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re: Bama Football Tidings
Posted on 9/15/19 at 9:00 am to RollTide66
Posted on 9/15/19 at 9:00 am to RollTide66
Najee’s catch and run was #1 play on Sports Center from yesterday.
1
Posted on 9/15/19 at 9:54 am to bamabaum
#5 on final countdown this morning. 
Posted on 9/15/19 at 10:53 am to pmacattack
quote:
RAY foot was banged up will get MRI see whats up..
I really think he was playing to heavy and it reminds me on when 99 put on to much.JMHO
Posted on 9/15/19 at 1:42 pm to AjA77
Posted on 9/15/19 at 7:36 pm to Cobrasize
Lawrence not in the top 17...= wins Heisman...everyone loves the underdog
Posted on 9/15/19 at 8:24 pm to RollTide66
Freshman report: Which true freshmen played at South Carolina By Charlie Potter
quote:Contact Charlie Potter by 247Sports' personal messaging or on Twitter (@Charlie_Potter).
No. 2-ranked Alabama advanced to 3-0 (1-0 SEC) with its 47-23 win over South Carolina on Saturday in the Crimson Tide’s SEC opener. And in its Week 3 conference game, a total of 15 true freshmen from Alabama’s No. 1-ranked signing class from the 2019 recruiting cycle, according to the 247Sports Composite, saw the field at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C.
Last week, 17 first-year players played against New Mexico State, and one week later, a total of 19 true freshmen made the 70-player travel roster, with only four of them not appearing in the road game. One of the 14 was defensive lineman Justin Eboigbe, who made his first appearance after missing the first two games of the Crimson Tide’s 2019 campaign because of a foot injury.
Here are all the freshmen that entered the game in Alabama’s Week 3 game at South Carolina.
1.) #94 DJ DALE No. 18 DT, No. 254 overall in 2019 rankings
Dale started at nose guard and recorded three tackles, one sack -- which was the first of his young career -- and recovered a fumble that was forced by linebacker Anfernee Jennings.
2.) #16 WILL REICHARD No. 1 K in 2019 rankings
Reichard handled field goals, extra points and kickoffs for Alabama. He was 2-of-3 on field-goal attempts, with makes from 23 and 21 yards and a miss from 37 yards out. He is now 4-of-7 on the season. Reichard also missed an extra point -- his first of the year. Otherwise, he kicked five PATs through the uprights. Four of his kickoffs were returned but only for an average of 16 yards.
3.) #35 SHANE LEE No. 5 ILB, No. 78 overall in 2019 rankings
Lee started at Mike linebacker for the third game in a row and recorded eight tackles, which was one shy from the team lead held by safety Xavier McKinney. He also lined up on kickoff returns.
4.) #8 CHRISTIAN HARRIS No. 6 ILB, No. 110 overall in 2019 rankings
Harris started at Will linebacker spot for the third consecutive game and recorded four tackles. He was replaced by sophomore Ale Kaho later in the game, and Nick Saban explained why.
“There was a lot of confusion with the young guys, with the formations and the motions and some of the things that they were doing,” Saban said. “We tried to get (Harris) settled down by taking him out of the game and put Kaho in for a series. And then we put him back in the game, and then we decided to play Kaho a little bit because he’s a good football player and he needs to get some experience, himself.”
5.) #9 JORDAN BATTLE No. 2 S, No. 43 overall in 2019 rankings
Battle was the sixth defensive back in Alabama’s dime package and was used on punts, punt returns and kickoffs. The safety recorded a sack while playing with the first-team defense, but he was also in coverage on South Carolina’s first touchdown in the first quarter (31 yards).
6.) #2 KEILAN ROBINSON No. 15 RB, No. 244 overall in 2019 rankings
Robinson played running back in the fourth quarter and carried the ball four times for 12 yards.
7.) #29 DEMARCCO HELLAMS No. 8 S, No. 84 overall in 2019 rankings
Hellams appeared on kickoffs in the fourth quarter and recorded one tackle.
8.) #73 EVAN NEAL No. 1 OT, No. 7 overall in 2019 rankings
Neal started at left guard for the third game in a row.
10.) #92 JUSTIN EBOIGBE No. 5 SDE, No. 62 overall in 2019 rankings
Eboigbe was one of the first defensive linemen off the bench but did not record any stats.
11.) #47 BYRON YOUNG No. 8 DT, No. 77 overall in 2019 rankings
Young entered the game on the defensive line in the second quarter but did not record any stats.
12.) #8 JOHN METCHIE No. 40 WR, No. 275 overall in 2019 rankings
Metchie was a reserve wide receiver off the bench in the second quarter but did not record any stats.
13.) #71 DARRIAN DALCOURT No. 11 OG, No. 177 overall in 2019 rankings
Dalcourt entered the game at center in the fourth quarter.
14.) #72 PIERCE QUICK No. 7 OT, No. 40 overall in 2019 rankings
Quick entered the game at left guard in the fourth quarter.
15.) #26 MARCUS BANKS No. 13 CB, No. 127 overall in 2019 rankings
Banks entered the game on kickoffs in the fourth quarter. He did not record any stats.
16.) #30 KING MWIKUTA No. 9 WDE, No. 158 overall in 2019 rankings
Mwikuta entered the game on kickoffs in the fourth quarter. He did not record any stats.
