Jumbo Package: Alabama coaches brace for daunting challenge vs Georgia
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Happy Tuesday, everyone. Get yourself a cup of coffee and settle in, because everyone is writing about Alabama vs. Georgia. We’ll start out with some comments from the Monday press conference.
“There’s, I think, probably more familiarity, and that’s us with them, and them with us, too,” DeBoer said Monday. “And so you see, yeah, as much as there’s new faces maybe at a couple positions, there’s a lot of those same faces, and you see the little tweaks and little things that they continue to do to work around their personnel, and get their guys highlighted, the right guys in the right spots, especially on offense. And I think we do a lot of the same things.”
But what’s different about this Georgia team?
“Just this version, I mean, it’s just jumped all over people,” DeBoer said. “I think that’s the biggest thing, is they come out of the gate swinging, and so, you gotta be ready for that. And we gotta be ready when the ball is kicked off.”
Alabama has had an issue with slow starts at times under DeBoer, but for whatever reason that hasn’t been the case when they’ve played Georgia. That’s a good thing because they can’t afford a slow start against this year’s Dawgs.
Kane Wommack was highly complimentary of QB Gunner Stockton.
Stockton is “so highly efficient right now,” Wommack said, and Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo is doing “a really good job of keeping him in good situations.”
“They do a really nice job of play design to where he can go to his first or second read, and he’s not having to go to the third, fourth, and fifth option of his progression,” Wommack said. “And I think that speaks a lot to play design, and then the efficiency of the quarterback, knowing where to go with the ball based off the rotations and looks that he’s getting. So highly efficient in that regard.”
Georgia had success against Oklahoma, the fifth-best total defense nationally in allowing 238 yards per game. Georgia scored 41 points and had 306 yards against the Sooners.
Yet, once Georgia’s close to the goal line, it isn’t automatic. The Bulldogs have the No. 51 red zone offense, scoring on 89.29% of its 28 opportunities, worse than teams like Middle Tennessee State, South Carolina and Alabama, which has turned all of its 26 red zone opportunities into scores.
The interesting thing about Georgia’s red zone number is that the Dawgs haven’t attempted a field goal inside 30 yards all season. They have twice failed on 4th down in the scoring area, and that’s the reason for the 89% number. As far as Stockton goes, he has indeed been quite efficient. But, this is an offense that has not tried to push the ball down the field very much, as evidenced by Stockton’s 8.2 ADOT (Average Depth of Target) which ranks 190th nationally. On average, Gunner gets the ball out in only 2.41 seconds. For contrast, Keelon Russell sits at 11.2 ADOT and 3.14 seconds to pass.
This strategy largely mitigates a pass rush, but also affords the opportunity to stack the box. While you can’t sleep on Stockton, Georgia’s running game has been the dominant force offensively. Nate Frazier in particular is averaging 8.1 yards per tote on the season. Slow down the rushing attack and you have a real chance to limit this offense.
Stockton isn’t a statue, but his running ability isn’t something that you have to gameplan for. If ever there was a game to play man and get after the passer, this is it. And the linemen need to be ready to get their big paws up against a quick passing game. Batted balls were an issue for Stockton last season.
Ryan Grubb was asked about EJ Crowell’s role.
“EJ’s still growing into the game plans and there’s parts that can be difficult at times to have him on the field when he doesn’t have the whole offense down, but he’s getting there and he’s fighting his tail off to learn,” Alabama offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said. “And that’s as big a part as anything because he is obviously wildly effective when the ball’s in his hand.”
Crowell has been on the field 45 times this season, per PFF. He has gotten at least nine snaps in each of the past three games.
“I thought this last week, honestly, he did a really good job on pass protection in practice and has really come around to where we can trust him in that regard,” Grubb said. “And that helps getting him in the football game. But he’s a special player and he’s growing every week, so we certainly will continue to make him a bigger part of the offense.”
Crowell is the type of game breaking talent that can be the difference in a close matchup. It will be interesting to see what he has in store for Saturday, but Trae’shawn Brown has looked awfully good in a leading role.
DeBoer called out Adrian Klemm again for the depth he’s developed on the offensive line.
“I think Coach Klemm has done a really good job of getting their minds to that spot in the offseason, having everyone ready,” DeBoer said. “He’s built up competition within that group. He’s built up expectations. It doesn’t matter if you’re a starter or a backup. And again, kind of that be ready, not get ready mentality that we talk about as a team as well.”
Mal Waldrep Jr. has filled in for Carroll and Sanders a few times this season and got the start at Kentucky, and JUCO transfer Tyrell Miller was James’ replacement on Saturday.
“Mal brings a physicality,” DeBoer said. “Even though he’s younger, he brings a physicality that I think has helped our team. He’s got a kind of a no-nonsense approach. He’s what you want in an offensive lineman. And it’s great to see Tyrell get out there. Tyrell is crazy athletic, has a lot of skill. And for him to get out there and get his feet underneath of him, I thought he did a nice job for his first, really, start, really from a volume standpoint, his most meaningful full reps. There’s a high ceiling for him, for sure, and you can see that.
