From the first play of Tuesday's practice after Alabama football's 26-10 road loss to Tennessee, linebacker Caleb Woodson knew how it was going to go.
In the "crimson ball" period, pitting the first-team defense against the first-team offense – what Woodson calls a "good-on-good" rep – the Alabama linebacker was "bumped out" on a blitz by a tight end.
"I was like, 'OK, boys coming to play today,'" Woodson said.
Alabama was fired up. The College Football Playoff may be months away, but the playoff mindset has touched down on Tuscaloosa. With losses to Georgia and Tennessee, it's win-or-go-home for the Crimson Tide for all CFP hopes, for a chance at a national championship. That's the mindset Alabama took onto its practice field Tuesday morning, with the help of defensive back Bray Hubbard.
Hubbard stepped up in front of the team and echoed the message Kalen DeBoer shared immediately after the Tennessee game, one centered around "being uncomfortable," a message Pritchett knows well.
"Our whole motto since I've gotten here is be comfortable with being uncomfortable, right?" Pritchett said. "Field three, I'm standing right here on the indoor, but I remember this summer when I was pushing a sled with six plates, right. Being uncomfortable, it's a blessing. It's an opportunity."
During stretches, Pritchett said Devan Thompkins took over, preaching a message of remaining level-headed with nobody pointing fingers.
"Nobody was moping, nobody was dragging their head," Pritchett said. "It's just, let's go out there and fly around and have fun. I think the tone was set off the first play. People were hitting each other, taking the talk. That's exactly what you want."
For Pritchett, it wasn't just talk. Like Woodson, Pritchett remembers the first play he faced after Hubbard's and Thompkins' sermons.
"My first play of the day, I was blocking (Fatutoa) Henry, and it was like, 'OK, we're here. There ain't no running from the physicality,'" Pritchett said.
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter or Instagram @colingaytnews.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: How Alabama football practices after Tennessee loss: 'Boys coming to play today'