TRACKING FRESHMEN PARTICIPATION Below, we track how many games Alabama’s freshmen have appeared in in 2019. I placed the info from the RollTide.Com Participation chart at the end
1. Evan Neal (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 73 Evan Neal 3/3
2. Piece Quick (2) -- New Mexico State, SC 72 Pierce Quick 2/-
3. Jordan Battle (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 9 Jordan Battle 3/1
4. Justin Eboigbe (1) -- South Carolina 92 Justin Eboigbe 1/-
5. Byron Young (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 47 Byron Young 3/-
6. Shane Lee (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 35 Shane Lee 3/3
7. DeMarcco Hellams (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 29 D. Hellams 3/-
8. Scooby Carter (2) -- Duke, New Mexico State 11 Scooby Carter 2/-
9. Christian Harris (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 8 C. Harris 3/3
10. Marcus Banks (3)? -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 26 Marcus Banks 2/-?
11. King Mwikuta (2) -- New Mexico State, SC 30 King Mwikuta 2/-
12. Darrian Dalcourt (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 71 D. Dalcourt 3/-
13. Taulia Tagovailoa (1) -- Duke 5 Ta. Tagovailoa 1/-
14. Keilan Robinson (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 2 Keilan Robinson 3/-
15. DJ Dale (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 94 DJ Dale 3/3
16. John Metchie (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 8 John Metchie 3/-
17. Tanner Bowles (1) -- New Mexico State 51 Tanner Bowles 1/-
18. Jahleel Billingsley (1) -- New Mexico State 19 J. Billingsley 1/-
19. Will Reichard (3) -- Duke, New Mexico State, SC 16 Will Reichard 3/-
This post was edited on 9/15/19 at 8:27 pm
Posted on 9/15/19 at 8:33 pm to RollTide66
i'm curious. is bama in a position where they can afford to redshirt most of these guys or do they need to keep playing them?
Posted on 9/15/19 at 8:33 pm to RollTide66
LaBryan Ray feared lost for the year (thread link) -- per al.com Matt Zenitz tweet
Report: Alabama DL LaBryan Ray has potential long-term injury (247Sports)
Hoping and praying for LaBryan that his injury isn't as serious as feared. That would be a really tough blow for him to suffer another serious injury, especially if it's season ending. My son coached LaBryan in HS -- "Great kid! Favorite I've ever coached!"
Report: Alabama DL LaBryan Ray has potential long-term injury (247Sports)
quote:
The No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide could reportedly be without one of their top defensive players for an extended period of time.
In the Crimson Tide's 47-23 win over South Carolina on Saturday, junior defensive end LaBryan Ray was unable to finish the game after reaggravating a foot injury that he sustained during the offseason.
According to AL.com’s Matt Zenitz, Ray's injury is feared to be “long-term and potentially season-ending."
Alabama head coach Nick Saban hinted at the possibility of Ray missing extended time following the Crimson Tide's win over the Gamecocks in the SEC opener.
“The one guy, from an injury standpoint, is LaBryan Ray,” Saban said. “That same foot was bothering him in the game, so we’ll have to do an MRI and see what’s going on with that. We’ll figure it out probably Sunday or Monday, but he may be the one guy that is out for some period of time. But we don’t really know the extent of the injury.”
A preseason All-SEC honoree, Ray started at defensive end on Saturday and registered two tackles before exiting the game with the injury.
The 6-foot-5, 292-pounder has battled injuries throughout his career at Alabama. He was limited to six games by a foot injury as a true freshman in 2017, but he bounced back in 2018 and appeared in all 15 games with one start, recording 39 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two pass breakups.
The junior defensive end suffered an ankle over the summer that kept him off the field for Alabama’s first eight preseason practices, but it didn’t prevent him from moving into the starting lineup this season. He tallied seven tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, one sack and one forced fumble over the first two games of the year.
A former five-star recruit out of James Clemens High School in Madison, Ala., Ray was ranked as the No. 28 overall prospect and No. 2 strong-side defensive end in the country for the 2017 class, according to the 247Sports Composite. He was also the top-ranked player in Alabama.
Hoping and praying for LaBryan that his injury isn't as serious as feared. That would be a really tough blow for him to suffer another serious injury, especially if it's season ending. My son coached LaBryan in HS -- "Great kid! Favorite I've ever coached!"
This post was edited on 9/16/19 at 10:51 am
Posted on 9/15/19 at 8:50 pm to RollTide66
Game balls for Alabama: South Carolina edition By Charlie Potter
quote:Contact Charlie Potter by 247Sports' personal messaging or on Twitter (@Charlie_Potter).
Alabama won its third game of the season Saturday with a 47-23 victory over South Carolina. The Crimson Tide produced 571 yards of offense, while its defense gave up 479 yards to the Gamecocks. Here, we hand out game balls to the best individual player performances in Alabama’s win.
Tua Tagovailoa
Surprise, surprise. It’s safe to say Tagovailoa should be a regular on this feature. On Saturday, he threw for a career-high 444 yards and five touchdowns on 28-of-36 passing and posted a rating of 227.2. Tagovailoa became the first quarterback in Alabama history with 400 or more passing yards and five touchdowns in a single game. It was also the eighth time he has thrown for 400-plus yards and four or more touchdowns in a game, which was a Crimson Tide record.
DeVonta Smith
Smith had a career day in Columbia, S.C., by leading Alabama in receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and targets. The junior wide receiver caught eight passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns -- all of which were career-bests. The often-forgotten member of the “Ryde Outs” was targeted a game-high 12 times and cashed them in for a productive day on the field.
Najee Harris
Harris only rushed for 36 yards on seven carries, but Alabama focused more on RPOs against South Carolina. In the passing game, Harris caught five passes for 87 yards and two receiving touchdowns, including a 42-yard score that featured a vicious stiff-arm and a signature hurdle. Harris recorded the most receiving yards in a game for a Crimson Tide running back since Shaun Alexander had 110 receiving yards against Mississippi State back on Nov. 14, 1998.
@CBSSports NAJEE HARRIS, YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS!
