Texas A&M traveled to Bryant-Denny Stadium to take on Alabama in a Week 8 matchup, the 106th homecoming in Tuscaloosa.
The Crimson Tide entered the afternoon with a 91-game home streak without a loss to an unranked opponent, and the Aggies entered the day without a road touchdown, so both teams hoped to extend or break those streaks.
Head coach Mike Elko led his team to a 4-3 record, while head coach Kalen DeBoer led a program at 5-2. Both coaches knew the stakes: Alabama’s two-game losing skid could continue and cost them a College Football playoff berth, while A&M was trying to keep the ship afloat mathematically for any shot at that.
In the end, the Maroon and White was unable to escape a loss to the Crimson and White, and these are the key takeaways from a beautiful day.
Opening Interceptions
Imagine two interceptions on the first two offensive drives in a hostile environment. Quarterback Marcel Reed found a way to do just that on the first two drives, but Elko still stuck with his guy despite the errors.
On his first interception, he scanned the field for running back KJ Edwards on a short route, but Dijon Lee Jr. jumped the route and took it straight to the house for a 39-yard score, giving the Crimson Tide their first lead of the afternoon.
Reed came out for the second drive with the Aggies. After one play, a similar result followed: a pass intended for wide receiver Mario Craver was deflected slightly into Chuck McDonald's open arms, and after official review, the call was overturned, giving the Crimson Tide the ball right back.
Two interceptions didn’t rattle Reed as he trotted back out with his head high, running the offense more efficiently as the Maroon and White stayed tied at halftime, 17-17.
Rico Scott Tortures A&M Secondary
One of the defense's weaker spots this season has been shutting down the pass, even though they allowed just 11.3 points per game in October. In the first half alone, the defense had no answer for the explosiveness wide receiver Rico Scott displayed in the homecoming game.
In the first quarter alone, the Alabama connection between quarterback Keelon Russell and Scott was in full effect, as the two found each other twice. On the first connection, Russell launched a deep pass 17 yards downfield, and Scott caught it for a first down to move the sticks.
After that grab, the chemistry continued with another big play: a 36-yard gain that put him at 51 yards in the first quarter alone. In the second quarter, Russell threw a missile to a wide-open Scott for a 48-yard catch-and-run into the red zone. His final catch before going to the locker room was on a short 8-yard reception.
Following a gigantic first half, Scott eventually kept being fed the football as Russell let the football fly on the final play before going to the fourth quarter, which set up the offense in a goal-to-go situation that prompted the Crimson Tide to dial up a pass to tight end Marshall Pritchett for the score to go up by four. At the end of the game, he finished with 156 yards and six receptions.
A&M WRs Found Some Open Windows
Over the last couple of weeks, these wide receivers have struggled to find open space in conference play. The passing game was slow to get started, but that wasn’t the case today, as the offensive line gave Reed a little more time to find his weapons.
At halftime, the Aggies receivers had 109 yards, led by Craver, who had four catches for 28 yards. His longest first-half play was a 14-yard slant route catch for a first down. He also ran a few slant routes, catching a 7-yard pass at the 13:01 mark in the second quarter and a nine-yard reception in the endzone for his first touchdown since the game against the Sun Devils.
Former Alabama wide receiver Isaiah Horton, also caught two passes in his return to Tuscaloosa in the first half, including an explosive 17-yard play and a seven-yard gain. These came as the defense was thin in the secondary. On third down, Horton ran a stop route and gained 12 yards, extending the drive late in the third quarter.
After a solid 30 minutes, the second 30 minutes wasn’t as pretty, with a total of 163 yards. At the final whistle, A&M posted 278 yards of total offense, with five different guys making catches.
Two Missed Field Goals vs Two Made Field Goals After Three Quarters
Not every Saturday, especially at home, does Alabama see two missed field goals. That was exactly the case: Conor Talty missed two field goals going into the fourth quarter. His first miss came in the first quarter after Alabama looked like it was about to go up two possessions, but A&M had other plans as the kick was wide right.
On Talty’s next attempt, he knocked through a 47-yard field goal at the 1:13 mark in the first quarter to give the Crimson Tide a 10-7 lead. After Olano made two consecutive 32 and 25-yard kicks, Talty couldn't drill his third from 42.
These became difference-makers that kept Elko & Co. in the game and DeBoer & Co. in multiple drives that could have closed the door. A&M never scored a touchdown in the final two quarters, which led to the 31-20 loss.
Quiet Fourth Quarter
The Aggies generated no points in the fourth quarter. The Crimson Tide wiped out any hope of the offense going downfield and scoring as it did in the first half. When the offense produces only three points in the final 30 minutes, the defense can only do so much with the time left after giving up two touchdowns down the stretch.
In the fourth-quarter summary, Alabama had 102 yards, and the defense allowed 68 passing yards, along with three converted third downs on four tries. As for A&M, 15 total yards on offense to close it out wasn’t enough, and the offensive line also gave up two sacks. The Aggies ran nine total plays, and a pivotal fumble basically sealed it.
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