Big Plays, Big Night for Alabama Offense Against Mississippi State
STARKVILLE, Miss. — Big offensive plays for Alabama were everywhere Saturday. They were almost enough to silence all the cowbells at Davis Wade Stadium.
Almost.
There was the 46-yard touchdown reception by John Metchie.
There were big runs from Brian Robinson and quarterback Bryce Young.
The 51-yard touchdown pass from Young to Robinson was huge.
And we can’t forget about the 75-yard touchdown reception by Jameson Williams on the first play of the second half.
The Alabama offense stepped up in many ways in a 49-9 win against Mississippi State.
Football was fun for Alabama and all seemed right in the Crimson Tide’s world. It was just what it needed after a bitter loss last week.
Most of the big plays were because of how Mississippi State's defense soft against the receivers. Last year the Crimson Tide hit on big plays over the top, but on Saturday they gave Alabama a lot of open looks in the middle.
"The big plays today we caught the ball and ran with it," Alabama coach Nick Saban said. "(Jameson's touchdown) was nothing but a curl in the middle. Because they were playing off of him he was able to catch it and run with it.
"That's how we made the explosive plays."
The average yards per catch was 17, most of that coming on yards after catch. Alabama had three receptions go for 40 or more yards.
"That helps a lot," Young said of his receivers. "Our job is to get them the ball so they can run and do special things. All of them had really good yards after catch. That's a quarterback's dream. My job is to get it into their hands and they do the rest."
Explosive plays were important, but so was efficiency. Only once did the Crimson Tide go three plays an out. That happened on its second possession.
Alabama converted 10 out of 14 times on third down and racked up 22 first downs to wear down the Mississippi State defense.
Metchie led the receivers with seven catches for 117 yards and a touchdown.
It was a big night for Young with four touchdowns to four different receivers. It’s the seventh straight game with multiple passing scores and the third time he’s thrown four or more touchdowns. His lowest total was two against Ole Miss.
Young has 24 touchdown passes, which is two behind Western Kentucky’s Bailey Zappe and SMU’s Tanner Mordecai for the NCAA lead. Young’s 348 yards Saturday put him over 2,000 for the season.
The sophomore showed off his running skills, too. He'd been criticized a bit for not tucking the ball and running when flushed out of the pocket. He made several big runs, including three of more than 10 yards to convert first downs.
"We are told to keep our eyes downfield, but if you see green grass take it," Young said. "Today they gave us some of those plays."
