🏈 GAME THREAD Auburn vs Alabama -- CBS TV @ 2:30CT -- Bama -24.5 -- Injury Updates as of Mon 11/19
- Thread starter TerryP
- Start date
BamaFan334
Member
Those intermediate drag routes is the only thing that worries me about Georgia too. They absolutely love throwing them and are potent on third down with it. They hurt us in the Natty with them and use them to simply break away from teams like Auburn and Tennessee that played them tough early.
It's me more concerned about losing than enjoying winning. It's more of a relief than joy.
Have you lost some of the "fun" of watching? IE: Knowing what to expect? I went shopping last Saturday during the first half of the game knowing when I checked in I was going to see the Bulldogs having success running the ball. I strongly suspected it would "win the 'net" for a few hours.
I won't miss any of this one...simply because it's this one.
@TerryP found the dichotomy between the writers (Marshall/Hurts) interesting. When I read Phillip's first line, I immediately thought of Cecil's article. Guess the rivalry is not all that good when you know that you are only good enough to possibly win it every 3 years, and this ain't your year.
I've felt this way regarding aubrun for years. The imperative of not losing.
You close the door to keep the cold air and pests out.
You brush your teeth to not get cavities.
You pay your bills.
You drive on the correct side of the street.
You don't drink bleach or drano.
A loss to aubrun lets in the vermin, is like a toothache, a bill collector, a head-on collision, and drinking corrosives. It's just something to be avoided.
RTR,
Tim
Lololol
footballer
Member
I know that boy be hurting, but damn that is some funny chit right there. I had to watch that several times. Thanks SLO
When Auburn's defense is on, they're pretty good. Auburn's offense is just shy of a dumpster fire. In relative terms, I think LSU's offense is better. And we know what happened there. Auburn will have a big play here and there, but I don't see them being consistently able to move the ball. That's why if they break 14 points, i'll be surprised.
I’ve said it over and over again since the spring. The Barn was replacing 4 of 5 on the OL and they had absolutely no experience returning there as backups. They didn’t and still don’t have that bell cow at RB to turn and hand it to 30+ times either. They have a drop back passer that is playing in a dual threat QB offense. Gus’ offenses thrives off of having a legit run threat there. Square peg, round hole kind of fit.
Alabama17Tide
Member
Five questions as Alabama Crimson Tide prepares for Auburn | BamaInsider.com
The SEC West isn’t on the line this time, but redemption is still up for grabs. No. 1 Alabama (11-0, 7-0 in the SEC) is heading to Atlanta regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s Iron Bowl against Auburn (7-4, 3-4). However, Crimson Tide players still remember the feeling of walking off the field following last year’s 26-14 loss to the Tigers.
“We still have sort of a sour taste in our mouth,” offensive lineman Ross Pierschbacher said. “Being from Alabama or just being in the state you hear about that game. (Not) having those bragging rights for 365 days is something that we don’t appreciate.”
Alabama can change that as it heads into Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. CT kickoff inside Bryant-Denny Stadium as 24.5-point favorites, according to VegasInsider.com. Here are five questions to consider leading up to the game.
Will Tua have an Iron Bowl moment?
There isn’t much Tua Tagovailoa hasn’t already done. The sophomore has a national championship under his belt and is on his way to leading Alabama to another one this season. Heading into the final week of the regular season, he’s viewed as the frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy after piling up 2,865 yards and a school single-season record 31 touchdowns through the air.
One of the only things Tagovailoa has yet to check off his list is an Iron Bowl. Last season, he watched from the sidelines as starter Jalen Hurts struggled to move the ball against Auburn. This year, Tagovailoa can help Alabama enact revenge while putting the final touches on his Heisman campaign.
Tagovailoa is coming off one of his best games of the season last week as he completed 18 of 22 passes for 340 yards and three touchdowns while adding 37 yards and a touchdown on the ground against The Citadel. Monday, head coach Nick Saban called his starting quarterback a “perfectionist,” stating that Tagovailoa’s attention to detail has helped him improve every week.
“I think he's become more consistent in that regard,” Saban said. "So he's made a lot of good throws. He's made a lot of explosive plays. I think it's going to be important we continue to do that because we're going to play against better defenses, and when we play against better defenses we need to be just as productive in terms of our ability to run the ball, have balance on offense and to make explosive plays.”
