Alabama Football: What the Crimson Tide can gain from the next four games

Alabama football has four weeks of games before the bye week. Let’s consider what the Tide can improve while earning four almost-sure wins.

Before any Alabama football fan points it out, we confess to heresy. What follows violates almost every rule in the Nick Saban process. Never assume anything, most of all, victories. The better team can lose games, usually because it contributes to its own downfall.

It is just so implausible for Louisana, Arkansas or Tennessee to realize a CFB-world-shattering upset of the Alabama Crimson Tide. Missouri is on another level and the Tigers can do things to cause the Tide problems. Still, Alabama football should win by at least a couple of touchdowns over Missou and name its score against the other three teams.

The disparity between the Tide and its next four opponents does not mean the games will not be interesting. In each game, the Alabama football team will have ample opportunities to improve. As Nick Saban said earlier in the week, improvement is needed in several areas.

Improvement Milestones for the next four weeks

• When Jalen Hurts enters the Louisiana-Lafayette game, the redshirt nonsense (some of which we contributed to) will be over. If you missed it, check out our apology to Jalen.
• Billy Napier’s team will run a lot of multiples in four and five wide receiver sets and the Tide’s secondary will learn and grow while defending them.
• Arkansas may not be good at many things, as Chad Morris uses a system not well-suited to Bret Bielema’s recruits. But they are pretty stout against the run. The Razorbacks are No. 7 in the FBS by allowing only 88.3 yards-per-game. They held Auburn to just 2.5 yards-per-rush. The Tide offensive line will get a good workout.
• Drew Lock and Missouri will show if the new Tide secondary is ready for a championship run. Lock puts the ball on the money and he does it quickly. Had his receivers not dropped passes, the Missou-Georgia game could have had a different result.
• Missouri is also good at stopping the run. The Tigers are No. 16 in the FBS and yield only 102.3 yards-per-game. The Bulldogs rushed 40 times against the Tigers and gained 185 yards, far below the UGA season average. If the 2018 Tide offensive line is ready for a championship run, it needs to show it against Missou.
• And then there is Tennessee. The Vols are woefully bad. Nothing against Jeremy Pruitt, but Nick Saban should never take his foot off the gas in Knoxville. A bad beat-down will send a strong message to any confused recruit considering playing for Tennessee.
• One area needing much work and improvement is punting. Unfortunately, Skyler DeLong will not get many game opportunities in the next four weeks.
• Several more made field goals (and no bad misses) would give confidence to Joseph Bulovas and Alabama football fans.
• The next four games will be valuable in building depth, particularly on the defensive side of the ball.

Beyond four more wins, while CFB Playoff contenders fade with losses, more will be gained. Alabama football will learn much more about itself between now and the end of October.