Crimson Tide Offense Continues to Roll in Rout of Kentucky, 49-21
Alabama has officially figured it out, and they are scary again.
By: Dave in Tuscaloosa
Jalen Milroe dropping a dime to Kobe Prentice.
Remember the days of rec or YMCA ball when there was always a collective balk at the dreaded “Most Improved Award”? The prize always seemed to go to a bench dweller who gave it their best effort, but came up short on the talent scale. Maybe Jalen Milroe could help change the narrative on the award.
No player in the country has improved throughout the season more than the sophomore Alabama quarterback, and his progress was on full display this past weekend in Lexington as the 8th ranked Tide rolled the Wildcats, 49-21. It was a dominating performance from Milroe and his teammates as the game was never in doubt against a quality SEC East opponent. Alabama raced out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back as the Tide clinched its 15th SEC West title and will meet top ranked Georgia for the conference championship in Atlanta on December 2nd. The images of a struggling Milroe last year against Texas A&M or in week two this season against the Longhorns of Texas are long gone as the sophomore has been masterful the last three weeks. On Saturday, Milroe finished 15 for 22 for 234 yards and he was responsible for an Alabama record three rushing touchdowns and three more through the air. His recent work has some mentioning Bama’s quarterback as a late Heisman Trophy candidate. Those around Milroe wearing the crimson and white have made tremendous progress as well, most notably an offensive line that was a mess a month ago but are now peaking at the right time, protecting Milroe well while opening up nice rushing lanes for the talented Bama backs. In addition, Alabama’s defense, which has been strong all year, appears to have put the operation into a new gear and is playing their best ball in years. All of this translates to a squad that looks more like the Saban teams of old and they have put themselves squarely into the CFP conversation. Win out, and the Tide should be in.
Kentucky was the latest victim on the Tide’s path to greatness. Mark Stoops’ Wildcats are a quality team that was simply outmatched on Saturday. Tailback Ray Davis, the SEC”s second leading rusher, did punch it in twice from short distances but was limited to 26 yards on 12 carries. Wildcat quarterback Devin Leary was harassed all day and finished 17-31 for 158 yards, a touchdown pass, and an interception. Even though the Wildcats were able to close within 14 points twice (21-7 late in the first quarter and 28-14 early in the third), this game never seemed close as Bama answered every punch landed by Kentucky. Bama now stands at 9-1, which includes a perfect 7-0 mark in the conference while Kentucky fell to 6-4 and 3-4 in the SEC.
The scoring started early and often for the Tide as Bama took the opening kickoff 80 yards in 10 plays that was capped off by a Milroe to tight end Amari Niblack 26 yard strike down the middle to put the Tide up 7-0 just five minutes into the game. After a UK three-and-out, Bama made short order of the next drive, marching 55 yards in 4 plays. Milroe tossed his second touchdown of the afternoon, hitting a wide open Kobe Prentice from 40 yards out. The Bama D forced a fumble on Kentucky’s first play of their next drive and freshman sensation Caleb Downs advanced the ball to the Wildcat 1 where Milroe would score his first rushing TD of the day a play later to extend the lead to 21-0 at the 5:12 mark of the first quarter. Bama would once again hold the ‘Cats to a three-and-out, yet a Kool-Aid McKinstery muffed punt gave UK new life at the Tide 32.
UK would get on the board 6 plays later when Leary found Tayvion Robinson in the flat for a 6 yard touchdown strike to close the gap to 21-7. The second quarter started with the teams exchanging punts before the Tide struck again. This time, MIlroe scrambled out of the pocket and found back Roydell Williams who took what could have been a short gain for six from 26 yards out to stretch the lead to 28-7 at the 10:14 mark of the second quarter. Both defenses stiffened and the score remained the same heading into the third quarter. UK showed signs of life by taking the second half kickoff 75 yards on 10 plays for a score to cut the Bama lead to 28-14. Although Alabama has improved dramatically in the penalty department, two costly flags extended the Wildcat drive that opened the half. Yet, Milroe and company would once again answer, this time with a 9 play, 65 yard touchdown drive of their own that saw Milroe cross the goalline on the ground from 3 yards out to stretch the Bama lead to 35-14 at the 9:36 mark of the third. The highlight of the drive was a Milroe to Prentice 30 yard strike on a 3rd and 17. Kentucky would go three-and-out on their next two possessions and the Tide answered with three straight touchdowns to take a 49-14 lead with 9:46 remaining in the game. UK would respond with their final touchdown of the day at the 7:46 mark of the fourth to close the scoring on the day. Alabama would outgain Kentucky 444 yards to 253, would amass 23 first downs to UK’s 11, and would convert on 7 out of 11 third down attempts.
Bama’s resurgence has been fuelled by a coaching staff that, like the players, have found their footing. 31 year old offensive coordinator Tommy Rees and his staff have done masterful work in redesigning the offense around Milroe’s talents, as they are taking advantage of the sophomore quarterback’s unique skill set. In addition, veteran defensive coordinator Kevin Steele and his staff continue to put an athletic, aggressive, and deep defensive unit in position to frustrate offenses. With challenging games on the road in two weeks against an improved Auburn team and a date with top ranked Georgia in early December, continued growth and production will be essential if the Tide hopes to land a CFP spot. Could this be a team of destiny? That is yet to be seen, yet one thing is for certain…it looks like this team has reinvigorated head coach Nick Saban and it appears like the GOAT is having the time of his life leading this squad. Tradition says this could spell bad news for the rest of the college football world.
