In a must-win game, Alabama turned in its most complete performance of the season. The Crimson Tide dominated Missouri two weeks ago, but was it a sign of things to come or a one-off rout of a banged-up team? They answer their doubters with a definitive 42-13 win at LSU, and Missouri beat Oklahoma to preserve its AP Top 25 ranking. Now, Alabama holds the most ranked wins in the country (four).
“As the week kind of progressed, you could just feel that we’re on top of our game and understood what it would take to come here and play four quarters,” head coach Kalen DeBoer said.
A handful of mistakes prevented Alabama from winning by a wider margin but didn’t dampen the overall dominant effort: The Crimson Tide outpaced LSU in total yards, third down percentage, red zone percentage, time of possession and turnover margin. Now at 7-2, Alabama has strengthened its case as the best two-loss team in the country, with three winnable games to close November.
How exactly did Alabama empty Tiger Stadium in a little over three quarters of action? This week’s film study examines a near flawless night for the Tide.
An A+ plan on offense kept LSU off-balance
As in the Georgia game, Alabama’s coaching staff came off an idle week with a gameplan to start fast and continue applying pressure. Their layered play calling kept LSU guessing throughout the game.
Alabama went with an empty set on this third-and-9 on the opening drive, and a bubble screen to Kendrick Law picked up enough for the conversion. This exact throw by Milroe has been singled out in the last two film studies as poor execution, but this time he was on target and the play was well-blocked. The offense scored its first touchdown a few plays later.
On the next drive, Alabama put three receivers to one side of the field. The LSU defensive backs read the bubble screen look they had just gotten beaten on, but Milroe ran to the exposed edge on the other side. The interior of the defense was drawn in by the option, Elijah Pritchett and CJ Dippre do a good job of securing the perimeter, and it’s an easy conversion. This led to another touchdown and a quick 14-3 lead.
Alabama rushed for 311 yards, its second highest output of the season (334 against Western Kentucky). Milroe provided the main spark, but the offensive line continued its momentum from the Missouri game. This first-down run by Justice Haynes showed what’s been missing from the offense: Tyler Booker and Kadyn Proctor set things in motion by sealing the left side, the pullers hit their assignments perfectly and Haynes made it into the second level untouched.
Those 7- or 8-yard runs can turn into explosive plays with creative play calling. Later Alabama showed the same look as above, but the pullers reversed course and Ryan Williams got the ball on a reverse, catching LSU completely off guard for a 22-yard run that set up a touchdown.
Another efficient performance from Milroe
Saturday’s 294 yards wasn’t the biggest total production output of Milroe’s career, but in terms of executing the plan this was one of his best games with the Crimson Tide. The second play of the game set the tone for the night. You could see Milroe trying to communicate with the line as the play clock wound down. It looked like a miscommunication as Jaeden Roberts was the only guard pulling while everyone else drops back, and it was a bad snap from Parker Brailsford. Still, Milroe escaped the pressure and fired an accurate ball to Ryan Williams.
Alabama didn’t throw deep much but didn’t need to. The coaching staff gave Milroe a ton of easy-access throws to gain positive yards, and Milroe took advantage of what LSU gave. Plus, the run game was more than enough to keep Alabama’s offense on schedule.
The play below is a DeBoer staple concept from Washington, primarily called for tight ends but this time for Jam Miller: Motion everything one way, slip a pass catcher the other way and create an explosive play. Miller was a pleasant surprise in the pass game; his five catches for 50 yards nearly matched his entire season total.
But nothing worked better than Milroe using his legs, particularly running behind his running backs Haynes and Miller. All four touchdown runs featured them as lead blockers. On his final touchdown, notice that that’s Wilkin Formby sealing off the right side to set up the score. It was good to see him execute and finish the block when called upon.
Kane Wommack’s defense is reaching elite levels
Excluding a fourth quarter in which the starters played one series (which ended in a turnover on downs), Alabama’s defense has allowed six points in its last seven quarters. Its 21 forced turnovers are tied for fourth most in the country. And Saturday’s game plan disrupted LSU’s offense.
Take away a 45-yard run by Caden Durham on the opening drive, and Alabama allowed just 59 yards on 23 carries. LSU’s rush offense is near the bottom of the country, and Alabama made sure it was nonexistent. On the play below, LSU showed motion but the defense wasn’t fooled. Jihaad Campbell, who had one of his best games, stuffed the ball carrier to set up a gang tackle.
Wommack showed LSU’s offense one thing pre-snap, then did another post-snap. On this third down, Alabama showed pressure from the edges, who then dropped back into coverage at the snap. Nussmeier was fooled, the edges took away anything underneath and he had to settle for a low-percentage throw to the sideline that was broken up.
Another disguise produced one of the biggest plays of the game: Campbell’s strip sack. Once again, Alabama showed pressure from the edges, but this time only one dropped into coverage and the defensive tackle stunted to fill his place. Campbell shot the gap where the tackle was, LSU’s offensive line was unprepared and the turnover set up Alabama to extend its lead to 21-6.
However, it wasn’t all great news for Alabama. The defense suffered two injuries on Saturday: outside linebacker Que Robinson and safety DeVonta Smith. The television broadcast described Robinson’s arm injury as “significant,” and multiple reports Sunday night indicated that he will miss the remainder of the season. It’d be a tough loss, as Robinson was having a career year as a senior, leading Alabama with four sacks.
“I just told him to keep his head up,” linebacker Deontae Lawson said after the game. “He’s obviously down. But told him to keep his head up, man. We’re with him. He’ll bounce back stronger than ever.”
Smith’s status is unknown as of Monday morning, but he did not return in Saturday’s game. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that the Crimson Tide secondary’s deep rotation throughout the season has created good depth. We’ve already seen that with Bray Hubbard’s play in place of Keon Sabb.
DaShawn Jones played well in Smith’s place. Qua Russaw will see more snaps, but Campbell is also a good replacement in pass rush situations, and Justin Jefferson can handle more inside linebacker snaps. The final play of this study encompasses Wommack’s disguises and the defense’s next-man-up mentality.
Alabama showed a look with almost its entire front seven lined up side-by-side, and LSU didn’t know where the actual pressure will come from. At the snap, some dropped into coverage and some blitzed including Jones from the slot. Nussmeier saw him coming and tried to escape, but Campbell pushed his man upfield and there was nowhere to go. That’s two replacements making a big play on third down. Right now, this is one of the best defenses in the country.
(Photo: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)
