Hot off a rivalry win over Florida, Tennessee football hosts No. 7 Alabama on the Third Saturday in October for a conference showdown with major College Football Playoff ramifications.
Here’s a look at the Alabama Crimson Tide entering the game.
More From RTI: National Media Personality Gives Alabama a Rough Season Label Ahead of Tennessee Game
How The Crimson Tide Got Here
The parallels in Alabama and Tennessee’s season to date are pretty evident. The Crimson Tide destroyed Western Kentucky to open the season and dominated Wisconsin on the road in their most challenging non conference scheduled.
The Crimson Tide then passed their first big conference test by defeating Georgia in a thriller in Tuscaloosa. There lies the difference between Tennessee and Alabama to this point. That was a much better win than the Vols’ win at Oklahoma.
But the parallels continued again following that. Mere hours before Arkansas upset Tennessee in Fayetteville, Vanderbilt upset Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Then Alabama survived a home scare as sizable favorites against South Carolina hours before Tennessee survived a home scare as sizable favorites against Florida.
Alabama’s Strengths
Alabama’s offense is the best that Tennessee will face all season and it has a number of strengths. Perhaps the largest is Jalen Milroe’s legs. The Alabama quarterback’s run for 319 yards so far this season and is second to only Dylan Sampson in the SEC with 11 rushing touchdowns.
So Milroe’s legs are clearly a weapon in the red zone which is another area where Alabama’s offense has been stout. The Crimson Tide have scored 19 touchdowns in 24 trips to the red zone. But 17 of those 19 touchdowns are on the ground. Alabama’s struggled to pass the ball when the field shrinks and that’s where they lean on its ground game.
But while Milroe hasn’t thrown for touchdowns in the red zone, he’s still tossed 12 touchdowns this season. Alabama’s offense is fantastic at creating big plays in the passing game and will present far more issues for Tennessee there than anyone else has to date this season.
One last area where Alabama’s offense has been good is on third down. They’re converting 46% of third down attempts, a mark that ranks sixth in the SEC.
Alabama’s defense has been a major weakness this season but one are where they’ve been good is forcing turnovers. Through six games, the Crimson Tide have forced 12 turnovers. Oklahoma is the only other team that’s forced more.
Alabama’s Weaknesses
The good news for a struggling Tennessee offense is that Alabama’s defense has been struggling badly themselves. Alabama’s run defense ranks 14th in the SEC allowing 129 yards per game. Now, Florida’s run defense was struggling badly and was successful against the Vols last week.
Alabama’s defense has been pretty awful the last 10 quarters and one area that’s plagued them is third down defense. Over the last two games, Crimson Tide opponents have converted 19-of-33 third down attempts. It’s a strange dichotomy because Alabama’s third down defense was one of the best in the country for the first month of the season.
One issue for Alabama’s offense this season has been turnovers. The Crimson Tide have turned it over nine times this season. Only two SEC teams have turned it over more this season.
Crimson Tide Players To Watch
Quarterback Jalen Milroe
One of the SEC’s most dynamic players, Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe is fifth in the SEC in passing and 16th in rushing. He’s inconsistent throwing the ball in the intermediate but is great at hitting plays down field and is incredible dangerous when he takes off running.
Milroe’s completing 73% of his passes for 1,483 yards, 12 touchdowns and four interceptions. He’s added 319 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground.
Receiver Ryan Williams
Williams is one of the most dynamic play makers in the country. He leads Alabama with 23 receptions, 576 yards and six touchdowns. The freshman is not only the best receiver that Tennessee’s faced this season but is one of the best receivers in the entire country.
And in case you haven’t heard yet, he’s 17.
Offensive Tackle Kadyn Proctor
Proctor was shaky starting at left tackle for Alabama a season ago as a true freshman. He briefly transferred home to Iowa this spring before deciding to return to Tuscaloosa.
It’s been a God send for the Crimson Tide. Proctor has had a breakout sophomore season and is one of the best offensive tackles in the SEC.
Edge Que Robinson
The senior edge rusher is the top pass rusher on Alabama’s defense. Through six games, he has four sacks, 19 tackles and a forced fumble. Robinson has been extremely consistent, totaling at least 0.5 a sack in all but one game this season.
With the Vols’ offensive tackle issues, containing Robinson will be a real challenge.
What Josh Heupel Said About The Crimson Tide
Opening Statement
“Good afternoon. Another huge contest here for us (against Alabama). Rivalry game and college football is as good as it gets here with these two teams playing. So looking forward to seeing our fans out on Saturday. And needing a great week of practice preparation for a really good football team that we’re playing. Talented as everybody knows. Ability to make explosive plays on the offensive side of the football Starts with their quarterback, him being a part of the run game and then playmakers out on the outside. And defensively, personnel wise, they look like they always do. Big and strong up front and second level can run and third level is extremely athletic. So a huge task for us. We got to continue to get better and get ready to go play really good football.”
On if it feels weird preparing to face Alabama without Nick Saban
“This rivalry has been around a long time before Nick Saban was a part of it or I was a part of it. The magnitude of this rivalry is the historical nature and what it’s meant inside of this league a lot.”
On the challenges defending Jalen Milroe
“He has been extremely accurate with the football. Been a pretty sound decision maker. I think while you’re trying to apply pressure to him, right? So those guys don’t have all day to run around on the second and third level. You have to be mindful not letting him escape. His athleticism when he does escape is special. You put all those pieces together, you got to do a great job of having rush integrity, getting off a block, making a play when he tucks it.”
