Secondary
Nathanael: C+
I thought all things considered, Tennessee’s secondary did a lot better than I thought they would. It helped that Tua Tagovailoa was knocked out of the game in the first half, but even with that, UT’s defensive backs actually did a decent job containing easily the best group of receivers they’ll face all season. Bryce Thompson — outside of a pass interference call — played pretty alright. Nigel Warrior made another great play and continues to look much improved this season here in the last few games. Jaylen McCollough wowed with his huge sack, and Shawn Shamburger played well in spurts.
It wasn’t an eye-popping performance by this group, but considering the lack of consistent pass rush and the caliber of receiver they went up against, I was pleasantly surprised.
Ben: D
The only reason the secondary doesn’t get an ‘F’ is because of Nigel Warrior’s interception in the end zone. Tennessee’s defensive front didn’t generate much pressure to help the secondary out, but Alabama’s wide receivers were running wide open all day long. Plus, Alabama quarterbacks had clean windows to throw into all game long.
