Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Chattanooga Mocs: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Nov 23, 2013; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide running back Derrick Henry (27) carries the ball up the field against the Chattanooga Mocs during the second quarter at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
On “Senior Day” the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide took care of business 49-0 against FCS Chattanooga Mocs in a workmanlike manner, dominating both sides of the ball. As the Tide is a game away from the biggest Iron Bowl in Alabama history, they remained focused on taking care of business in the final home game of the 2013 season.
The Good
Alabama had the ball 10 times and scored on 7 of those, with the last possession being just one play to run out the rest of the clock. Alabama punted zero times and was dominant on both sides of the ball as expected against a mismatched opponent.
AJ McCarron was efficient and the running game was punishing. Defensively Chattanooga was down to their backup QB due to injury, but regardless just couldn’t get anything going at all today.
With TJ Yeldon out with an ankle injury, Kenyan Drake and Derrick Henry saw the bulk of the carries in the first three quarters, and both made the best of it. Drake proved he could run between the tackles, sticking the ball in for first downs on multiple third and short situations. Derrick Henry showed glimpses of the special player he is expected to be. On a 27-yard gain in the first half he showed that shocking speed he possesses before plowing into the endzone for a five-yard TD on the next play.
Chattanooga runs the ball in certain situations much like Auburn, using multiple formations and using the read option and spread option along with QB dives. This was a nice dress rehearsal for the Alabama defense to get used to seeing those types of running plays early as the Iron Bowl grows closer.
For the past few weeks Geno Smith has quietly become one of the more consistent defensive backs in the Tide secondary. He played exceptionally well in the game against the Mocs. Smith broke up a pass on 3rd down in the first half, and then in the second half on an option play he fought off a block and forced the runner to bounce it to the outside where he was rudely met by Landon Collins in a perfect defense of the option.
The Bad
Despite the dominating performance Alabama came out a big sluggish offensively, starting out with Christion Jones muffing a punt early in the game. The defense bailed him out with Trey Depriest intercepting a Mocs pass a few players later, but Alabama also had a drive stall late in the 1st quarter deep in Chattanooga territory.
Despite that Alabama managed to get things going and squeeze the life out of Chattanooga. Jones also made up for the muffed punt himself in the second quarter with an excited 65 yard TD on a punt return.
In the third quarter offensive guard Arie Kouandjio injured his ankle in a scary moment that looked as if he may of hurt one of his previously injured knees. It seems that it’s just an ankle sprain, but it comes at an inopportune time with Auburn right over the horizon. Hopefully the injury doesn’t hamper him much next week as it is typically easier for a lineman to recover from an ankle injury than a skill player because linemen don’t have to cut or run down the field much.
The Ugly
The only ugly to come from this game is the fact that this will be the last time we as Alabama fans get to see this group of seniors at home. We all thank those guys for the memories and we hope there are a few more great ones to come this year.
Final stats from the game are below.
PASSING
AJ McCarron: 13-16, 171 yards, 2 TD
Blake Sims: 2-4, 13 yards
RUSHING
Kenyan Drake: 11 carries, 77 yards, 1 TD
Derrick Henry: 6 carries, 66 yards, 1 TD
Chris Black: 1 carry, 31 yards, 1 TD
Dee Hart: 5 carries, 25 yards, 1 TD
Blake Sims: 4 carries, 21 yards
Altee Tenpenny: 4 carries, 16 yards
AJ McCarron: 1 carry, 15 yards
RECEIVING
Kevin Norwood: 4 catches, 84 yards, 1 TD
Amari Cooper: 3 catches, 42 yards, 1 TD
Christion Jones: 2 catches, 24 yards
Kenny Bell: 2 catches, 13 yards
Chris Black: 1 catch, 11 yards
DeAndrew White: 1 catch, 8 yards
Corey McCarron: 1 catch, 3 yards
Jalston Fowler: 1 catch, -1 yard
DEFENSE
Landon Collins: 7 tackles, 0.5 tackle for loss
CJ Mosley: 7 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss
Reuben Foster: 5 tackles, 1.0 tackle for loss
Trey Depriest: 5 tackles, 1 INT
Reggie Ragland: 4 tackles
HaHa Clinton-Dix: 3 tackles, 1.0 tackle for loss
Jeoffrey Pagan: 3 tackles
Jonathan Allen: 3 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble
Maurice Smith: 3 tackles
A’Shawn Robinson: 3 tackles, 1 blocked kick
Tana Patrick: 3 tackles
Bradley Sylve: 2 tackles
Adrian Hubbard: 2 tackles
Anthony Orr: 2 tackles
Geno Smith: 2 tackles, 0.5 tackle for loss, 1 pass breakup
Darren Lake: 2 tackles
Altee Tenpenny: 1 tackle
Ryan Anderson: 1 tackle, 1.0 tackle for loss, 1.0 sack
Cyrus Jones: 1 tackle, 1 pass breakup
John Fulton: 1 tackle
Ed Stinson: 1 tackle
Jarrick Williams: 1 tackle
Jabriel Washington: 1 tackle
Tim Williams: 1 tackle
Brandon Ivory: 1 tackle
Denzel Devall: 1 tackle
Xzavier Dickson: 1 tackle
Eddie Jackson: 1 fumble recovery, 35 yards
SPECIAL TEAMS
Cade Foster: 6/6 XPs
Adam Griffith: 1/1 XP
Christion Jones: 2 punt returns, 75 yards, 1 TD
Dee Hart: 1 punt return, 3 yards
Xzavier Dickson: 1 kickoff return, 14 yards