After sitting through a pair of road losses and an upset scare at home over the past three weeks, Alabama fans didn’t have to endure a homecoming thriller inside Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday.

Perhaps you could call the Crimson Tide’s 34-0 win over Missouri the “Night of the Living Dead.” However, that’d just be in reference to what was left of the Tigers’ depleted roster.

Playing without injured starting quarterback Brady Cook for most of the game, Missouri’s offense was closer to Casper than it was Scream. The only time the Tigers provided any form of a scare occurred on their final possession when they drove down to the Alabama 1-yard line with the game’s outcome already decided. Even then, the Tide’s defense stood tall, stuffing running back Marcus Carroll on a fourth-and-goal to preserve its first SEC shutout since 2020.

Alabama slashed Missouri for 486 yards, including 271 on the ground. Meanwhile, Tigers backup quarterback Drew Pyne displayed the awareness of a horror-film victim.

It’s hard to tell if the Tide’s blowout victory marked the end of its midseason slump or whether it was merely a mirage against a toothless opponent. Either way, Alabama heads into its Halloween open week with its playoff hopes still intact.

In this week’s column, we’ll take a look at Saturday’s massacre while evaluating where Alabama stands heading into the final month of its regular season. Pour yourself a drink, and let’s dive in.