• Run someone over
• Hurdle someone
• Drag someone into the end zone
Henry Ruggs III
Ruggs was the second Alabama receiver with 100 receiving yards. He caught six passes for 122 yards and an 81-yard touchdown in the first quarter that saw him once again out-run the entire defense. It was a career-long for Ruggs. It was the 19th career touchdown reception of the junior wideout’s career, moving him to third on the all-time touchdown receptions list. In case you didn't already know, HENRY RUGGS IS INCREDIBLY FAST @CBSSports
Xavier McKinney
Saturday wasn’t the best showing for Alabama’s defense. It gave up 479 yards and 23 points to South Carolina. But like Tagovailoa, McKinney will likely be a constant recipient of our game balls. The junior safety led the team in tackles for the third straight game with eight stops, which included one tackle for loss, and intercepted the first pass of his third season in crimson. With Dylan Moses out indefinitely, McKinney is arguably UA’s most important defensive player.
Posted on 9/15/19 at 8:54 pm to RollTide66
Posted on 9/15/19 at 9:04 pm to RollTide66
10 Takeaways: Alabama Crimson Tide win SEC opener over South Carolina 47-23 Kyle Henderson • BamaInsider @Rivals_Kyle
Every Sunday night, you can watch and partake in Kyle Henderson's live call-in show.
The show starts at 8:30 p.m. CT The Call-in number is 205-686-3604
Managing editor Kyle Henderson of BamaInsider.com provides 10 takeaways following Alabama's 47-23 victory over South Carolina.
Alabama junior quarterback Tua Tagovailoa dazzled the nation Saturday in Columbia, South Carolina hitting a career-best 444-yards with five-touchdowns through the air off 28 of 36 passing. Tagovailoa finished with a ridiculous passer rating of 227.2 connecting on passing touchdowns of 24, 81, 42, 42, and 11-yards on the day. Following the game, Tagovailoa passed off all the credit to his coaches and teammates.
“It starts with the coaching and the guys up front,” said Tagovailoa who has thrown for 1,000-yards with 12 touchdowns on the season and zero interceptions. “Those are the guys that make plays and those are the guys that make me look good and if we stick to what coach tells us, things like this can happen.”
2. Najee’s run
Alabama fans have been waiting for junior running back Najee Harris’ breakout game for the 2019 season and Saturday, Harris provided plenty of highlights, including an early-season play that could be considered for the play of the year. Harris caught a short pass from Tagovailoa, stiff-armed a Gamecock defender into the turf, then hurdled the next defender, before running into the end-zone for a 42-yard touchdown reception. “I try not to hurdle actually,” said Harris who finished with 123 all-purpose yards and two receiving touchdowns.
“I guess watching the film, I just know what I’m going against player-wise and I guess that was the time to do it.” While the Crimson Tide finished with just 77-yards rushing off 24 attempts, Harris rushed for 36-yards off seven attempts for an average of 5.1-yards per carry.
3. No run game needed
The Crimson Tide rushed the football 24 times for just 77-yards against South Carolina on Saturday, that’s an average of just 3.2-yards per carry. For the third time this season, the Crimson Tide has failed to have a rusher hit the 100-yard mark and at times the running game seemed to go absolutely nowhere, however, the Crimson Tide still racked up over 550-yards because of their potent passing attack. Does Alabama even need a running game?
It’s something to question as the Crimson Tide has managed to control the time of possession with Steve Sarkisian’s short passing tree which keeps the chains moving. The other question is why is the rushing game stalling out? Is it the offensive line not creating holes, is the running backs not hitting the holes, is this by design? Maybe it doesn’t even matter.
4. Offensive line woes
The Alabama offensive line gave up two quarterback sacks on the day and at times were allowing a lot of pressure to South Carolina. The interior set of linemen that started in week three for Alabama were Evan Neal at left guard, Chris Owens at center, and Landon Dickerson at right guard. This was Owen’s first game back since week one as he was held out against New Mexico State with a concussion and there was plenty of times during the game that Owens struggled with the pass rush. Neal, who made his third start as a freshmen has also struggled in pass pro and at times on Saturday, Dickerson was not keeping his blocks in run blocking situation.
Emil Ekiyor should be close to 100% by Southern Miss and Deonte Brown who is serving a four game suspension will be back by Ole Miss on September 28, so expect the Crimson Tide to keep seeking out the best five linemen to protect their prized quarterback and help this running game get going.
5. Alabama’s defense was challenged
For the first time of the young season, the Alabama defense was challenged. The South Carolina Gamecocks were a very physical team, that schemed well, that came to play, and challenged the secondary throughout the day. Gamecock receiver Bryan Edwards caught nine receptions for 79-yards, Shi Smith caught 6 receptions for 90-yards, and Kyle Markway caught 5 receptions for 46-yards, in total, nine receivers caught 36 passes for 324-yards.
The Crimson Tide also allowed their first 100-yard rusher of the season, to Rico Dowdle who ran for 102-yards off 12 carries and finished with an average of 8.5 per attempt. In total, South Carolina finished with 459-yards of offense and racked up 31 first downs and finished with 8 of 18 on third downs. Nick Saban knew coming in that South Carolina would present challenges and he was right.
6. Hat’s off to Ryan Hillinski
What a gutsy performance from the freshman quarterback Ryan Hillinski. Making just his second start, he went at Alabama’s defense guns blazing, full of confidence and make some big time throws. The 31-yard touchdown pass to Shine Smith in the 1st quarter was a pass of pure beauty that sailed right in between two Alabama defenders. That was really an NFL type throw.
On the day, Hillinski threw the ball 57 times completing 36 passes to nine different receivers and finished with 324-yards and 2 touchdowns with an interception. While Hillinski’s passing rating was 108.2 points lower than that of Tua Tagovailoa’s, everyone in the stadium including Alabama fans and coaches left with a great deal of respect for Hillinski’s game.
7. Defensive player of the game: Xavier McKinney
While the secondary was indeed challenged for four quarters of play, Xavier McKinney played very well and led the team in tackles with nine. On the season, he has 23 tackles which leads the entire defense and also has an interception which he recorded on Saturday.
