Alabama Football: The good, not so good and the bad against Missouri

Alabama football continued its championship march Saturday night against Missouri. Check out the good, not so good and the bad in the game.

When other championship contenders faltered Saturday, Alabama football continued its winning ways, beating Missouri 39-10. Overall the win was The Crimson Tide’s most impressive of the season.

Let’s review the game by categorizing what transpired as the good, the not so good and the bad.

The Alabama Football ‘Good’ against Missouri

The Crimson Tide had an impressive defensive performance against a potent Missouri offense.

• Missouri was No. 26 in the FBS at 39 points per game and was held to 10 by the Crimson Tide.
• The Total Offense average-per-game for the Tigers was No. 9 at 530 yards. Against the Tide, the total was 212 yards.
• The Missouri Passing Offense was No. 14 in the FBS with an average of 318 yards. The Tide held the Tigers to 142 yards.
• Missouri had allowed only four quarterback sacks in five games. The Tide sacked Drew Lock four times. The Tide also had eight tackles for a loss.
• The Alabama football rushing attack gained an average of 4.1 yards-per-carry. The Missouri defense had been allowing only 3.31 yards-per-carry.
• Joseph Bulovas made three field goals. His one miss was from 52 yards and it was not poorly hit. The longest of Bulovas’ made field goals was just 30 yards, but any made field goal is big for the Crimson Tide.
• Saivion Smith appeared to be a quite capable replacement for Trevon Diggs.

The Alabama Football ‘Not so Good’ against Missouri

• Tua may not have been badly injured but at the least, he aggravated a knee sprain. While not a serious injury, Tua needs to be 100 percent for LSU.
• Devonta Smith’s pulled muscle and a clearly hurting Henry Ruggs III are troubling. Just like Tua, they need to be 100 percent for LSU.
• Jalen looked improved as a passer and Alabama football is fortunate to have such a good backup QB. Still, the Tide offense under Jalen is not the same offense run under Tua.

The Alabama Football ‘Bad’ against Missouri

• Short-yardage rushing, particularly in the redzone, was again inconsistent. Even on the Damien Harris TD run, the offensive line got no push before Damien rebounded from his dive and darted outside.
• Skyler DeLong punted once for 12 yards. We are unsure Saban will ever let him punt again. The Tide may attempt more fourth down conversions though it had no success on two tries against the Tigers. Maybe a new punter will replace DeLong. Someone who could consistently deliver 40 yards would be a significant improvement.
• Then there was the televised (and replayed and replayed) episode with Raekwon Davis. Alabama football fans felt Missouri did not play a clean game. Even if that was correct and it happened again on the specific play, Kwon went too far in retaliation. His lack of self-control could have caused him to be ejected for fighting. The SEC may still punish him after further video review. He jeopardized his ability to play in the first half of the Tennessee game. It was poor judgment by an upperclassman who should know better.

We are not sure when Tennessee week officially begins. Is it Sunday or Monday? We do know that on Oct. 20, it will have been 4,382 days since the Vols beat the Crimson Tide.