Much like Alabama’s defense, the Neyland Stadium security guards succeeded in their initial attempts to keep a powerful rushing attack off the field Saturday night. Then, in a similar fashion to the Crimson Tide, they began to wilt, giving way to an overwhelming sea of orange.

On the bright side, the field-storming No. 7 Alabama endured following its 24-17 loss at No. 11 Tennessee will result in another $100,000 in the Tide’s pocket due to the SEC’s competition area entry policy. That’s now $200,000 for Alabama on the season, as it unexpectedly suffered the same fate during its trip to Vanderbilt.

Add that to the Yea Alabama pot. The Tide’s going to need it this offseason, as it looks to find a functioning right tackle or a defender capable of making a third-down stop.

Alabama will have another opportunity to cash in three weeks from now when it travels to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to take on a red-hot No. 8 LSU team. Although, at this point, Tigers fans might not have a reason to line the Tide’s pockets following a win.

In a way, Alabama fans should enjoy Saturday’s field storming. It might end up being the last one they see in a while.

Is beating Alabama even that much of an achievement this season?

Outside of an impressive first half against Georgia, the Tide hasn’t resembled anything close to a juggernaut since the start of SEC play. After suffering its first loss to Vanderbilt since 1984, Alabama did everything it could to throw away a win at home against an average South Carolina team.

Then came this weekend’s toothless performance at Tennessee.

LSU fans shouldn’t storm the field when the Tigers inevitably beat the Tide next month. Why would they? The way Alabama is playing at the moment, it should be expected.

Maybe I’m selling the Tide short. Alabama does play an equally uninspiring Missouri team at home next week. It then has an open week before making its trip down to Death Valley.

Perhaps Kalen DeBoer records his first SEC road win by taking advantage of Brian Kelly’s big-game allergies. From there, the Tide will have a cupcake game against Mercer before closing out its regular-season slate against SEC bottom-dwellers Oklahoma and Auburn.

Who knows, that might open the door for another future field storming at whatever random first-round playoff site the Tide gets sent to. Unfortunately, the CFP doesn’t dole out the same paychecks as Alabama is becoming accustomed to collecting from the SEC.

In this week’s column, we’ll examine Alabama’s fall from grace while reliving its stumbles on Rocky Top. Pour yourself a drink, save your cigars for next year, and let’s dive in.

The rules of the Third Saturday in October rivalry state that only winners are allowed to smoke victory cigars. So for any Alabama fans craving a bit of smoke, this week’s drink is for you.

The Oaxaca Old Fashioned is a smokier version of the classic cocktail with tequila taking the place of bourbon. In a way, it’s fitting for an Alabama team that seems to be abandoning its SEC roots more and more by the week.

In all seriousness, this is one of my favorite drinks. Here’s how our friends at Session Cocktails stir it up.

Combine 1.5 ounces of respasado tequila, 0.5 ounces of mezcal tequila (this is where the smoky taste comes from), 0.25 ounces of Demerara syrup, two dashes of Angostura Bitters and 1 dash of orange bitters into a shaker and shake over ice. From there, pour into a glass, express an orange peel and use it as a garnish. Then enjoy… or in this weekend’s case, drink away your sorrows.

Cheers!

(Commercial break: My drink of the week section is now sponsored by my friends at Session Cocktails in Tuscaloosa. Session has been a mainstay in Tuscaloosa’s cocktail scene since 2019 and offers some of the tastiest drinks in town. Stop by and tell them I said hi!)

Alabama offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan is going to be feeling the heat for this one. Fortunately, he can ask defensive coordinator Kane Wommack for advice on how to ignore angry Tide fans on social media this week.

Over the past two weeks, Wommack has been persona non grata among the Alabama fanbase due to his unit’s inability to get off the field. That didn’t necessarily change against Tennessee on Saturday, but at least he now has company in the line of fire.

Sheridan’s listless offense is sure to be a popular topic on Alabama talk radio this week. Highlights from this weekend’s defeat include:

— Failing to record any points from three turnovers

— A struggling running game that averaged just 2.2 yards per carry

— A 3-for-14 success rate on third down

— Seven offensive penalties resulting in 45 yards

Alabama’s defense shut Tennessee out in the first half. However, a Tide offense that entered the day averaging 41.7 points a game could only manage one touchdown over that span.

Alabama had back-to-back chances to go up by two scores following interceptions in the second quarter but ended up going three-and-out on both occasions. After retaking the lead at 17-14 early in the fourth quarter, Alabama’s offense crumbled, suffering back-to-back three-and-outs before ending the game with a four-play turnover on downs and a one-play interception on its final two drives. Meanwhile, Tennessee scored on four of its final six drives before kneeling out the victory.

“We just can’t mesh right now the offense and defense together and play great team football,” DeBoer said. “There’s times when we got to be able to separate ourselves and have that killer instinct. And right now, you know, we don’t do that. And it’s not like they’re not trying. It’s just the execution needs to be better.”

Heading into this week’s matchup, DeBoer stated that receiver Ryan Willliams is “a guy that we’re always really paying attention to as far as the number of targets.” The head coach wasn’t kidding.

Williams led Alabama with eight receptions for 73 yards and a touchdown against Tennessee. That production came on a whopping 18 targets, as 40% of Jalen Milroe’s throws on the night were directed at the five-star freshman.

Williams has been Alabama’s biggest receiving threat this season, leading the team with 31 receptions for 649 yards and seven touchdowns through seven games. However, at times Saturday, it felt like the Tide was trying to force its star receiver the ball instead of doling it out to other options.

That being said, DeBoer didn’t seem concerned with the extra attention directed Williams’ way on Saturday

“I mean, I think that some of them, there is an intentional element to making sure he’s part of the game plan,” DeBoer said. “And then some of it was just the progressions and where it ended up. Unfortunately, we just had a couple misses, right? If we hit one or two of those – the interception early in the game, we had a good little rhythm right there. I mean, some of those hurt. But you have to have confidence in your players to continue to go back and go make the next play.

“And we obviously have a lot of belief in every one of our players. He’s a guy that can go make those plays anytime. So we gotta continue to make sure he’s a strong part of the game plan.”

Feeding Williams should continue to be a priority for the Tide but not at the cost of predictability. Alabama’s receiving depth is back to near full strength, as Kendrick Law (lower body) and Kobe Prentice (concussion) are both back from their recent injuries. Sheridan and DeBoer need to do a better job of capitalizing on that moving forward.

There’s been a lot of doom and gloom in this column, but in reality, Alabama’s playoff chances are far from dead. The Tide doesn’t have any room for error in the rest of its regular-season slate. However, outside of a daunting trip to Death Valley on Nov. 9, the road is pretty manageable.

Don’t get me wrong, Alabama has played poorly enough to lose to any of its four remaining SEC foes. However, I really like the Tide in next week’s matchup against Missouri. And if Alabama can make a few corrections during its open week, this LSU team isn’t unbeatable.

From there, Alabama has a free space on its schedule against FCS foe Mercer before making its final road trip to an Oklahoma team that has dropped its last two games to Texas and South Carolina by a combined 69-12. The Iron Bowl is always tricky, but not so much when it takes place inside Bryant-Denny Stadium, as it does this year.

Put that all together, and Alabama could still be looking at a 10-2 record with a home win over a top-five Georgia team and a road victory over a ranked LSU team. That's a good-looking resume, regardless of how poor the Tide looks at the moment.

First, though, Alabama is going to have to start playing like a playoff team. And if Saturday night is any indication, the Tide is still a long way from resembling a contender.

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