8. Too many penalties
The Crimson Tide has racked up 23 penalties in three games, 11 which came against South Carolina. They had eight penalties against Duke in the opener and four against New Mexico State in week two.
9. Kicking game woes continue
The Alabama kicking woes returned in week three. For starters, Skyler DeLong punted once for 14.0-yards. Yikes. Then freshmen Will Reichard who was 2 for 2 against New Mexico State from 49-yards and from 48-yards out hit a 23-yarder, then missed a 37-yarder, before hitting a 21-yarder in the third quarter. Reichard then missed a PAT in the fourth quarter. On the season, Reichard is 4 of 7 on field goals which equates to a percentage of 57%.
10. This team goes as far as the offense takes them
In the present day of college football, offense wins championships. We could sit here and criticize the Alabama defense from the poor tackling to the lack of pass rush, but it’s likely that none of that matters as long as Alabama’s quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s golden arm stays throwing lasers to the most dangerous and dynamic receiving corps in college football. It’s starting to be clear, if you’re going to beat Alabama this season, you’re going to have to outscore them and that might be impossible to do.
Every Sunday night, you can watch and partake in Kyle Henderson's live call-in show.
The show starts at 8:30 p.m. CT The Call-in number is 205-686-3604
Managing editor Kyle Henderson of BamaInsider.com provides 10 takeaways following Alabama's 47-23 victory over South Carolina.
quote:
1. Tua was marvelous
Alabama junior quarterback Tua Tagovailoa dazzled the nation Saturday in Columbia, South Carolina hitting a career-best 444-yards with five-touchdowns through the air off 28 of 36 passing. Tagovailoa finished with a ridiculous passer rating of 227.2 connecting on passing touchdowns of 24, 81, 42, 42, and 11-yards on the day. Following the game, Tagovailoa passed off all the credit to his coaches and teammates.
“It starts with the coaching and the guys up front,” said Tagovailoa who has thrown for 1,000-yards with 12 touchdowns on the season and zero interceptions. “Those are the guys that make plays and those are the guys that make me look good and if we stick to what coach tells us, things like this can happen.”
2. Najee’s run
Alabama fans have been waiting for junior running back Najee Harris’ breakout game for the 2019 season and Saturday, Harris provided plenty of highlights, including an early-season play that could be considered for the play of the year. Harris caught a short pass from Tagovailoa, stiff-armed a Gamecock defender into the turf, then hurdled the next defender, before running into the end-zone for a 42-yard touchdown reception. “I try not to hurdle actually,” said Harris who finished with 123 all-purpose yards and two receiving touchdowns.
“I guess watching the film, I just know what I’m going against player-wise and I guess that was the time to do it.” While the Crimson Tide finished with just 77-yards rushing off 24 attempts, Harris rushed for 36-yards off seven attempts for an average of 5.1-yards per carry.
3. No run game needed
The Crimson Tide rushed the football 24 times for just 77-yards against South Carolina on Saturday, that’s an average of just 3.2-yards per carry. For the third time this season, the Crimson Tide has failed to have a rusher hit the 100-yard mark and at times the running game seemed to go absolutely nowhere, however, the Crimson Tide still racked up over 550-yards because of their potent passing attack. Does Alabama even need a running game?
It’s something to question as the Crimson Tide has managed to control the time of possession with Steve Sarkisian’s short passing tree which keeps the chains moving. The other question is why is the rushing game stalling out? Is it the offensive line not creating holes, is the running backs not hitting the holes, is this by design? Maybe it doesn’t even matter.
4. Offensive line woes
The Alabama offensive line gave up two quarterback sacks on the day and at times were allowing a lot of pressure to South Carolina. The interior set of linemen that started in week three for Alabama were Evan Neal at left guard, Chris Owens at center, and Landon Dickerson at right guard. This was Owen’s first game back since week one as he was held out against New Mexico State with a concussion and there was plenty of times during the game that Owens struggled with the pass rush. Neal, who made his third start as a freshmen has also struggled in pass pro and at times on Saturday, Dickerson was not keeping his blocks in run blocking situation.
Emil Ekiyor should be close to 100% by Southern Miss and Deonte Brown who is serving a four game suspension will be back by Ole Miss on September 28, so expect the Crimson Tide to keep seeking out the best five linemen to protect their prized quarterback and help this running game get going.
5. Alabama’s defense was challenged
For the first time of the young season, the Alabama defense was challenged. The South Carolina Gamecocks were a very physical team, that schemed well, that came to play, and challenged the secondary throughout the day. Gamecock receiver Bryan Edwards caught nine receptions for 79-yards, Shi Smith caught 6 receptions for 90-yards, and Kyle Markway caught 5 receptions for 46-yards, in total, nine receivers caught 36 passes for 324-yards.
The Crimson Tide also allowed their first 100-yard rusher of the season, to Rico Dowdle who ran for 102-yards off 12 carries and finished with an average of 8.5 per attempt. In total, South Carolina finished with 459-yards of offense and racked up 31 first downs and finished with 8 of 18 on third downs. Nick Saban knew coming in that South Carolina would present challenges and he was right.
6. Hat’s off to Ryan Hillinski
What a gutsy performance from the freshman quarterback Ryan Hillinski. Making just his second start, he went at Alabama’s defense guns blazing, full of confidence and make some big time throws. The 31-yard touchdown pass to Shine Smith in the 1st quarter was a pass of pure beauty that sailed right in between two Alabama defenders. That was really an NFL type throw.
On the day, Hillinski threw the ball 57 times completing 36 passes to nine different receivers and finished with 324-yards and 2 touchdowns with an interception. While Hillinski’s passing rating was 108.2 points lower than that of Tua Tagovailoa’s, everyone in the stadium including Alabama fans and coaches left with a great deal of respect for Hillinski’s game.
