A Return to Form

As the lighters flashed and the smoke rose upon the night air in Knoxville, Tuscaloosa and countless other areas, one could finally feel content about the Alabama team that took the field.

It may be hard to feel content about the schedule ahead which features ranked LSU, Mississippi State and Auburn. But it is a hell of a lot more content than the feeling following the South Carolina and Ole Miss games.

The high-caliber athletes are in place. The coaching is in place. The prestige and tradition are in place. Finally, it seemed as though the motivation and drive came back into place during the second half of Saturday’s game.

The opponent was browbeaten Tennessee, in which coach Derrick Dooley later likened to the Germany during the Allies attack of Normandy saying:

“Right now we’re like the Germans in World War II,” Dooley said. “Here comes the boats, they’re coming. You have the binoculars, and it’s like, ‘Oh, my God, the invasion is coming.’ ”

However weak or inexperienced Tennessee may be, there were a multitude of positives to gain from this game. Offensively, it was obvious to anyone who had eyes on the game that this was the explosive offense hyped during the preseason and visible during the first few games of the year.

Ingram and Richardson combined for 207 yards and three touchdowns with Ingram garnering most of the touchdowns (2) and Richardson garnering most of the yards (119). Both were finding holes and gaining yards after contact. Ingram’s red zone run that included pushing the pile five to seven yards was extremely reminiscent of his Heisman capability.

A huge component of the revamped running attack is due to a Fluker-less line stepping up to the task and playing as the stereotypical hard-nosed Alabama line. DJ Fluker with his injured groin could have run through the hole that Richardson burst through for his touchdown. Besides the pressure on Greg McElroy first half, there were mostly improvements with the line and few complaints.

Greg McElroy stayed in the spotlight as the one of the offense’s main weapons over the past weeks going 21-32 for 264 yards. Having been criticized for holding the ball too long in the last couple of weeks and straying away from the pocket, he looked calm, cool and collected while dropping in the pocket and delivering quick, catchable balls.

Then, there is Julio Jones.

Did he even have hand surgery? After 12 receptions, 221 yards and a multitude of extraordinary catches, Julio finally seemed to be the Julio he was recruited to be. Of course, everyone knew of his strength and size, but everyone really saw his big play ability through several deep passes and one incredible catch by the goal line.

Defensively, besides the 59-yard touchdown run by Tauren Poole and giving up 117 yards, they played solid. This was the first time that an Alabama defense has surrendered over 100 rushing yards to an opponent since BenJarvus Green-Ellis of Ole Miss ran for 131 in 2007.

DeMarcus Milliner and LSU-transfer Phelon Jones rose to the challenge and played strong in the secondary. Also, the Tide’s patented red zone defense from the first half of the season returned as they were able to supply pressure to Matt Simms, and Robert Lester gained his fifth interception of the year which is tied for the most in the FBS.

Moving forward, this was the best possible scenario for Alabama. The confidence has returned going into the bye-week, and one can only imagine what Nick Saban is preparing for the LSU Tigers that wait on the tail end of it.