Alabama Football: What we learned in Tide win vs. Georgia

Alabama football learned a lot from beating the Georgia Bulldogs.

It took a full four quarters, but Alabama football finally managed to pull away from the Georgia Bulldogs in the second half of Saturday’s battle for the ages. It took the defense stepping up, a great performance by Mac Jones, and superior playcalling on both sides of the football. Alabama passed the test, but there is more to this story.

It’s hard to know a team’s true colors when they play against inferior opponents. However, Saturday’s game was iron vs. iron. Alabama football was tested, and we learned a lot about this team. Here is what we now know about the Crimson Tide thanks to this game.

Mac Jones is an elite quarterback

Mac Jones showed poise and precision against an athletic defensive front for Georgia. He bounced back from a bad first interception and carried the Crimson Tide offense down the field on his next drive. Things continued to get better for him as the game progressed. He was sacked a few times, but he still managed the pocket and distributed the ball efficiently. It doesn’t hurt when you’re throwing to the two best wide receivers in the country. 

The corners are not the problem on defense

Alabama’s defense stepped up, but let’s not forget that this team gave up a ton of yards in the first half to an offense led by Stetson Bennett. The defense was flawed, but I would not blame the cornerbacks. They were matched up in man against George Pickens and a talented receiving corps, and they mostly held their own. Safeties struggled in the first half, and inside linebackers were placed in bad spots in coverage. Josh Jobe, Patrick Surtain and Malachi Moore are the real deal.

Alabama has a kicker

I know it was just one field goal that has Alabama fans losing their minds, but Alabama hasn’t scored a field goal over 50 yards in a long time. Will Reichard is now living up to the hype as a bonafide kicker, and it is coming at the perfect time for Alabama football.

There are still a few teams that scare me looking ahead, but Alabama is easily the best team in the SEC right now. We learned a lot from beating Georgia. We’ll see what else we learn about the Tide when they play Tennessee next week.