7. Defensive player of the game: Xavier McKinney
While the secondary was indeed challenged for four quarters of play, Xavier McKinney played very well and led the team in tackles with nine. On the season, he has 23 tackles which leads the entire defense and also has an interception which he recorded on Saturday.
8. Too many penalties
The Crimson Tide has racked up 23 penalties in three games, 11 which came against South Carolina. They had eight penalties against Duke in the opener and four against New Mexico State in week two.
9. Kicking game woes continue
The Alabama kicking woes returned in week three. For starters, Skyler DeLong punted once for 14.0-yards. Yikes. Then freshmen Will Reichard who was 2 for 2 against New Mexico State from 49-yards and from 48-yards out hit a 23-yarder, then missed a 37-yarder, before hitting a 21-yarder in the third quarter. Reichard then missed a PAT in the fourth quarter. On the season, Reichard is 4 of 7 on field goals which equates to a percentage of 57%.
10. This team goes as far as the offense takes them
In the present day of college football, offense wins championships. We could sit here and criticize the Alabama defense from the poor tackling to the lack of pass rush, but it’s likely that none of that matters as long as Alabama’s quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s golden arm stays throwing lasers to the most dangerous and dynamic receiving corps in college football. It’s starting to be clear, if you’re going to beat Alabama this season, you’re going to have to outscore them and that might be impossible to do.
Posted on 9/15/19 at 9:12 pm to RollTide66
Alabama defensive lineman LaBryan Ray (89) helps bring down New Mexico State quarterback Josh Adkins (14) in the first half of the New Mexico State-Alabama game on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019, at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Laura Chramer)
Alabama defensive lineman has potential long-term injury By Matt Zenitz | mzenitz@al.com
quote:Matt Zenitz is an Alabama and Auburn reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @mzenitz.
One of Alabama’s starting defensive lineman has a potentially long-term injury.
Preseason All-SEC defensive end LaBryan Ray, who left Saturday’s game against South Carolina with a foot/ankle injury, has what’s feared to be a long-term and possibly season-ending injury, according to sources.
It’s the latest significant injury situation for the Crimson Tide, which lost freshman running back Trey Sanders and inside linebackers Dylan Moses and Josh McMillon to season-ending injuries during fall camp.
Ray had missed the early portion of fall camp due to issues with that same ankle/foot and had undergone surgery during the summer. The former five-star recruit posted seven tackles in Alabama’s first two games and then had two early tackles against South Carolina before exiting the game.
Freshman Justin Eboigbe is listed as Ray’s backup on the Tide depth chart.
Posted on 9/15/19 at 10:22 pm to RollTide66
Alabama Football: Tide Tua-much for a game South Carolina by Ronald Evans @revansbama
quote:
Alabama football opened its SEC regular season Saturday afternoon on the road against South Carolina and came away with a 47-23 victory.
Alabama football did many things well Saturday afternoon in Columbia, SC. The Gamecocks earned their name by being ready for a fight. Will Muschamp gambled on multiple occasions and mostly came up short.
South Carolina, behind true freshman quarterback, Ryan Hilinski moved the ball against the Crimson Tide defense to the tune of 459 net yards. Missed alignments, missed tackles and poor tackling angles hurt the Crimson Tide defense. The Gamecocks did most of their damage through the air but also rushed for a 4.7-yard average. Even the Alabama football secondary showed some vulnerability. Also hampering the Crimson Tide were 11 penalties for 92 yards.
The Tide’s weaknesses were eclipsed by an excellent Steve Sarkisian game plan. Sark’s plan was masterfully executed by Tua Tagovailoa. Tua finished 28-for-36 for 444 yards and five touchdown passes. Had Nick Saban left Tua in for the final drive he could have easily set a new, Crimson Tide single-game record for passing yards.
Tua connected with six Crimson Tide receivers and two running backs on his 28 completions. DeVonta Smith led the way with eight catches for 136 yards and two touchdowns. Henry Ruggs III and Jerry Jeudy had six catches each. Najee Harris had five catches for 87 yards and two touchdowns.
The Crimson Tide rushing attack only netted 76 yards but Tua was so efficient it didn’t much matter. The Tide offensive line did give up two sacks and two QB hurries but was mostly solid giving Tua time to throw. (Neal still grading at below 70)
Alabama football fans will not be fully satisfied but a 24-point SEC road win is always a reason to celebrate. In his post-game comments, Nick Saban said,
The goal was to play a complete game today. I thought we did that offensively. I thought we ran out of gas on defense.
The worst post-game news was LaBryan Ray may have re-injured his foot and will get an MRI.(see results in post above) There appeared to be no other serious injury problems.
The win Saturday took Nick Saban to 17-0 in games against his former assistant coaches.
This post was edited on 9/15/19 at 10:23 pm
Posted on 9/15/19 at 10:38 pm to RollTide66
A few extra observations, context from Alabama win at South Carolina By Michael Casagrande | mcasagrande@al.com
quote:Continued below...
A day after Alabama beat South Carolina 47-23, we got a second look at the action in Columbia.
Our weekly Sunday DVR review of the Crimson Tide includes some extra insight from postgame interviews and the stat sheet.
Before moving on to Southern Miss, here are a few thoughts from Round 2 with Alabama-South Carolina:
-- The WR in motion, bending behind the shotgun snap instead of through the lane is something new added this season, Jerry Jeudy confirmed last week. You saw it several times Saturday as Steve Sarkisian expanded the variety of plays used from that look. It keeps defenses off-balance and creates matchup issues. “It just helps us get the ball in our hands faster to make plays,” Jeudy said. You saw it on the first snap with three defenders following Jeudy to the right while DeVonta Smith found a seam to the left. Nine yards to start Smith’s career day.
-- The running game was another talking point with a lack of yardage and attempts. Saban attributed it to South Carolina stacking the box. The Gamecocks had six in there on the second play and Najee Harris ran for 12.
