For the primary time in 24 years, Alabama is 0-1 to begin the season and for coach Kalen DeBoer, extra losses are coming for his program until main corrections are made throughout a number of areas.
Saturday’s 31-17 loss to Florida State magnified what some already puzzled in regards to the preseason’s eighth-ranked group: would the transfer to Ty Simpson at quarterback, addition of Ryan Grubb as OC and personnel adjustments defensively push this talent-loaded group towards a playoff run?
Early returns are in and people carrying overrated flags, no less than for now, can preserve these flying.
The Seminoles out-coached, out-prepared and out-executed the Crimson Tide in all sides, making good on quarterback Thomas Castellanos’ listing of offseason ensures with a dominant displaying.
Castellanos was proper: this ain’t the identical Alabama and no opposing group is getting off the bus apprehensive in regards to the Crimson Tide’s mystique. With 4:28 to play within the second quarter, Alabama linebacker Yhonzae Pierre tackled Castellanos close to the sideline and briefly stood over him regardless of trailing by a landing with Florida State driving.
Alabama was not flagged after Castellanos pulled grime from the highest of his facemask, however the play supplied a window right into a group failing to play as one on the verge of shedding its composure.
No surprise Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne had Mike Norvell on the prime of his teaching wishlist post-Nick Saban in January 2024. As an alternative, the Crimson Tide went with DeBoer, who’s 9-5 total solely 14 video games into his tenure with three losses over his final 4 video games — all as a double-digit betting favourite.
This is not the identical, assured model DeBoer we noticed at Washington attain the nationwide championship sport two years in the past. On the time, he was elite in massive video games and practically unbeatable towards top-end competitors regardless of not having the identical stage of assets now in his possession with the Crimson Tide.
How lengthy can Alabama’s supporters and top-end boosters “belief the method” with the present product being placed on the sphere? The Crimson Tide ranked seventh within the SEC final season in whole protection at 320.1 yards per sport, forcing DeBoer to make a number of workers adjustments in hopes of fixing points forward of 2025.
Dropping to Vanderbilt final season was the revealing eyebrow-raiser that confirmed defensive blemishes earlier than the setback towards Oklahoma opened sores that have not healed. These have metastasized with a bit additional salt within the wound by way of ex-Auburn coach Gus Malzahn, who dazzled in his debut as Florida State’s OC.
Malzahn stayed one step of the Crimson Tide’s defensive workers in rhythmic style with a mix of designed quarterback runs, play-action and an emphasis on physicality. Florida State’s working again leak name within the third quarter from Castellanos to Jaylin Lucas for a 64-yard gasher on first down was one in all two backbreakers, resulting in a 4-yard landing on the subsequent play and a 17-point lead.
The final was a fourth-and-short conversion from former Alabama working again Roydell Williams halfway by way of the fourth quarter that stored the clock transferring and was succeeded by a private foul towards the Crimson Tide on the second down.
Florida State performed with an edge all through on the line of scrimmage and rebounded from Alabama’s landing drive to open the sport by limiting the opposition’s manufacturing on the bottom the remainder of the way in which.
How Alabama responds from this newest sudden uppercut will decide its destiny because the schedule solely stiffens from right here. And for DeBoer, Ty Simpson and the remainder of this Crimson Tide group, displaying they’ll take a punch and choose themselves off the canvas for an additional spherical is significant towards getting again to a stage of respectability that’s fleeting.
