Alabama Football: Offense continues to make strides on the road
Alabama Football Offensive Line: C+
The Alabama offensive line had a lot of difficulty with the crowd noise at Kyle Field, committing nine pre-snap penalties that regularly set the Tide offense back. While the line showed some improvement in pass protection against a relentless A&M pass rush, it failed to provide any running lanes for the Tide backs until well into the second half.
This is a group whose strength has been run blocking for much of this year, but they were neutralized by an Aggie front that made it a point to key on the run.
I don’t necessarily think this performance is an indictment on the offensive line. Opposing defenses will likely not be able to play the run so aggressively with Milroe and the Bama receivers proving they can win games. This should open up the rest of the offense going forward, as I believe the ground game will continue to progress.
The primary issue that this unit has to clean up is the pre-snap penalties. The line gets to come home for over a month, and should use that time to establish better communication and instill more discipline.
Next. Bama shows toughness on the road. dark
When the Tide goes to Jordan-Hare for the Iron Bowl, the environment will be just as crazy, but I expect to see a much more mature Alabama offensive line for that late November bout.