-- With DeVonta Smith, his injury last year somewhat pushed him down the rankings of the four star Alabama receivers. The last two games showed why he took momentum out of his freshman year with arguably the strongest two hands catching the ball.
-- Not real sure what South Carolina was doing on kickoffs. Four times Shi Smith attempted returns when the fair catch was an option. He averaged 15.5 yards with a long of 18 and each time the Gamecocks had a longer field than necessary. Saban had been worried about complacency on the coverage unit with Will Reichard kicking so many touchbacks but that wasn’t an issue at all Saturday.
-- You could see the young middle linebackers looking unsure of the call when the ball was snapped a few times. It was clear South Carolina wanted to exploit that and it was the first of Alabama’s three opponents with the players and scheme to do that. OP:(noted a few times the MLB's seemed to cover the same receiver once Kaho came in??)
-- From the press box view, Henry Ruggs III’s 81-yard touchdown on the slant was clearly a score the second he caught it. The lane he had was just enough to spring the track star into the wide-open pasture that made it look easy. On the clock, Ruggs needed 8.65 seconds to run the 63 yards after the catch with some time to ease up at the end. Jeudy had the only block necessary after he said he missed one on Ruggs’ first-play TD last week.
Posted on 9/15/19 at 10:38 pm to RollTide66
Continued from above... A few extra observations, context from Alabama win at South Carolina By Michael Casagrande | mcasagrande@al.com
quote:Continued below...
-- Alabama’s defense allowed 459 yards without giving up a true home run. The longest Gamecock play was a 33-yard run by Rico Dowdle.
-- It looked like South Carolina wanted to get the ball on the edge of the formation to force Alabama defenders to make open-field tackles. Alabama had several WR screens too with varying results. One thrown to Jeudy had three DBs to that side and one blocker. He still squeezed through for a decent gain.
-- On the carries before Najee Harris’ insane 42-yard touchdown catch, South Carolina had eight or nine guys dedicated to stopping the running game. Safeties were coming down in support and there just wasn’t anywhere to run.
-- Raekwon Davis had a few impressively athletic plays with four tackles and one QB hurry.
-- Linebacker Ale Kaho got his first real shot at serious playing time on defense when Saban said they wanted to settle down freshman Christian Harris. Kaho, a former top-recruit who transferred from Washington last August, made four tackles including one for a loss.
-- From the beginning, this felt like a game that could be tight early with the question being South Carolina’s ability to keep pace. The host’s inability to finish drives put them too far behind the pace of an Alabama offense that was just steamrolling with the passing game.
-- South Carolina had the ball for nearly seven minutes over two drives ending the first half and opening the second. It netted 3 points. Alabama needed just 1:34 to score 7 on the next drive (DeVonta Smith’s 42-yard TD) in a demoralizing sequence. The air started to leak from the balloon in the stadium from there.
This post was edited on 9/15/19 at 10:54 pm
Posted on 9/15/19 at 10:38 pm to RollTide66
Continued from above... A few extra observations, context from Alabama win at South Carolina By Michael Casagrande | mcasagrande@al.com
quote:Michael Casagrande is an Alabama beat writer for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.
-- The three sacks of Hilinski were big for Alabama. The other pressures on the young passer made a difference too as the Tide were credited with five QB hurries. Terrell Lewis had two. For the season, Alabama has 13 hurries with Lewis’ four leading the way. After two years of injury, the Washington DC product has an extra burst off the snap. Jennings’ forced fumble midway through the third quarter snuck up on Hilinski with Christopher Allen creeping from the other edge.
-- Slade Bolden, a popular player in the Alabama locker room, had two big plays. First, he had the tackle on the fake punt. Then the former high school QB took his first college shotgun snap as the Wildcat quarterback on 3rd-and-2 late in the third quarter. He got the first down up the gut. “Actually,” Ruggs said in August, “we call Slade Julian Edelman every day.” The Patriots’ WR played quarterback at Kent State.
-- Tight end Major Tennison apparently feels like he didn’t step out before scoring in the third quarter. OP (and the tape shows he did not, not sure why Bama did not call TO so this would have been reviewed? maybe this is one that cannot be reviewed?)
-- Hello, upright. Will Reichard’s extra point off the left goal post looked all too familiar. Tagovailoa gave the young kicker a pat on the helmet on the long walk back to the bench after drilling the equipment for a third time this year.
-- Safety Xavier McKinney quieted his teammates joking about missing an interception against Duke. He picked off Hilinski in the end zone in the fourth quarter deep in the end zone. Instead of running it back, the junior took his knee. Asked him about the decision to kneel down afterward. “I thought about it for a little minute when I caught it,” a smiling McKinney said, “but I felt like the better play for me was to take a knee and play it safe. We were up in the game and didn’t need to take it out.”
-- Impressive 1-yard TD run for Mac Jones.
This post was edited on 9/15/19 at 10:52 pm
Posted on 9/15/19 at 11:47 pm to RollTide66
Grades: South Carolina By BOL Staff
quote:Continued below...
BamaOnLine.com staff members Charlie Potter and Travis Reier hand out position grades for the Alabama Crimson Tide following its 47-23 win over South Carolina.
Quarterback
Travis Reier: Another Saturday, another first for Tua Tagovailoa, who became the first quarterback in program history to pass for 400-plus yards and five touchdowns in the same game. Starts the game by completing 9 of his first 11 passes for 197 yards and two scores and finishes on a run of 12 of 13 passing for 156 yards and two more scores. Saw some good things from backup Mac Jones, too, including a third-down strike of 14 yards to freshly-minted wildcat specialist Slade Bolden in the fourth quarter that set up Jones' short scoring sneak. Six touchdowns accounted for by UA signal callers and no turnovers. It's an A.