DeBoer said that he is optimistic about Jayvin James returning this weekend, but Miller is ready if needed.
Be warned: the rest of this post is full of rat poison.
Joel Klatt sees some Michael Penix Jr. in Keelon Russell’s game.
Klatt believes Alabama’s offense with Russell operating at an elite level looks like the Washington Huskies‘ offense under Kalen DeBoer. Alabama’s coach led his former team to an unbeaten regular season and a berth in the national championship game with Michael Penix at quarterback.
“(Alabama) has got all these deep routes going, and it looks so much like that Washington team with Michael Penix and Rome Odunze out there, and they could throw the ball against anybody,” Klatt explained. “That’s exactly what Alabama looks like.”
“You’ve got Russell and he’s making people miss and still throwing the ball down the field. They’ve got speed on the outside. That is dynamic, man, I’m telling you.”
Russell is a much better athlete than Penix, but the explosive vertical passing game is a DeBoer/Grubb staple.
Tom Fornelli called Russell “terrifying.”
I’m not going to argue that he’s the best quarterback or player in the country. But he might be the guy defensive coordinators least want to see in a playoff game. Don’t get me wrong, I know Jeremiah Smith exists, and there aren’t many defenses out there with a concrete plan on how to stop him, but you can at least slow him down if you put pressure on Julian Sayin.
I don’t know that you can pressure Russell. I swear there are no fewer than three times per game when, by all rights, Russell should be sacked. The defense has him surrounded in the pocket, with nowhere to go, but then the next thing you know, he’s found somewhere to go, and he’s gone there. Often going even further.
They’re the kind of plays defenses can’t plan for, and they’re the kind that break your spirit. You do everything right, and it doesn’t matter. First down, or touchdown, Alabama. Ya done been Keelon’d. All things considered, Mississippi State actually did a decent job with Russell on Saturday. The Bulldogs did sack him four times, which brought his rushing total down to 16 yards.
Unfortunately, Russell isn’t one of those mobile quarterbacks who are neutralized when you make them into passers. He had no problem throwing for 285 yards and three touchdowns on 22 attempts, which is why he’s terrifying.
Bill Connelly agrees that Alabama might have the nation’s highest ceiling, mostly due to Russell’s rapid ascension.
While Georgia is still a solid favorite — and did nothing to really dissuade that notion with a 24-point cruise against Vanderbilt — I’m saying this race is murkier than before because of Alabama. Kalen DeBoer’s Crimson Tide might have the highest ceiling of anyone in the country, and for the second straight week they wasted no time finding fifth gear. The Tide led Mississippi State in Starkville by a 14-0 margin just 6:30 into the game, thanks to a Keelon Russell-to-Ryan Coleman-Williams touchdown pass and a Dijon Lee Jr. pick-six.
MSU eventually got its offense going a bit despite an injury to primary back Fluff Bothwell, but there was never much hope of stopping the Bama offense for long. The Tide hit a lull for part of the second quarter but scored on their last five full drives of the game; Russell finished with more passing yards than Kamario Taylor (285 to 258) in far fewer dropbacks (27 to 39), and Bama finished with 179 rushing yards to MSU’s 18.
The Tide have scored at least 45 points in every game despite some lulls, and they’ve exceeded their SP+ projections by at least 15 points in four of five games. They’re up to sixth in SP+, and their rating is improving rapidly. Georgia remains the SEC favorite with a 45.0% chance to win the title, per SP+, but Bama is at 24.9% and rising. And Russell is up to sixth in Total QBR. He was 22nd two weeks ago.
The CBS Sports panel has Alabama 4th in the nation.
The SEC continued its run of filling up the top of the college football rankings, with Alabama making a push up into the top four of the updated CBS Sports 138, a ranking of every FBS team.
Our panel of CBS Sports and 247Sports experts has found itself dealing with some real headaches inside the top 30, like slotting a Florida team that beat Ole Miss but lost to Missouri or an Oregon team that beat USC but lost to Oklahoma State. But one thing that our experts can agree on is that the Alabama Crimson Tide are one of the hottest teams in the country and are now pushing the discussion as a contender for No. 1 as it heads into this weekend’s showdown with Georgia.
Alabama’s rise keeps the SEC well-represented even as Florida drops outside the top 10 following a shockingly uncompetitive performance at Missouri, and the conference is poised with three of the top four, five of the top 10 and nine of the top 20 teams in our rankings.
Last, we learned that Alabama at Tennessee will kick off at 2:30 central.
The Crimson Tide will face Tennessee at 2:30 p.m. CT on October 17, the SEC announced on Monday. The game had been designated as a flex matchup, meaning it could have fallen into either the afternoon or night slots.
The Third Saturday in October game will be aired on ABC. After winning last year’s game against the Volunteers in Tuscaloosa, Alabama must travel to Neyland Stadium for this season’s game.
Knoxville hasn’t been friendly to UA during recent visits. The Crimson Tide lost a thriller in 2022, Nick Saban’s final visit to the stadium, then Kalen DeBoer dropped the most recent game there.
Vols seem mad that the game won’t be at night. What a shame.
That’s about it for now. Have a great day.
Roll Tide.
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