Alabama handled Mercer 52-7, in a game where everything went right — the offense was potent, the defense forced three turnovers and scored, and there were no injuries of note. There isn’t much to glean from Saturday, but it did allow a good look at the backup players, the subject of this week’s film study.
Kalen DeBoer used as many players as he could, down to a nearly full walk-on unit on offense in the closing minutes.
“They all put in a lot of work,” DeBoer said. “And there’s that little window that you get the score where it needs to be for the guys to play a quarter and a half essentially and get a lot of guys on the football field. It was fun to see them get out there and play and work on their execution.”
𝘽𝙀𝙎𝙏 𝙏𝙃𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙔𝙊𝙐’𝙇𝙇 𝙎𝙀𝙀 𝙏𝙊𝘿𝘼𝙔: For people who get pissed about lopsided CFB matchups, here’s why you shouldn’t.
Sophomore walk-on OG Billy Roby got his first college snaps inside Bryant-Denny Stadium today in Alabama’s 52-7 win over FCS Mercer.… pic.twitter.com/xpeCSp3GPM
— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) November 17, 2024
This week’s film study peeks into the future with some young players who made the most of their opportunity last Saturday.
Skill players, particularly quarterbacks, showed flashes
All four scholarship quarterbacks attempted passes against Mercer. Backup Ty Simpson attempted a career-high 10 passes and had some good moments. In this first play, after a negative run on first down, Simpson delivers an accurate ball to Caleb Odom to get the offense back on schedule. Credit the backup offensive line (left to right): Miles McVay, Olaus Alinen, Geno VanDeMark, Roq Montgomery and Wilkin Formby for the clean pocket.
Simpson shows off his athleticism a few plays later. He gets flushed out of the pocket on third-and-long but turns the corner and picks up 13 yards for the conversion.
Simpson only completed five passes but there was some bad luck involved, like two drops that would’ve improved his percentage. Still, he continued to show good traits that were on display during A-Day. He’s the favorite entering next spring, his experience and plays like this are why: On another third down, Simpson breaks a sack and hits tight end Josh Cuevas downfield. Also a great play by Cuevas, who’s in line for a big role next year with CJ Dippre and Robbie Ouzts graduating.
Behind Simpson, No. 3 QB Dylan Lonergan completed 5-of-6 passes for 23 yards and co-led a touchdown drive with No. 4 QB Austin Mack. If there’s anything to glean from Lonergan’s six attempts, all of which were short yardage, it’s that his accuracy and ball placement ability are good. On multiple occasions, Lonergan fit passes into tight windows to keep the offense moving. This throw was the most impressive: fourth down and Lonergan threw the ball to the outside of the defender where only his man could get it. It’s on target for the first down.
Rivaling Simpson’s escape and downfield shot for play of the day is Mack’s 31-yard touchdown to Rico Scott. For fans who remember Mack skipping his first attempt at A-Day, the confidence to attempt this pass in a live game shows the growth in that area. Not the tightest spiral but it’s placed beautifully for Scott who makes a good catch.
Including the addition of five-star Keelon Russell this spring, Alabama’s quarterback room is in a good place. The competition in spring will be interesting.
Similar to the quarterbacks, every scholarship running back got multiple carries. Richard Young continued his momentum over the last few weeks — a touchdown run, a fourth down conversion and this 9-yard run. The running back room as a whole has been hitting its stride recently.
“He’s a decisive runner, he runs behind his pads,” offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan said. “He’s a great kid, very well-liked, not just by the other running backs but by the whole team. You see that.”
Defensively, the front seven popped out on tape
Alabama’s second-team defense forced three straight three-and-outs in their limited time. The youth in the secondary is well known, on Saturday it was the defensive front that stood out.
Sophomore James Smith has risen from a spot rotational player to a regular in the lineup this season. On this play, he powers through Mercer’s offensive line for a tackle for loss. Smith took advantage of the blowout and played from the first half through the last series. His role might continue to grow this year, but he’ll assuredly be a core piece of the defense next year.
Elsewhere on the defensive line, Keon Keeley logged snaps for the second consecutive game. It’s been a slow grind for Keeley, who changed positions in the spring, but he’s steadily improved. He’s started to make the travel roster for road games and showed a few flashes against Mercer. On this play, he uses good technique and power to win his matchup and corral the ball carrier.
Then on this play, Keeley and a few others on the defensive line do a nice job of handling their blocks to allow linebacker Justin Okoronkwo to shoot the gap and make a stop for minimal gain. Okoronkwo finished with two tackles, his third multi-tackle game in five appearances this year.
At outside linebacker, true freshman Jayshawn Ross put together a few nice reps rushing the passer. The former four-star was a late addition to Alabama’s 2024 class and remained committed during the coaching change. You can see why he was highly rated in these two plays.
Ross fights through multiple defenders on this second down pass play and gets his hands up in the quarterback’s face to affect the throw. Linebacker Cayden Jones tipped the pass behind Ross and it’s incomplete.
On the next play, Ross and Smith stunt at the line. Ross hustles from his position across the field to chase down Mercer’s quarterback and affect the throw again. There are a lot of talented, young players in that room led by Qua Russaw, but Ross is a name to remember.
Alabama outmatched Mercer athletically but there were some good technique plays as well. On the defense’s last play, reserve defensive lineman Hunter Osborne keeps his eyes on the passing lane and rises to bat down the pass and force a punt. There were a lot of good teaching moments for position coach Freddie Roach to harp on.
(Photo of Ty Simpson: Will McLelland / Imagn Images)
