A rainy forecast wasn’t the only cause of déjà vu in Alabama’s rematch with Florida State. Early in the game, the Crimson Tide’s defense and rushing attack struggled in ways that resembled its issues a year ago in Tallahassee.
Slow starts have been a recurring theme in head coach Kalen DeBoer’s tenure at Alabama, and as recently as last week against Kentucky, the Crimson Tide was forced to mount a second-half comeback to avoid an upset on the road.
Nothing was made easier for DeBoer and his team to start this game. Alabama’s first two possessions were both three-and-outs, and a field goal for its first points of the day was set up by an interception that put the Crimson Tide in Seminole territory.
“We’ve got to start faster,” DeBoer said. “We’ve got to do a better job of coming out of the gates.”
On defense, Alabama was equally challenged from the start, allowing the Seminoles to score touchdowns on each of their first two drives. Despite having been a run-heavy offense in its first two games, Florida State quickly got hot through the air, with quarterback Ashton Daniels starting the game 7-for-8 with 156 yards and one touchdown.
The Crimson Tide’s defense also gave up 50 rushing yards in the first quarter, which is more than Alabama’s opponents averaged per game through Week 2. The initial struggles were uncharacteristic of a defense that was third in the nation in both total rushing yards and yards per carry allowed up to that point.
Meanwhile, Alabama picked up only 13 rushing yards of its own in that quarter. By the early second quarter, DeBoer’s team was down 21-6 and appeared stagnant on both sides of the ball.
Alabama’s quick deficit set up the rest of the game as a monumental effort to come back. The Crimson Tide ultimately won on the back of 220 rushing yards in the second half and quarterback Keelon Russell putting up 376 total yards of offense on the night, a level of production too high to depend on every week.
Starting games slowly has caused Alabama to need massive comebacks in several recent incidents. In its game against Oklahoma in the playoffs last year, the Crimson Tide quickly found itself down 17-0 on the road before turning it around for a win. Similar slow starts came against South Carolina and Missouri in the same season.
As Alabama enters the rest of its SEC slate, DeBoer will want his team to take leads early and spend the rest of games defending them rather than playing catch-up.
“We’ve got to remember that in those moments we can make it happen,” DeBoer said. “So just keep playing. Keep fighting. We’ve got the athletes to make plays.”
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