BAMANEWSBOT
Staff
Alabama coach Nick Saban can pinpoint when the season turned sour: the first practice after the Nov. 9 LSU game.
The Tigers were ranked No. 10 and were supposed to be the last big challenge on the way to the Crimson Tide's third straight national championship.
Alabama overcame a sluggish start to the season against Virginia Tech thanks to the defense and special teams, and then toppled Johnny Manziel-led Texas A&M in an offensive shootout.
The offensive line was seemingly rebuilt, and it was the only question mark heading into the season.
All seemed to be going well as the Crimson Tide won every game with ease.
The season-ending knee injury to safety Vinnie Sunseri at midseason and safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix's two-game suspension didn't slow the Crimson Tide, which also overcame inconsistencies and injuries to the cornerbacks.
Star receiver Amari Cooper's off year and the running backs' fumble issues didn't matter ā most of the time.
The next man up stepped up, such as safety Landon Collins and receivers Kevin Norwood and DeAndrew White.
"This year we've overcome a lot of adversity on defense," defensive coordinator Kirby Smart said.
"We've had three season-ending knee injuries to what were really starters at one time or another. Been through a couple of suspensions and a couple other injuries, and really have a rotating starting lineup."
Alabama's problem was success. Saban saw it coming and warned of complacency all year. It was the one intangible he wanted to avoid.
However, the hard-fought yet dominating victory over LSU created a fake aura of invincibility.
"I thought that the team late in the season from the LSU game on maybe didn't have the focus we needed to have," Saban said. "We didn't pay attention to detail, didn't do the little things right, didn't practice well. I think that eventually caught up with us in the Auburn game."
After LSU, the Crimson Tide survived a tough game against Mississippi State, and the players thought that was the wake-up call.
The Auburn delivered one of the greatest last-second victories in football with the missed field goal return for a touchdown.
Alabama's defense wasn't ready for the speed and precision of Auburn's misdirection, read-option attack leading up to that moment, and the offense couldn't execute consistently.
"I just don't think that our players realized ... what it takes to win every game, and that you can never take anything for granted, and that everyone that plays us has something to prove," Saban said.
Offensive tackle Austin Shepherd noticed the change during the season and didn't have an answer for it.
"I just feel like we need to be more physical, just get back to where we were against LSU and earlier than that," he said before the Sugar Bowl. "We kind of fell off toward the end of the season for no reason."
After the Sugar Bowl loss to Oklahoma, quarterback AJ McCarron had a simple answer.
"Buy in, buy into the system all the way," he said "We had a lot of guys that don't buy in, some selfish guys. It's all about them. I feel like three leaders we have on this team, me, C.J. (Mosley) and Kevin are probably the best examples of buying into the system. The time we came in to us leaving now, us three, we really bought in and you see all the success we had. If everybody else buys in, this team can be a very dangerous team next year."
The Tigers were ranked No. 10 and were supposed to be the last big challenge on the way to the Crimson Tide's third straight national championship.
Alabama overcame a sluggish start to the season against Virginia Tech thanks to the defense and special teams, and then toppled Johnny Manziel-led Texas A&M in an offensive shootout.
The offensive line was seemingly rebuilt, and it was the only question mark heading into the season.
All seemed to be going well as the Crimson Tide won every game with ease.
The season-ending knee injury to safety Vinnie Sunseri at midseason and safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix's two-game suspension didn't slow the Crimson Tide, which also overcame inconsistencies and injuries to the cornerbacks.
Star receiver Amari Cooper's off year and the running backs' fumble issues didn't matter ā most of the time.
The next man up stepped up, such as safety Landon Collins and receivers Kevin Norwood and DeAndrew White.
"This year we've overcome a lot of adversity on defense," defensive coordinator Kirby Smart said.
"We've had three season-ending knee injuries to what were really starters at one time or another. Been through a couple of suspensions and a couple other injuries, and really have a rotating starting lineup."
Alabama's problem was success. Saban saw it coming and warned of complacency all year. It was the one intangible he wanted to avoid.
However, the hard-fought yet dominating victory over LSU created a fake aura of invincibility.
"I thought that the team late in the season from the LSU game on maybe didn't have the focus we needed to have," Saban said. "We didn't pay attention to detail, didn't do the little things right, didn't practice well. I think that eventually caught up with us in the Auburn game."
After LSU, the Crimson Tide survived a tough game against Mississippi State, and the players thought that was the wake-up call.
The Auburn delivered one of the greatest last-second victories in football with the missed field goal return for a touchdown.
Alabama's defense wasn't ready for the speed and precision of Auburn's misdirection, read-option attack leading up to that moment, and the offense couldn't execute consistently.
"I just don't think that our players realized ... what it takes to win every game, and that you can never take anything for granted, and that everyone that plays us has something to prove," Saban said.
Offensive tackle Austin Shepherd noticed the change during the season and didn't have an answer for it.
"I just feel like we need to be more physical, just get back to where we were against LSU and earlier than that," he said before the Sugar Bowl. "We kind of fell off toward the end of the season for no reason."
After the Sugar Bowl loss to Oklahoma, quarterback AJ McCarron had a simple answer.
"Buy in, buy into the system all the way," he said "We had a lot of guys that don't buy in, some selfish guys. It's all about them. I feel like three leaders we have on this team, me, C.J. (Mosley) and Kevin are probably the best examples of buying into the system. The time we came in to us leaving now, us three, we really bought in and you see all the success we had. If everybody else buys in, this team can be a very dangerous team next year."
