Alabama is riding high heading to Columbia this weekend to face South Carolina. The Crimson Tide is winners of six consecutive games, the last four of which have come against ranked teams, and they have skyrocketed all the way back up to No. 4 in the polls after a Week 1 tumble.
After making it through the gauntlet of playing Georgia, Vanderbilt, Missouri, and Tennessee consecutively, Alabama better be ready for a fight this weekend against South Carolina. On paper, the Gamecocks have a lot of issues, but they're still a talented team fully capable of beating Alabama this weekend, especially at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Alabama fans will note the parallels between this weekend's game and two losses a year ago. Riding high last season, Alabama lost focus and suffered losses to .500 opponents in Vanderbilt and Oklahoma.
We'd all like to believe that this team has the emotional maturity to handle success, but this weekend will be a great test of that.
If Alabama is going to go to Columbia and earn a victory over South Carolina, these three under-the-radar players could have a lot to do with it.
3 potential X-Factors for Alabama vs. South Carolina
RB Daniel Hill
Alabama's running backs really struggled last week against Tennessee. The trio of Jam Miller, Kevin Riley, and Daniel Hill mustered only 47 yards on 22 carries. Struggles with the traditional run game have been an ongoing issue for Kalen DeBoer in Tuscaloosa. Heading into this weekend, Alabama now ranks 127th in the country in rushing success rate, per Game on Paper.
Hill was the lone bright spot against the Vols. He put up 50 total yards on eight touches, showing the ability that made the coaches rave about him during spring practice this year. Ryan Grubb hinted at an expanded role for Hill moving forward when he spoke to the media on Monday.
South Carolina's defense has been mediocre this year, but it's been solid against the run. They also have one of the nation's most feared pass rushers in Dylan Stewart. Alabama will want to keep him at bay, and finding some consistency in the running game would go a long way toward that.
LB Justin Jefferson
Justin Jefferson's most prolific game of the season - by far - came against Vanderbilt and dual-threat QB Diego Pavia. Alabama could use a similarly big performance from Jefferson this weekend against the Gamecocks.
LaNorris Sellers' rushing numbers aren't what they were a year ago, but that's almost exclusively due to the fact that he's been sacked 25 times. In South Carolina's last two SEC games against LSU and Oklahoma, Sellers has been sacked a combined 11 times, including six a week ago against the Sooners.
Alabama will look to heat up Sellers like the others have, but you have to remain disciplined with your rush lanes to avoid allowing Sellers to step up out of the pocket and take off for big chunk plays.
Jefferson is likely to find himself playing the "spy" on Sellers a lot this weekend, and how he handles that role will go a long way in determined the success of the Alabama defense.
TE Josh Cuevas
Josh Cuevas has been as solid and consistent as it gets for Alabama this season. Every week, he's going to catch two or three passes, including one on a critical third down. He's also going to chip and pick up some key blocks as well.
He could be in for a bigger game against the Gamecocks this weekend. A couple of weeks ago against LSU, South Carolina was victimized by TE Trey'Dez Green, who picked up 119 yards and a touchdown on eight receptions. Cuevas isn't the athletic marvel that Green is, but he could still be in line for an increased workload, particularly if Ty Simpson is looking to get the ball out a bit quicker to combat Stewart's pass-rushing ability.
Cuevas will also see quite a bit of time lined up near Stewart in order to provide help for either Kadyn Proctor on the left or Wilkin Formby/Michael Carroll on the right. Cuevas will chip Stewart before he goes out for a route consistently because leaving Stewart one-on-one against anyone is a recipe for disaster and could serve to swing the game in South Carolina's favor.
Cuevas could be in for a big performance against the Gamecocks.