent, his defense started to settle down. Following the first intermission, Alabama’s defense allowed just 58 yards for the remainder of the afternoon, including just 27 in the second half.

A Kentucky running game that came into the day averaging 195 yards per game on the ground, left Bryant-Denny Stadium with just 59. Meanwhile, the Wildcats didn’t complete a pass in the second half, going 0-for-6 on third down in the game’s final two quarters.

“It was just a matter of being a little bit apprehensive to just do what they knew was right in the game,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said of his players. “And when we fixed those things, we started playing much better and did a better job on third down.”

Credit to Alabama’s defenders for adjusting. However, the man calling the defense needs a bit of praise as well.

BAD: Mac Jones getting “a little greedy”

Perhaps Mac Jones is reading into some of his Heisman hype after all. While the humble Alabama quarterback is the last one to talk about his own personal achievements, he seemed to be forcing a few throws Saturday afternoon.

Premium subscribers continue reading here

Alabama Crimson Tide safety Jordan Battle. Photo | SEC
Alabama Crimson Tide safety Jordan Battle. Photo | SEC
Advertisement