Alabama Defeated Texas, but Inconsistencies Reared Their Ugly Heads
AUSTIN, Texas — It seems that Alabama football may have a bit of a consistency problem.
Hinted at by head coach Nick Saban after the Crimson Tide's 55-0 victory over Utah State last weekend, Alabama's inconsistency transcends more than just the running back room. After the team's nail-biting 20-19 win over Texas on Saturday, multiple issues on the Crimson Tide's offense reared their ugly heads.
For starters, Alabama's receivers combined for just 14 receptions on the afternoon and a total of 137 yards. Running back Jahmyr Gibbs caught all nine of his targets for 74 yards and was the team's leading receiver. Jase McClellan also had one reception for two yards.
Compare that to Week 1 against the Aggies, where Alabama wide receivers — minus running backs — caught 22 passes for 224 yards. On Saturday, the Crimson Tide also had just one receiving touchdown against Texas compared to six against Utah State.
Running the football was just as inconsistent for Alabama during its first two games. While Bryce Young was able to rush for 100 yards against Utah State, the five running backs 25 carries for 168 yards — an average of 6.72 yards per carry — with the bulk of those numbers coming from a 58-yard run by Gibbs.
At Texas, the numbers didn't improve by much. Against the Longhorns, the Crimson Tide stable combined for just 123 yards and one touchdown off 17 carries. While that's an average of 7.23 yards a carry, an 81-yard rush by McClellan really skews those numbers in a much more positive direction than they should.
After the game, Saban listed all the shortcomings that contributed to the team's inconsistencies on offense.
"We didn't block 'em very well up front, didn't protect very well, got pressure in the pocket, wasn't very effective throwing the ball, didn't get people open, probably needed to do a better job from a planning standpoint [considering] the way they played us," Saban said. "It all comes down to executing. When you're playing in games like this, you gotta focus on what's in front of you. You can't worry about all the other stuff that's going on, what people say, what they say on ESPN, what [the media] all say, how much you're favored in the game — you gotta focus on what's in front of you."
Blocking has certainly been a key factor in Alabama's inconsistencies so far. Texas was able to hurry Young seven times, sack him twice as well as record six tackles for loss. Of those stats come as a result of poor blocking.
Alabama bookended Saturday's game with relatively solid performances in the trenches. However, the second and third quarters displayed the Crimson Tide's full struggles on offensive line.
Fresh off of listing the things that Alabama players should not be focused on, Saban began to elaborate on what his team should be focused on instead.
"If you're an offensive lineman, that's the guy you gotta block," Saban said. "If you're a receiver, that's they guy you gotta beat. If you're a quarterback, you gotta take what the defense gives you. If you're a runner, you gotta press the hole and make the right cuts. We didn't do any of that stuff the way we need to. So it wasn't just one thing, but you gotta be able to stay focused on that and then you can't put yourself behind the 8-ball. We get so many second-and-long and third-and-longs that you're at a disadvantage to yourself, so we gotta do a better job on all those downs so we don't put ourselves in those situations."
In the offseason, Alabama seemed to be primed with solid focus. While the defense has remained stout despite not being able to penetrate the backfield as often as many fans and media members thought it would early on, the offense has not lived up to the Crimson Tide faithful's expectations thus far.
It's certainly a long season, and it's difficult to judge a team based off of just two games. That being said, it's going to be a long road to the finish if Alabama isn't able to right the ship.
It's also hardly fair to compare Texas to Utah State. Under head coach Steve Sarkisian — a former Saban assistant coach, no less — the Longhorns have dramatically improved. If quarterback Quinn Ewers had not been injured in the first quarter, who knows how Saturday's game might have turned out.
"Texas has a lot better team than people give them credit for," Saban said. "And they're going to be in the SEC, and if they were in the SEC right now they'd probably be in the top half of the league, so this was a real test for us."
Next week, Alabama returns to home to face Louisiana-Monroe — a team that Texas defeated in Week 1 by a score of 52-10 — before hosting Vanderbilt. The two games should serve as a means for the Crimson Tide to hit the reset button.
If those games don't then Alabama's long road it going to grow even longer.
All-in-all, Saban noted that he believes that every shortcoming and inconsistency his team has displayed so far can be corrected with hard work in practice.
"There are a tremendous amount of things we can learn from as a team," Saban said after the Texas game. "What I told the team is if you practice hard, the game is easy. If you don't push yourself in practice. If you don't push yourself in practice, then the game becomes hard."
More from BamaCentral:
No Excuses: Alabama Probably Should Have Lost at Texas
Despite Loss, Steve Sarkisian Thinks Success Coming Soon for Longhorns
