After a hard-fought battle gave the Alabama Crimson Tide a win over Missouri, scribes are unsure about how to best describe the victory. The Tuscaloosa News typically provides balanced perspectives about Crimson Tide sports. Colin Gay's post-game story was that the Crimson Tide "survived." CBS Sports wrote in a headline that Alabama "outlasted" the Missouri Tigers. Not to quibble with the two sources, but to me. AL.com provided an important reminder, calling it a "gritty win."
The problem with 'survived' and 'outlasted' is that they suggest Alabama was lucky to win. Alabama won a tough game; it admittedly could have lost. But borrowing a word from Kalen DeBoer, the Crimson Tide was 'resilient' in winning. Alabama was the better team, and it appears to have a higher ceiling than Missouri.
Missouri not only had a home crowd advantage, the Tigers were able to use almost all of three weeks to prepare for Alabama. Missouri also had college football's leading rusher in Ahmad Hardy. Colin Gay was correct in saying that at times the Crimson Tide looked "panicked" and "rattled." What can also be said is that with every adversity in the game, the Crimson Tide bounced back. Good football teams find ways to win when not playing their best. That is what Alabama did in Columbia, MO. Al.com called it gritty. Kalen DeBoer called it resiliency. I call it a more than satisfactory victory.
Alabama Crimson Tide Game Notes
- Ty Simpson did not have his best game. However, he may have made his best throw of the season on the 4th-and-8 completion to Lotzeir Brooks. It was a perfect throw. Simpson finished with 200 passing yards, 74% completion, and three touchdown passes.
- Missouri went into the game as the FBS's No. 3 and the SEC's No. 1 in rushing yards per game (292 yards). The Tigers rushed for 163 yards against the Crimson Tide defense.
- Ahmad Hardy went into the game No. 1 in the FBS in rushing yards per game (146 yards). He gained 52 yards against Alabama.
- Hardy played all four quarters in the game. Jam Miller had to leave the game with 10 minutes to go. Miller had eight more carries than Hardy and outrushed the Missouri star by 33 yards. More significantly, Miller equaled Hardy at 4.3 yards per carry.
At 5-1, the Alabama Crimson Tide remains a work in progress. Tennessee is probably a better team than Missouri, though their 34-31 win over Arkansas was not particularly impressive. The Crimson Tide has things to clean up before the Third Saturday. Alabama has already improved so much that it is almost as though the FSU nightmare happened in a different season. One that no longer matters.