Charlie Potter: I’m getting the grade out of the way first here. It’s an A+ for me. South Carolina played pretty well in the game, on both sides of the ball, but Tagovailoa was just too much and was the clear difference. He already has 1,007 passing yards and 12 touchdowns through the first three games, which is impressive, and he’s taking care of the football -- no interceptions. Jones actually had a higher rating than Tagovailoa (242.8 to 227.2), but that’s because Jones didn’t throw an incompletion in what was a good showing by him. Can’t beat those numbers.
Running back
TR: It wasn't a breakout performance for Alabama's top two backs from a rushing standpoint (Najee Harris and Brian Robinson combined for 69 rushing yards on 15 carries), but it certainly was in the passing game. Harris ' 42-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter brought together all the physical attributes that made him the nation's top running back recruit in 2017. If anything, he looks more comfortable as a receiver than when the ball is handed to him -- and he's definitely more effective in passing situations as a receiver than protector. Credit offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian with some creative game planning with both Harris and Robinson as receivers. Would like to see someone other than the backup quarterback account for your lone rushing touchdown in the game, but you'll certainly take what you got from Harris and Robinson on Saturday. Also interesting that it was another Robinson, Keilan, that we saw in the second half. Love the way he runs bigger than he is. It's an A- here.
CP: It seemed like Alabama was completely avoiding the run at times Saturday. But 4.6 yards per carry against an SEC opponent isn’t terrible for a team’s top-two running backs, especially on limited attempts. After the game, Nick Saban said about half of the Tide’s passes were RPOs, and based on how South Carolina was playing, they led to throws from Tagovailoa. Understandable. But continuing to try and balance out the offense will be a priority for Saban and company. With that being said, Harris was stellar as a receiver. His 42-yard reception is a candidate for play of the year because of the combination of a stiff-arm and a hurdle. It’s an A-.
Receivers
TR: Big days for Devonta Smith and Henry Ruggs III. Between the two of them, Smith (four) and Ruggs (three) accounted for seven of UA's 11 chunk pass plays (completions of 15 yards or more) in the win. From our vantage point, you could see what was about to happen on Ruggs' 81-yard catch and run through the South Carolina defense. Too much grass and too much speed on that one. Was also a bit of a statement game for Smith. That subtle shimmy he put on Gamecocks safety J.T. Ibe on his 42-yard touchdown reception should be illegal. Seriously, the defense should be able to call a timeout mid-play in that scenario. So-so day for the tight ends (as blockers and penalties), but Major Tennison had a nice grab in the third quarter that looked like a touchdown to me. Even with that spot mixed in here, it's an A- here.
CP: Outside of a 30-yard catch in the fourth quarter when Jones was behind center, Jerry Jeudy was held to 38 yards and no touchdowns on five receptions. Most teams wouldn’t have the kind of day Alabama had through the air if their No. 1 receiver was double-teamed and didn’t have a play longer than 13 yards until the game was decided. But the Tide is blessed with the best receiving corps in the nation, and the often-forgotten member of the “Ryde Outs” led the team in receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and targets. The group gets an A from me.
Offensive line
TR: With Chris Owens up after a week off, UA reverted back to its first five from the season opener. Little for the interior of the front, as soon-to-be NFL defensive lineman Javon Kinlaw made his presence felt with an early sack. Otherwise, pass protection throughout the game was good. Liked what UA did with Landon Dickerson as a puller, both in pass pro/quick pass game and in the run game. Still want to see this group impose its will more on the ground and become more of the offensive identity, but some of that is out of their hands (RPO). We get that the passing game is going to be -- and should be -- featured. Still, there are times when this team is going to need to get hard yards against good teams. Got a few penalties to clean up this week, too. I'll go B+ here.
CP: In Owens’ defense, Evan Neal stepped on his foot on the play Kinlaw mowed him over, so there wasn’t much he could do with his left cleat stuck to the turf. But on a day where UA had 39 passing attempts, the pass protection was pretty good. It’s strange seeing an Alabama team that doesn’t run the ball in the red zone, and I think that will be something it continues to work on. I think the offensive line is a work in progress and could still see some changes, whether that’s at left guard when Deonte Brown comes back or maybe at center with a young guy like Darrian Dalcourt. But Owens caught a lot of flak on a play he couldn’t control. I’ll go with a B.
Posted on 9/15/19 at 11:57 pm to RollTide66
Grades: South Carolina By BOL Staff
Continued from above...
Continued from above...
quote:
Defensive line
TR: Highlights from Columbia included the swim move DJ Dale utilized on his sack of Ryan Hilinski. Still, just when Alabama gets freshman Justin Eboigbe on the field, it gets some unfavorable injury news in relation to starting end LaBryan Ray. Ray's departure combined with 43 first-half plays from the South Carolina offense in the first half had UA's bigs in desperate need of the halftime break. Could have two true freshman on that starting defensive line next Saturday against Southern Miss. Won't have Christian Barmore for the first half of that one, although I do appreciate the juice he brought to the mix in the second half. I'll go C+ here.
CP: Dale and Raekwon Davis played well and were disruptive, and some of the young players made some plays. But overall, it wasn’t a great day for the defensive line -- or the entire defense for that matter. South Carolina running back Rico Dowdle rushed for 102 yards on 12 carries, which is never ideal. With Ray’s injury, this is a group that could use a 5-star recruit right about now, am I right? But Eboigbe, Phidarian Mathis and Byron Young need to step up. A C+ for me.
Linebacker
TR: I went with a higher grade for the defensive line than I did here because I thought the front put the linebackers in position to make plays that too often went begging. Again, anyone who thought there wouldn't be growing pains where the freshmen at the inside spots are concerned need to remove their crimson-colored beer goggles for a sec. Interesting that in addition to Shane Lee and Christian Harris we saw Markail Benton and Ale Kaho mix in at those spots. People talk about something "missing" from this Alabama team, well, yeah, with Dylan Moses out for the season, it's missing a first-round talent who had a year's worth of snaps under his belt. Not that he was likely to win the Butkus Award or anything, but Joshua McMillon might look pretty good next to Moses, too. Had eight defensive flags on UA Saturday, including a roughing the passer call on Anfernee Jennings, who produced a big strip/sack and another tackle for loss in the game, and two illegal substitutions that likely made for a #fun defensive staff meeting with Nick Saban on Sunday. This is a C.
