The third Saturday of October is almost here, which means the “Third Saturday in October” rivalry renewal with Tennessee is almost here, too, because time flies when you’re busy going from 0-1 to 5-1.
That’s exactly what Alabama has done since that forgettable last Saturday in August, when the Crimson Tide got turned sideways by a Florida State team that is now 3-3 and going nowhere fast. Week 1 can be weird, though, and there are still always those other 13 weeks left in the regular season to get things right.
Right now, at least, 6th-ranked Bama has things right where it wants them. The Tide have rubber-stamped 3 ranked SEC wins in a row in the past 3 weeks, as if they were working on an assembly line, methodically taking out Georgia, then Vanderbilt and then Mizzou, with 2 of those statement victories coming on the road.
But most assembly line workers work long and hard hours and trying to plow through this SEC gauntlet on a week-to-week basis is a long trek that takes hard work. Alabama may be rolling right now, but then here comes that 11th-ranked orange freight train from Knoxville on Saturday night at Bryant-Denny Stadium, with 4 more SEC showdowns to follow.
What does this mean exactly? It means there might be reasons for pure joy among Tide fans right now, but there also should still be reasons to view the immediate future with at least a drop of uneasiness. With that, we’re going to break down the 3 biggest reasons to be optimistic and the 3 biggest reasons to still be concerned at exactly the regular season’s midpoint:
3 biggest reasons to be optimistic
We’ll start with the rosy outlook in Tuscaloosa:
1. Ty Simpson is becoming a star before Tuscaloosa’s eyes
We can talk about Simpson’s stats, because they’re really great, especially since the Week 1 loss at Florida State. But even with that early hiccup, Simpson has thrown for 1,678 yards with 16 touchdown passes and just 1 interception, and it took him until the 5th game of the season against Vanderbilt to throw that 1 pick. His completion percentage is a tick below 71, and all he’s done in his first season as the starter is direct 3 straight ranked SEC wins in his first 3 SEC games.
Simpson isn’t just a Heisman Trophy contender, he’s currently 2nd in overall odds to win college football’s most prestigious award, trailing only that Carson Beck guy who bolted Georgia for Miami. But all of the ultra-efficient stats and sudden Heisman hype aside, here’s what’s so great about Simpson — he’s humble and determined in a way that defies the times we live in now in college football, or sports in general.
Here’s the only example you really need of that. After helping the Tide take down previously undefeated Mizzou last Saturday and snapping the Tigers’ 15-game home winning streak, Simpson held the stat sheet while standing in 1 end zone in street clothes and in effect said, “it still wasn’t nearly good enough.” It’s so old-school refreshing, and if you’re an Alabama fan it’s got to make you ecstatic because this kid’s attention to detail and desire to be great is off the charts.
There will no doubt still be bumps along the way, but if Simpson stays on this road, greatness awaits.
2. Kalen DeBoer is starting to settle in after a rocky start
A month and a half ago, Kalen DeBoer was a wanted man in Tuscaloosa, and by that we mean most wanted him out as Alabama head coach. The 9-4 flop in his first season was tough enough to digest for spoiled-rotten Crimson Tide fans, but to follow that up with such a stinker in Week 1 at Florida State was unfathomable.
Alabama looked listless, unprepared, sloppy and got pushed around all afternoon by FSU’s offensive line. Seminoles fans stormed the field afterward. At that very point, many wondered where the Tide were going in 2025 and if DeBoer was really the right guy to replace Nick Saban. But since that point, with some help from Ty Simpson and a defense that’s gotten off the mat, DeBoer has shown staying power.
Don’t forget, as rough as Year 1 was for DeBoer, Saban only went 7-6 in his first season at Bama in 2007, then followed it up with a 12-2 gem in ’08. We’re not saying DeBoer is Saban in waiting, but sometimes it takes a season or so to get your bearings at a new place, like even Saban needed. There is a ton for DeBoer to still prove, of course, with another landmine waiting this Saturday night, but he’s gaining traction with each week and each big win.
3. Bama is still winning big games despite Ryan Williams’ struggles
Williams faded last fall as a 17-year-old freshman phenom, and as a sophomore he’s just never quite been all there. But despite suffering a concussion in the opening loss at FSU, despite missing the Week 2 blowout of Louisiana-Monroe, despite the continued dropped passes and despite not even catching a pass against Mizzou, Alabama has continued to win.
