No. 4 Crimson Tide Tested But Pull Away Late for Victory

© Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images

The No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide (2-0) overcame a sluggish start to beat South Florida (1-1) 42-16 on Sept. 7 in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The Crimson Tide hoped for a better outing against South Florida than last season's 17-3 victory. Three turnovers and 13 penalties were not the game that the Crimson Tide was looking for.

Game Summary

On a night that was supposed to be celebratory, with Alabama naming the field at Bryant-Denny Stadium after legendary head coach Nick Saban, the Bulls looked to ruin the party. The Tide offense was a well-oiled machine firing on all cylinders in the Kalen DeBoer coaching debut last week. But it sputtered and slogged along until the fourth quarter when the offense got its footing and pulled away with big plays.

The Bulls took an early 3-0 lead on Alabama on their first possession. The teams traded punts before Alabama had a 10-play drive that took 3:59, covering 66 yards and capped off by a 10-yard touchdown run by Jalen Milroe. After the Tide scored on another Milroe scamper to take a 14-6 lead, Alabama had seven straight drives that ended in either a punt or a fumble.

The Tide finally got going in the fourth quarter, scoring 28 points and pulling away from the Bulls. It wasn't like the Bulls didn't have any success. They gained 309 yards of offense and had more first downs with zero turnovers. Byrum Brown led the way at quarterback by being a workhorse, carrying the ball 23 times for 108 yards on the night. Brown also threw for 105 yards but struggled with accuracy, going 15-for-35 on the night.

Turning Point for Crimson Tide

The turning point came in the fourth quarter after a South Florida field goal made the score 21-16. Alabama scored on a three-play drive capped off by freshman sensation Ryan Williams' 42-yard touchdown reception. The freshman led the Tide in receiving once again with 4 catches for 68 yards and a touchdown. His TD made it 28-16 Alabama and that was enough to break the will of the Bulls.

What it Means

What it means for Alabama: The win pushes the Tide's record to 2-0 as they prepare to travel on the road for the first time under DeBoer. Alabama goes to Madison, Wis., to take on the Wisconsin Badgers. While the score shows Alabama won comfortably, the coaching staff and players will not be happy with how they played most of the game. They will look to clean up the mistakes before playing the Badgers.

What this means for South Florida: No one likes moral victories, but the Bulls have shown on tape that they can go toe to toe with a football goliath and hold their own. Up next for the Bulls is a game with Southern Mississippi before a tough stretch of games against Miami, Tulane and Memphis. If the Bulls want a shot at a rematch, then they need to take what they learned from this game and apply it to their remaining schedule. South Florida will look to win the American Athletic Conference and make it to the playoffs as the highest-ranked Group of 5 teams out there.