CP: As clear as it was that Tagovailoa was the difference in the game on offense, it was equally obvious how much Alabama misses Moses in the middle of its defense. Lee and Harris had their struggles Saturday, and Saban actually chose to sit Harris in favor of Kaho to settle down the freshman. The good news is the freshmen can continue to learn the next three weeks before the next road game. As for the outside linebackers, Jennings was disruptive like Dale and Davis, but it wasn’t enough to rattle Hilinski, who looks to have a bright future in the SEC East. I agree that Sunday’s defensive meetings were probably entertaining. It’s a C- for me.
Secondary
TR: Mixed bag back here. First, credit the South Carolina offensive staff for scripting a plan heavy on tempo and a quick passing game that helped get a true freshman quarterback settled. From the Alabama perspective, its defensive backs were in position to make more plays than they did -- and I'm talking tackling as much as pass coverage. Hilinski's first touchdown pass of the game should have been picked. Shyheim Carter and Jordan Battle were both in great shape on the play but neither were able to finish. I think you'll continue to see opponents get after UA corners in the quick game, too, with an emphasis on yards after the catch yardage. Edge setting for the defense in general was a little soft at times. One guy who doesn't give an inch after the catch is Xavier McKinney, who continues to be of all-america caliber. Eight third down conversions are too many, but you'll take the modest 5.7 yards per pass attempt Hilinski averaged in the game. Another C+ here.
CP: McKinney is arguably the most important player on Alabama’s defense -- and possibly its best player, too. He came up with an interception in the end zone that you could tell he wanted to bring out and attempt to return its 100-plus yards. But you’re right, Travis, the rest of the secondary had an up-and-down afternoon. I’m still not sure how one of either Carter or Battle didn’t intercept the touchdown pass from Hilinski to Shi Smith. Any game where you give up 324 yards through the air and two touchdowns is going to affect the grades, so I’ll go with a C.
Special teams
TR: If nothing else, South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp didn't leave anything in his special teams bag on Saturday. Fake field goal, fake punt and an onside kick. That's the trifecta right there. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, they were penalized on two -- fake field goal and onside kick -- of those plays and came up empty on the other after Bolden and Tyrell Shavers did a nice job of sniffing things out. Not often a visiting team gets the holding call Shane Lee drew on the fake field goal that initially looked to be a touchdown -- especially on the home team side of the field. Concern about placekicking will burn bright once again after Will Reichard missed on a 37-yard field goal attempt and doinked an extra point, but it was the 14-yard punt by Skyler DeLong that had UA fans flashing back to a year ago. Positives: an Alabama kickoff coverage unit that wasn't needed in the first two games of the season absolutely stoned USC returns throughout the game and Jaylen Waddle made USC pay for one of its handful of special teams penalties in the game, returning a punt 18 yards in the second quarter. It's a B here.
CP: The good was the kickoff coverage. That was a point of emphasis for Saban, considering Reichard had been consistently kicking touchbacks, and the Gamecocks averaged only 16 yards per return on four returns with a long of 18 yards on Saturday. The bad was a missed field goal and, even worse, a missed extra point that Reichard doink’d off the left upright. That issue from a year ago seemed to be over. And the ugly was that punt from DeLong. I’m not sure how the staff goes back to him after that. The negatives outweigh the positives for me, so it’s a C+.
Posted on 9/16/19 at 8:18 am to TidalSurge1
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Crimson Tide fans can now get exclusive access to BamaOnLine at a limited-time price! Buy one month of BOL and we'll throw in two more for FREE! Hurry, though, this special ends Sunday (Sep 22) at midnight! (more)
Note: Three months for less than $10 total is a great way to see if you like it. You can cancel before the monthly auto payments begin or any time later. There will also be special offers to upgrade to the annual membership (gives you VIP read access to all the other team sites) for half price (1 payment) which works out to about $6/month.
This post was edited on 9/16/19 at 8:38 am
Posted on 9/16/19 at 12:54 pm to TidalSurge1
Alabama Crimson Tide defensive end LaBryan Ray. Photo | Getty Images
Alabama DL LaBryan Ray out with foot injury, return 'undetermined' Tony Tsoukalas • BamaInsider @Tony_Tsoukalas
quote:
Alabama has lost another starter on defense, at least for the near future. During his Monday news conference, head coach Nick Saban announced defensive end LaBryan Ray, who left last week’s game against South Carolina with a foot injury, will miss this week's game against Southern Miss.
“LaBryan Ray is probably out for sure for this game,” Saban said. “We’re doing some further testing to see what the situation is with his foot, but it's undetermined right now as to how long he may be out.”
Ray is the latest Alabama player to suffer what could be a significant injury this season. The Crimson Tide has also lost starting linebackers Dylan Moses (knee) and Joshua McMillon (knee) and running back Trey Sanders (foot) to what appear to be season-ending injuries.
Ray missed the first few weeks of preseason camp while dealing with the same injury he reaggravated over the weekend. The preseason All-SEC defensive lineman had nine tackles, 1.5 for a loss, with a sack and a forced fumble through three games this season.
Freshman Justin Eboigbe is next up at defensive end on Alabama’s depth chart. The former four-star recruit would be the fifth freshman starter for the Crimson Tide joining defensive tackle D.J. Dale, linebackers Shane Lee and Christian Harris and safety Jordan Battle.
Alabama will host Southern Miss at 11 a.m. CT on ESPN 2.
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