Will there be trick plays?
Hold onto your seats — history says Saturday’s game is sure to provide plenty of surprises. Throughout the years, Alabama and Auburn have had a few tricks up their sleeves during the Iron Bowl as both teams look to catch the other with its guard down.
Last year it started with Auburn as running back Kerryon Johnson took a snap out of the Wildcat formation from the Alabama 3-yard line during the first quarter. Johnson faked a jet-sweep handoff before throwing a jump pass to a wide-open Nate Craig-Myers in the end zone for the Tigers’ first score.
Alabama took its turn in the second quarter as quarterback Jalen Hurts faked as if he was taking a designed run to the right side before dropping back to hit receiver Jerry Jeudy for a 36-yard touchdown. Hurts had kept the ball on runs to the right side the previous two plays to set up the score.
This year will likely bring a few new wrinkles of its own.
“It’s Auburn — everyone pulls out all the stops,” tight end Hale Hentges said. “For our team, we always put in trick plays at any phase in the game. That’s something I’m sure we’ll look at. We look at that for every single team, not just Auburn. I’m sure Auburn will put in their fair share of trick plays.”
If that’s the case, expect Alabama to be ready.
“It just goes back to staying disciplined, playing with good eyes and stuff like that,” linebacker Mack Wilson said. “We’ve just got to make sure we communicate across the board and make sure that we continue to go out and compete and work throughout the week so that we can prepare ourself for Saturday.”
Did Alabama get the wake up call it needed against The Citadel?
They might have been frustrating at the time, but Alabama’s struggles against The Citadel could actually turn out to be beneficial. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Auburn won’t be rolling out the triple option on Saturday. However, last week’s mild hiccup served as the wakeup call Alabama needed heading into a much bigger matchup.
“I don't think there's any question about that,” Saban said. “When I say there’s lessons to be learned from what happened, that’s what I’m alluding to. Whatever your narrative is personally as a player or collectively as a team, in terms of who you think you are, the lesson to be learned is we're playing a team that maybe is — not to disrespect anyone, but — not quite as talented as we are…I do think there’s a lot of lessons to be learned about competition, what it takes to compete at a high level, that the competition you’re playing against should not determine your level of intensity, sense of urgency, discipline, all the things I think it takes to compete at a high level.”
Safety Deionte Thompson said Alabama’s first half last week was “definitely what we needed.” While the Crimson Tide hopes to avoid similar first-half struggles this week, it’s reassuring to know it can adjust to adverse situations in the future.
“It’s just good to respond to sudden change,” safety Deionte Thompson said. “You never know what you’re going to get. Just the way we responded to it, I felt like just showed our maturity. We’ve been maturing all season and I feel like that was a big step there coming out and getting adjusted.”
Is there any hope for Alabama’s kicking game?
Saban is done coddling Alabama’s kicking game. In the past, the head coach has been softer on his kickers. Earlier this season, he explained that Joseph Bulovas had been making his kicks in practice. He called him “very capable” and wondered if “Maybe his focus wasn't what it needed to be.”
However, after two more missed extra points last week, Saban’s patience seems to be waning.
“We're going to keep working on it, no doubt, but it's not really acceptable to me, to be honest with you, from anyone's standpoint — his standpoint, our standpoint,” Saban said. “And we're going to work really, really hard to get it fixed. If there's someone else on our team that we feel we can do it better, the possibility exists that we'll do that, whether it's snapper, holder or kicker.”
The problem is, there might not be someone better. Bulovas’ two missed kicks bring him to 56 of 61 on extra points on the year. Meanwhile, graduate transfer Austin Jones, who started the season on extra point duties before being replaced by Bulovas, is just 8 of 11. In total, Alabama’s eight extra point misses are twice as many as the rest of the SEC teams combined.
Can Irv Smith Jr. keep it up?
Tagovailoa had his say on what he thought to be a notable omission. Monday, the John Mackey Award named its three finalists as Iowa’s T.J. Hockenson, Missouri’s Albert Okwuegbunam and Stanford’s Kaden Smith made the final cut for the honor of being named the nation’s top tight end. That left the Alabama quarterback wondering why one of his favorite targets, Irv Smith Jr., was left out.
Tua. T
✔@Tuaamann
https://twitter.com/Tuaamann/status/1064681035315757056
Weird way to spell @swervinirvin_ ..