How many people would’ve had the Tide beating Georgia, Vanderbilt and Mizzou in consecutive weeks with Williams combining for just 11 catches, 141 yards and 1 touchdown? Williams only has 1 100-yard game this season, a 165-yard, 2-TD performance against Wisconsin in Week 3. Then to even think Bama could go to Columbia and beat Mizzou with Williams not even denting the stat sheet is, well, hard to fathom.
But the Tide pulled it off because Ty Simpson instead leaned on other wideouts like Germie Bernard, Isaiah Horton and Lotzeir Brooks, as well as tight end Josh Cuevas. All of this has to thrill Bama fans, because logic would scream that Williams’ talent level and desire to be great will conquer all eventually. If or when it finally all clicks with Simpson, then what will opponents do down the stretch this season?
3 biggest reasons to still be concerned
It can’t all be positive in T-Town, and here’s why:
1. Can Bama go the distance if Ryan Williams keeps struggling?
You see what we did there? Yes, there has to be a flip side to the Ryan Williams saga. Halfway through the regular season, in 5 games played, Williams is stuck at 21 catches for 336 yards and 3 touchdowns. Those were his exact stats before last week’s Mizzou game because, somehow, Williams failed to catch even 1 pass against the Tigers and was unofficially targeted only once the entire game.
Is Williams really injured? He was listed on Bama’s injury report leading up to Saturday’s game, and even though Williams was listed as probable, the point is he was still listed. Kalen DeBoer had his star’s back after the rough performance, explaining that Williams didn’t get to practice as much during the week because of a hit that hobbled him in the Vanderbilt game the week before.
Williams was cleared to play against Mizzou but clearly wasn’t himself. The ultimate verdict will come as the weeks go on. Can Williams be 100% healthy and, if so, can he start being productive again? And if somehow that just doesn’t happen this fall, can Alabama really win a national title or even an SEC crown without meaningful production from him?
2. Jam Miller just can’t seem to stay healthy in 2025
Yes, Miller leads the Tide in rushing this season, but that’s not saying much at all. Miller also hasn’t played much this season. He missed the season’s first 3 games after dislocating his collarbone during a scrimmage in fall camp, then was somewhat predictably ineffective (16 carries, 46 yards) in his season debut against Georgia in Week 5.
But then came a Week 6 breakout game against Vanderbilt and finally some hope, with Miller rolling up 136 yards on 22 carries and finding the end zone for the first time this season. He was solid if not spectacular last Saturday against Mizzou, with 85 yards on 20 carries, but that injury bug bit Miller again. He suffered a concussion on a helmet-to-helmet hit in the 4th quarter and, ironically, it was on a catch, not a run.
Kalen DeBoer said during his Monday press conference that Miller would be going through the concussion protocol this week. A huge game awaits on Saturday night against Tennessee, and concussions can linger. If Miller does manage to play, how effective can he really be? But if Miller can’t stay on the field this fall, how far can Bama really go without any sort of a running game?
3. Can the Tide survive kicker Conor Talty’s inconsistencies?
Look, Alabama hasn’t exactly cornered the market on kicking excellence, even during Nick Saban’s dominant run, with Will Reichard being the obvious exception. This doesn’t mean Talty has to be anything close to what Reichard was during his glorious run in Tuscaloosa.
He just has to be solid. But so far this season, he’s been shaky. Yes, he’s made all 22 of his extra-point attempts, but those should be a given. The redshirt sophomore is in his 3rd season in the program but his first year as the starting kicker. He’s 9-of-13 on field goal attempts, which isn’t terrible, and he is 6-of-6 inside 40 yards.
But the big games that Bama plays in seemingly weekly are won and lost by those longer field goals, and Talty is just 3-for-7 from 40 yards and longer. He’s also missed 1 field goal attempt in 4 of Alabama’s 6 games, and those games just happen to be the opening loss at FSU and the 3 SEC games. Yes, the Tide have survived those misses over the past 3 weeks, but it’s a sneaky bad trend that could eventually bite them.
Alabama football: 3 reasons to be optimistic, 3 reasons to be concerned at season’s midpoint Saturday Down South.
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