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Alabama suffered a rough 24-17 loss to Tennessee on the road on Saturday, and after leading for much of the game, Tennessee got momentum in the second half to come back and win. Alabama football coach Kalen DeBoer spoke on the frustrating second half and what led to the loss.
“But we just can't mesh right now the offense and defense together and play great team football,” Kalen DeBoer said, via Alex Scarborough of Bama247. “There's times when we got to be able to separate ourselves and have that killer instinct. And right now, you know, we don't do that. And it's not like they're not trying. It's just the execution needs to be better. And, you know, one play can to kill an offensive drive. And then defense does a nice job and then they get into their tempo, which we knew if we kept them out of that rhythm we'd be all right. They got into it there, the third quarter. And, you know, it was tough to stop. It starts with running the football for them.”
Alabama football held a 7-0 lead going into halftime, and it seemed like the Crimson Tide had the Tennessee offense trapped in a box. There was not much going on in the running game, and quarterback Nico Iamaleava struggled. In the second half, Tennessee was able to get the running game going, and the offense did just enough to get the win.
Alabama football's outlook after loss to Tennessee
After getting a euphoric win over Georgia at the end of September, it has been shaky for Alabama. The Crimson Tide followed up the Georgia win with a loss on the road at Vanderbilt, as a comeback attempt fell short. After that, Alabama narrowly escaped South Carolina, winning by the score of 27-25. Although it was a win, it was a concerning performance. That was the last matchup before this matchup that Alabama lost to Tennessee.
The Crimson Tide now sit at 5-2 overall and 2-2 in SEC play. It would take a lot for Alabama to make the SEC championship game now, and it would likely have to win the rest of the games remaining on the schedule to make the college football playoffs.
Next week, Alabama will host No. 19 Missouri. Then there will be a bye week before a crucial road matchup against LSU, which is likely a must-win now for Alabama to bolster the resume for the playoffs. The remaining three games are against Mercer, Oklahoma and Auburn, and the Crimson Tide should be favorites in all three of those matchups.
For now, Alabama will lament the blown opportunity against Tennessee.
