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It doesn’t seem to be the same Alabama football team that dominated the college football landscape for more than a decade out there in 2023. Though the Crimson Tide are 2-1 to start the season, that loss was the program's first at home since 2019 and Alabama followed that up with an uninspiring showing against South Florida.
The Crimson Tide now look forward to their first SEC matchup of the year as they welcome Ole Miss to town on Saturday, and might Alabama be bringing some new strategy into the contest?
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, who coached under Saban at Alabama from 2014-2016, says that the Rebels are preparing as if cornerbacks coach Travaris Robinson is calling the Crimson Tide's defense, not defensive coordinator Kevin Steele.
“We’ve been against Kevin a number of times,” Kiffin said, via Matt Stahl. “Worked with him at Alabama, then played against him at Auburn and LSU. But it seems like there’s been a change there. I don’t know what happened after the Texas game.”
“Our guys watching the TV copy schematical in this last game, it certainly seems like T-Rob’s now calling the defense,” Kiffin said. “We played him before at South Carolina, so we’re preparing accordingly, you know, for him calling the defense. He’s done a good job too. And they’ve got really good players.”
Robinson was South Carolina's defensive coordinator from 2016-2020. This is his second season with Alabama football. The Crimson Tide allowed 34 points in the loss to Texas, 21 of those coming in the fourth quarter. They allowed 10 combined points in their two wins, though the level of competition was skewed.
This is an interesting development to keep an eye on. Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss staff could have a significant advantage if true.