I know a little bit about the Alabama Crimson Tide. But it felt like this was a matchup for which you deserve a preview by someone who knows a lot about the Tide.
Unfortunately Kirby Smart is otherwise occupied. And Nick Saban said, and I quote “Yeah that ain’t my problem anymore, I’ve got a nine o’ clock tee time.”
Lucky for you and I Brent Taylor of our SB Nation sister site Roll Bama Roll was available for me to pick his brain a bit. Brent knows more about the Tide than Kalen DeBoer I believe. And he’s got some thoughts that will both dismay and encourage you headed into what should be one of the more competitive games of the weekend, and of Georgia’s Entire season. Enjoy.
MD: How much does getting Jam Miller back help the Tide running game? What about Tim Keenan and the Tide pass rush?
Brent: I’m of the opinion that Jam isn’t going to make that much difference. He’s a decent running back that adds a little more home-run acceleration and good veteran pass protection above what the other backs do, but he’s not a star player. And, to be honest, offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb only calls run plays because he has to. This offense runs through the passing game, for better or worse.
Tim Keenan, though, has been sorely missed. He was quietly one of the very best players on Alabama’s squad last year (the nose tackle never gets any love), but the dude just makes plays and is always way more disruptive than someone his size should be. Alabama’s been rotating a cast of freshmen in his spot through the first three games, and while true freshman London Simmons has been better than expected, Keenan is a team captain and All-SEC caliber player for a reason. He adds some pass rush, but adds even more in rush play disruption.
MD: With the benefit of some hindsight, how do you evaluate the loss to FSU? Did the Tide not play their best football against what turns out to be a decent football team? Or did that game expose some real problems that could re-emerge as the season progresses?
Brent: It exposed a psyche problem. Well, I’m not even sure if it exposed them. They started showing in 2022 and it really came back last year. All the FSU game did was expose that we couldn’t rule last year out as “New coach year 1 issues.”
My armchair psychologist opinion is that, In 2022, it was a team that played nervous at times about not wanting to be the first Alabama squad to lose two games. Then in 2023 they were playing nervous to not be the the first team to not make the National Championship game in three years. Then in 2024 they didn’t want to be the first recruiting class to not win a national championship since Nick Saban. This year: they’re fighting to even stay nationally relevant. They keep getting very stiff and hesitant in road games, whereas opponents are feasting on that and playing with the joy of releasing years of pent up desire to finally be whooping up on Alabama.
How far will the program have to go before the shadow of the past and a fear of not living up to it? I don’t know. If we’re lucky, maybe it was that FSU game. But until the Tide can prove they can not suddenly turn into a pumpkin in big games (excluding LSU, for whatever reason), we can’t trust them.
MD: How would you stop Ryan Williams? Without committing a crime, obviously.
Brent: Just let him run slant routes. He’ll drop those every time.
Seriously, though, Williams is a savant with the ball in his hands, and he can pull off some crazy catches, too. He’s not a perfect receiver, though – he’s an adequate at best route runner that can really struggle with press coverages, and for some reason, he’s been plagued by easy drops at the tail end of last season and early this season.
MD: What’s your assessment of Ty Simpson so far? Early this week Kirby Smart called him “one of the hottest quarterbacks in college football right now”, was that aw shucks Kirby flattery, or is Simpson genuinely one of the best in the nation?
Brent: Depends. Week one Ty Simpson was not a good QB. Week 2-3 Ty Simpson looked like NFL Draft pick next year.
He’s got a lot of good things about him. He’s an impressive scrambler (and that gets ignored because he’s following Jalen Milroe). And his ability to make pro level throws over the middle on deep ins, dig routes, seams, and sideline outs is something a lot of college QBs never work into their game. He’s also really good about hanging in the pocket and making those throws with pressure coming at him.
On the other hand, I don’t think we’ve really seen a pure deep bomb from him yet, so that still remains to be seen. And some of his throws on the run have been godawful. As has, occasionally, he likes to spin backwards out of the pocket and turn a 5 yard sack into a 12 yard sack. So there’s definitely some issues and tendencies that a good defensive coordinator can likely attack… BUT, he’s also shown some superstar tools, and seems to quickly be problem solving and self correcting in real time.
MD: How secure is Kalen DeBoer at Alabama? From the outside it feels like he would have to have a disaster season in 2025 and a bad start to 2026 to be in any real trouble. But are the Tide faithful sold on him yet as a long term successor to Saint Nick?
Brent: Oh our fanbase is insufferable. When we lose games, we’re irrationally angry that DeBoer wore a T-shirt instead of a polo. Nick Saban WOULD NEVER wear a T-shirt, so obviously the program is now in shambles.
I’m probably a bit higher on DeBoer than many because my NFL team is the Seattle Seahawks, so I spend a lot of #online time with Washington fans and saw what DeBoer did with the Huskies. I think he’s made some really impressive coaching hires and improved that over what Alabama had under Saban from 2021 onwards. He also seems to be recruiting well and evaluating players sooner than the recruiting services – though obviously we’ll need a few years to prove those results. Still, there are concerning things, too. The penalties are more boneheaded type penalties, and the team seems to play up and play down to competition way worse than I’d like, and that’s a function of coaching from the mentality perspective.
Still, I think DeBoer is safe no matter what next year, and as long as Alabama is in playoff contention, he will be in 2026 as well, no matter how much the fans pine for Saban. Obviously, a program spiral into dumpster fire will change things, but I don’t expect that to happen.
MD: Because we must: how does this game go down? What’s your score prediction?
Brent: My official prediction is 31-28 UGA. I think Alabama’s defense generally plays well, but UGA gets one special teams or defensive score to break 30 points. And the Alabama offense is ultimately just a little too one dimensional to outscore the opponent. Ty SImpson throws for 300+ yards and moves the ball really well, but the occasional really bad play ruins enough drives to fall short.
Thanks again to Brent for his thoughtful responses. Be sure to check out Roll Bama Roll, your best source for news and commentary on all things related to Alabama football.
Go ‘Dawgs!!!