John Mackey Award@JohnMackeyAward
Congrats 2018 @JohnMackeyAward Finalists!
T.J. Hockenson, Iowa
Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri
Kaden Smith, Stanford
For full details, please visit http://johnmackeyaward.com !#TE #CFB #CFBAwards
2,258
6:45 PM - Nov 19, 2018
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It makes sense that Tagovailoa would campaign for Smith. The two have linked up for touchdowns in five of the past six games, including a 68-yard score last week against The Citadel. Smith has 50 or more receiving yards in each of the past four games and is fourth on the team with 586 receiving yards to go with seven touchdowns on 32 receptions. While those numbers won’t net Smith the top prize this season, he has earned the respect from his fellow teammates.
“Irv has done such a phenomenal job for us this year, and what he’s done doesn’t need to be summed up by trophies or whatever,” Hentges said. “The impact he’s made on this team, especially in the tight end room is something you can’t put into words.”
The SEC West isn’t on the line this time, but redemption is still up for grabs. No. 1 Alabama (11-0, 7-0 in the SEC) is heading to Atlanta regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s Iron Bowl against Auburn (7-4, 3-4). However, Crimson Tide players still remember the feeling of walking off the field following last year’s 26-14 loss to the Tigers.
“We still have sort of a sour taste in our mouth,” offensive lineman Ross Pierschbacher said. “Being from Alabama or just being in the state you hear about that game. (Not) having those bragging rights for 365 days is something that we don’t appreciate.”
Alabama can change that as it heads into Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. CT kickoff inside Bryant-Denny Stadium as 24.5-point favorites, according to VegasInsider.com. Here are five questions to consider leading up to the game.
Will Tua have an Iron Bowl moment?
There isn’t much Tua Tagovailoa hasn’t already done. The sophomore has a national championship under his belt and is on his way to leading Alabama to another one this season. Heading into the final week of the regular season, he’s viewed as the frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy after piling up 2,865 yards and a school single-season record 31 touchdowns through the air.
One of the only things Tagovailoa has yet to check off his list is an Iron Bowl. Last season, he watched from the sidelines as starter Jalen Hurts struggled to move the ball against Auburn. This year, Tagovailoa can help Alabama enact revenge while putting the final touches on his Heisman campaign.
Tagovailoa is coming off one of his best games of the season last week as he completed 18 of 22 passes for 340 yards and three touchdowns while adding 37 yards and a touchdown on the ground against The Citadel. Monday, head coach Nick Saban called his starting quarterback a “perfectionist,” stating that Tagovailoa’s attention to detail has helped him improve every week.
“I think he's become more consistent in that regard,” Saban said. "So he's made a lot of good throws. He's made a lot of explosive plays. I think it's going to be important we continue to do that because we're going to play against better defenses, and when we play against better defenses we need to be just as productive in terms of our ability to run the ball, have balance on offense and to make explosive plays.”
Will there be trick plays?
Hold onto your seats — history says Saturday’s game is sure to provide plenty of surprises. Throughout the years, Alabama and Auburn have had a few tricks up their sleeves during the Iron Bowl as both teams look to catch the other with its guard down.
Last year it started with Auburn as running back Kerryon Johnson took a snap out of the Wildcat formation from the Alabama 3-yard line during the first quarter. Johnson faked a jet-sweep handoff before throwing a jump pass to a wide-open Nate Craig-Myers in the end zone for the Tigers’ first score.
Alabama took its turn in the second quarter as quarterback Jalen Hurts faked as if he was taking a designed run to the right side before dropping back to hit receiver Jerry Jeudy for a 36-yard touchdown. Hurts had kept the ball on runs to the right side the previous two plays to set up the score.
This year will likely bring a few new wrinkles of its own.
“It’s Auburn — everyone pulls out all the stops,” tight end Hale Hentges said. “For our team, we always put in trick plays at any phase in the game. That’s something I’m sure we’ll look at. We look at that for every single team, not just Auburn. I’m sure Auburn will put in their fair share of trick plays.”
If that’s the case, expect Alabama to be ready.
“It just goes back to staying disciplined, playing with good eyes and stuff like that,” linebacker Mack Wilson said. “We’ve just got to make sure we communicate across the board and make sure that we continue to go out and compete and work throughout the week so that we can prepare ourself for Saturday.”
