Alabama Football: What went wrong and what is next for the Tide

Not since 2010 has an Alabama football team had two losses one week into November. To Alabama Crimson Tide fans it is hard to get past a ‘sky is falling’ feeling. Another reality check for the Crimson Tide and its followers is the possibility of going into an Ole Miss game with the Rebels being the higher-ranked team.

What is next for the Crimson Tide is unclear, beyond knowing there will be no CFB Playoffs for this season’s team and next to no chance for an SEC Championship.

Nick Saban and the Alabama football coaching staff need to find some answers quickly. If not, the 2022 Crimson Tide could go down as one of Alabama’s most under-achieving teams. Answers will not come easily – not in the 11th week of a season.

A bit of good news is the Crimson Tide has a defining moment opportunity on Saturday in Oxford. Alabama will be favored by oddsmakers. Ole Miss will be and should be confident it can win. Alabama’s mindset and how it translates to execution in the game will be telling.

There is time later in the week to focus on Ole Miss. More immediately, Alabama football players must focus on themselves and what went wrong against LSU.

Alabama Football Fails – LSU Game

• Nine penalties for 92 yards. Three pass interference penalties and two personal fouls were particularly damaging to the Crimson Tide defense.
• Bryce Young’s miscues came frequently. Some were miscommunication with receivers. Too many were bad throws. One, the ill-advised pass that ended an Alabama drive with an LSU interception in the end zone – was a grievous mental error.
• At halftime, Nick Saban stressed the Tide must effectively run the ball, saying, “We struggled to run it when we tried.” After the game, he said Alabama failed to do so. Alabama had eight 3rd-and-longs in the game. The Tide converted two of them. One reason was the inconsistency in running the ball on early downs. The Crimson rushed for 147 (sack-adjusted) yards, with an average of 4.6 yards. But not counting short-yardage rushing plays, Alabama had nine rushes that produced two yards three times; one yard two times, zero yards three times, and minus one yard once.

The Alabama football defense also came up short with a few missed tackles at key times, plus the pass interference mistakes, but the defense played well enough for the Crimson Tide to win. Jayden Daniels was nothing special through the air and only seriously hurt the Tide three times with his feet. Two of the three runs were game-changing plays, but the Tide defense also made six sacks and 11 tackles for a loss, plus one credited hurry.

Not to what if, but Eli Ricks was a step short of denying LSU the game-winning two-point conversion.  With all its failings, Alabama came close to winning.

Complete game stats are available here.

What comes next for the Crimson Tide? A win over Ole Miss would likely lead to a Sugar Bowl berth, after wins over Austin Peay and Auburn.