Entering Alabama football’s Saturday matchup with Missouri, it was unclear whether the Crimson Tide would be able to stop the Tiger run game. Led by running back Ahmad Hardy, the MU game plan seemed simple: Run the ball, control the time of possession and try to bully UA.
Instead, during a 27-24 win in Columbia on Saturday, Alabama held the ball for 38:33 of the game clock, compared to 21:27 for the Tigers. After the game, head coach Kalen DeBoer emphasized how important it was for the Tide to win that battle.
“Huge,” DeBoer said. “Huge. Just not letting them get in a rhythm. Not letting the run game wear you down, open up play action, and our offense also staying on the football field, time after time.
“That wears on them, too. There’s times, I know we wanted to put more points on the board ourself, but it’s part of the game when you play a team like this.”
Part of the formula was getting the Tigers to pass. After a first drive where Alabama couldn’t stop the run at all, UA stiffened up, forcing Missouri into using quarterback Beau Pribula’s arm instead of feeding Hardy and fellow RB Jamal Roberts.
Hardy finished the game with 52 yards on 12 attempts. Pribula wound up leading the team in rushing, with 61 yards on 11 carries.
“That was very important,” LT Overton said afterward. “…Missouri is a really good offense but just being able to keep th apple in our offense’s hands more, instead of their offense, is just really the focus of the game, instead of them being that rushing team that they’re known as.”
DeBoer praised how the rushing defense responded to the Tigers’ first drive, which put MU up 7-0 early in a game Eli Drinkwitz and company thought they had a chance to win.
Late in the game, Drinkwitz opted for a fake punt that came up short of the line to gain. He said the choice was in part due to how well UA was controlling the ball.
“We hadn’t been able to sustain drives,” Drinkwitz said. “Defensive time of possession tilted, and I just felt like that was the time. I also felt like if we could get a stop right there, we’d be no worse than a one-possession game, and again, we get a sack. First down, we get second down screen stop. We give up a chunk yardage on third down and fourth-and-eight, they convert. Then, down there on the goal line, fourth down, they convert.”
It was the second game in a row that Alabama won the time of possession battle against a team that leans heavily on the run. The Crimson Tide did the same against Vanderbilt the week before, a success that also led to a win.
Still, the rush defense will need to continue to improve as the SEC season moves forward.
“Quarterback did a nice job with his legs,” DeBoer said. “I knew that would be a concern, but all in all I’m proud of the way we kept fighting, got off the field throughout the whole game. They went down the field throwing the ball more than anything at the end, but rush defense, I think we took another step in the right direction.”
Alabama will be back in action next Saturday against Tennessee at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
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