Did Alabama get the wake up call it needed against The Citadel?
They might have been frustrating at the time, but Alabama’s struggles against The Citadel could actually turn out to be beneficial. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Auburn won’t be rolling out the triple option on Saturday. However, last week’s mild hiccup served as the wakeup call Alabama needed heading into a much bigger matchup.
“I don't think there's any question about that,” Saban said. “When I say there’s lessons to be learned from what happened, that’s what I’m alluding to. Whatever your narrative is personally as a player or collectively as a team, in terms of who you think you are, the lesson to be learned is we're playing a team that maybe is — not to disrespect anyone, but — not quite as talented as we are…I do think there’s a lot of lessons to be learned about competition, what it takes to compete at a high level, that the competition you’re playing against should not determine your level of intensity, sense of urgency, discipline, all the things I think it takes to compete at a high level.”
Safety Deionte Thompson said Alabama’s first half last week was “definitely what we needed.” While the Crimson Tide hopes to avoid similar first-half struggles this week, it’s reassuring to know it can adjust to adverse situations in the future.
“It’s just good to respond to sudden change,” safety Deionte Thompson said. “You never know what you’re going to get. Just the way we responded to it, I felt like just showed our maturity. We’ve been maturing all season and I feel like that was a big step there coming out and getting adjusted.”
Is there any hope for Alabama’s kicking game?
Saban is done coddling Alabama’s kicking game. In the past, the head coach has been softer on his kickers. Earlier this season, he explained that Joseph Bulovas had been making his kicks in practice. He called him “very capable” and wondered if “Maybe his focus wasn't what it needed to be.”
However, after two more missed extra points last week, Saban’s patience seems to be waning.
“We're going to keep working on it, no doubt, but it's not really acceptable to me, to be honest with you, from anyone's standpoint — his standpoint, our standpoint,” Saban said. “And we're going to work really, really hard to get it fixed. If there's someone else on our team that we feel we can do it better, the possibility exists that we'll do that, whether it's snapper, holder or kicker.”
The problem is, there might not be someone better. Bulovas’ two missed kicks bring him to 56 of 61 on extra points on the year. Meanwhile, graduate transfer Austin Jones, who started the season on extra point duties before being replaced by Bulovas, is just 8 of 11. In total, Alabama’s eight extra point misses are twice as many as the rest of the SEC teams combined.
Can Irv Smith Jr. keep it up?
Tagovailoa had his say on what he thought to be a notable omission. Monday, the John Mackey Award named its three finalists as Iowa’s T.J. Hockenson, Missouri’s Albert Okwuegbunam and Stanford’s Kaden Smith made the final cut for the honor of being named the nation’s top tight end. That left the Alabama quarterback wondering why one of his favorite targets, Irv Smith Jr., was left out.
Tua. T
✔@Tuaamann
https://twitter.com/Tuaamann/status/1064681035315757056
Weird way to spell @swervinirvin_ ..
John Mackey Award@JohnMackeyAward
Congrats 2018 @JohnMackeyAward Finalists!
T.J. Hockenson, Iowa
Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri
Kaden Smith, Stanford
For full details, please visit http://johnmackeyaward.com !#TE #CFB #CFBAwards
2,258
6:45 PM - Nov 19, 2018
Twitter Ads info and privacy
354 people are talking about this
Twitter Ads info and privacy
It makes sense that Tagovailoa would campaign for Smith. The two have linked up for touchdowns in five of the past six games, including a 68-yard score last week against The Citadel. Smith has 50 or more receiving yards in each of the past four games and is fourth on the team with 586 receiving yards to go with seven touchdowns on 32 receptions. While those numbers won’t net Smith the top prize this season, he has earned the respect from his fellow teammates.
“Irv has done such a phenomenal job for us this year, and what he’s done doesn’t need to be summed up by trophies or whatever,” Hentges said. “The impact he’s made on this team, especially in the tight end room is something you can’t put into words.”
AirForceBamaFan
Member
Damien is back...but in a black jersey...
Alabama practice report: Injured RB returns
Alabama practice report: Injured RB returns
I hope Jalen gets on the field vs. Auburn given what happened last year. I know that he would enjoy spanking them alongside Tua. Before he was injured, it did seem that getting them both on the field at the same time had become a priority. Jalen is too good of a football player to be on the sideline for long.
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