What we learned: Alabama's offense bails out defense against Ole Miss
OXFORD, Miss. — The forecasted rain from Hurricane Delta hardly showed up Saturday night in Oxford. The same can be said about Alabama’s defense.
The Crimson Tide didn’t have to deal with severe weather during its game against Ole Miss. That’s probably a good thing as it had a hard enough time trying to wrap up the Rebels’ offense.
In the end, No. 2 Alabama was bailed out by its high-powered offense. Najee Harris ran for 206 yards and five touchdowns, while Mac Jones threw a near-perfect game, completing 28 of 32 passes for 417 yards and two more scores. DeVonta Smith also added 13 receptions for 164 yards and a touchdown while running in a crucial score late in the fourth quarter.
All that helped the Tide light up the scoreboard enough to leave Mississippi with a 63-48 win. Although Alabama’s defensive performance on the night made for an uneasy ride back to Tuscaloosa, Ala. ahead of a matchup against No. 3 Georgia this week.
Ole Miss humbled an Alabama defense that seems to be giving up more and more every week. The Crimson Tide surrendered 19 points against Missouri in Week 1 and 24 points to Texas A&M in Week 2. Saturday, the Rebels topped that mark with 12:47 left in the third quarter.
Pete Golding’s defense left little to write home about on the night. Ole Miss’ 647 yards were the most Alabama has given up in a single game, while the Rebels 7.5 yards per play were the most the Tide has allowed since a 49-42 victory over Texas A&M in 2013. Alabama also allowed Ole Miss running backs Conner Snoop (128 yards) and Jerrion Ealy (120 yards) to break the century mark on the ground.
“We struggled,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said of his defense. “We didn’t do anything well. We didn’t stop the run, gave up some big plays in the back end, got picked. Couldn’t get the quarterback on the ground when we needed to, even when we got some pressure. We had some mistakes in coverage, we got picked in coverage. We just didn’t play very well.”
Fortunately for Alabama, it’s offense was up to the task. The Tide’s 723 yards on the night was its second-highest single-game total, finishing behind the 833 yards it piled up against Virginia Tech in 1973. Alabama also averaged a whopping 10.2 yards per play, its highest total in the Saban era. Harris’ five rushing touchdowns tied a single-game school record, while Smith’s 13 catches also matched Alabama’s single-game mark.
The 111 combined points are the most scored in a regulation SEC game, topping the 108 combined points in Auburn’s 65-43 win over Arkansas in 2010.
“I think the biggest thing was is our guys really competed in this game for 60 minutes,” Saban said. “I mean we scored every time we needed to score. We took the air our of it at the end of the game. The offense did a fantastic job in this game. We had a good plan, did a good job of executing it… So all in all, we’ve had some real crazy over here, and this was another one.”
Alabama believes Ole Miss had it signals
Lane Kiffin certainly had Alabama’s number on defense. The Tide believes he might have had its signals as well. Following Saturday’s game, Saban surmised that Kiffin’s offense might have known what was coming at times, stating that the Rebels were ready for whatever the Tide threw its way.
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