The win streak is over. After winning eight straight to climb to No. 4 in the country, Alabama can expect to slide in Tuesday night’s College Football Playoff Rankings after Saturday’s 23-21 loss to No. 11 Oklahoma at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
The biggest problem for the Crimson Tide was an area where they’ve thrived all season, the turnover battle. Entering the game with a +10 turnover margin this season, Alabama turned the ball over three times, one Ty Simpson interception that was returned for a touchdown, and two fumbles, one from Simpson and another from Ryan Williams on a punt return.
Those turnovers led to 17 of Oklahoma’s 23 points, and the Sooners’ longest drive of the day was just 41 yards. Alabama outgained Oklahoma 406 to 212, but Oklahoma was opportunistic, and Kalen DeBoer knows that those turnovers are what killed Alabama on Saturday.
"We played a lot of great snaps out there. But the turnover battle, we obviously got killed there and that became the game." - Kalen DeBoer after Alabama's loss to Oklahoma pic.twitter.com/gAPuaSdzkM
— The Next Round (@NextRoundLive) November 16, 2025
Alabama couldn’t overcome its three turnovers vs Oklahoma
Simpson entered Week 12 with just one interception to his 21 touchdowns. However, he also had the highest rate of turnover-worthy plays when blitzed of any quarterback in the SEC. Those risky throws hadn’t burned the redshirt junior yet this season, but they did this time, with Oklahoma’s pick-six coming off a blitz look that baited Simpson to throw into double coverage.
Brent Venables' blitz-heavy defense gave Simpson problems the entire game, even without his best pass rusher, R Mason Thomas, who missed the game with a quad injury. Simpson was pressured 16 times and sacked four times, including a sack fumble late in the third quarter that gave Oklahoma the ball at the 28-yard line, which led to its game-winning field goal.
DeBoer is absolutely right that turnovers killed his team, but Alabama’s lack of a run game continues to be a massive problem offensively. The Tide ran for just 80 yards on 33 attempts, and though Daniel Hill rushed for two touchdowns, the offense couldn’t move the ball on the ground against Oklahoma’s soft zone coverage late in the game.
Without the threat of a run game to be concerned about, Venables was able to get into his exotic blitz packages and attack Alabama’s running backs in pass protection. Hill and Jam Miller both struggled to protect Simpson when the Sooners brought additional rushers, and an offense that lives in 11 personnel with one back and one tight end requires backs to be effective pass blockers.
Alabama has been able to escape a few close calls this season, and the turnover battle has been a big reason why. This time, it went the other way, and Simpson couldn’t overcome it.