No. 6 Alabama football’s offense sputtered from start to finish as the Crimson Tide fell 26-10 to No. 14 Tennessee at Neyland Stadium on Saturday, marking its third straight defeat on Rocky Top.
The performance was the team’s second straight with less than 20 points after opening the season averaging 49.6 points through five games. Alabama was also held scoreless in the second half as its offense turned it over twice and punted twice, including a late interception from quarterback Keelon Russell in the final minute.
“[We] just struggled to sustain anything, keeping drives [going] and continuity there,” head coach Kalen DeBoer said postgame. “[You can’t have] a penalty, or coming up short on a couple fourth downs, and you’re gonna have to find a way to get some explosives against a front like that. We struggled to do that.”
Russell completed 19 of 29 passes and threw for 147 yards, his lowest passing yardage since becoming the Crimson Tide’s starter. The sophomore was responsible for three of Alabama’s four offensive turnovers, including a fumble deep in Crimson Tide territory that led to a Volunteers field goal.
The loss dropped Alabama to 5-2 (3-2, SEC) on the season, leaving little room for error down the stretch with a trip to No. 22 LSU left on the docket. If the Crimson Tide is to make the 12-team College Football Playoff, it will likely need to win out to safely earn its place in the field.
The defeat also came as three of the SEC’s four top-10 teams in the AP Top 25 lost Saturday, including No. 1 Georgia and No. 7 Texas.
“You know you gotta bring your A-game every weekend,” head coach Kalen DeBoer said. “You gotta have great preparation, and you gotta make some plays when it really matters to change the game.”
Alabama punted early in the fourth quarter, prompting Tennessee to chew over nine minutes off the clock as it put the game on ice with a touchdown from star running back DeSean Bishop, who finished with 159 yards and two touchdowns on 32 carries. Despite making just his second career start, Volunteers quarterback George MacIntyre commanded head coach Josh Heupel’s offense to its highest point tally since a 42-9 victory over Kennesaw State on Sept. 19.
The Crimson Tide opened the second half poorly, turning it over on downs and allowing Bishop to find the end zone for the first time, as its defense struggled to stop the downhill runs from the former walk-on.
Alabama entered the break down just 2 points despite a rough first half showing that included two turnovers and just 69 total yards. Russell ended the half 6 of 12 for 40 yards and an interception, as his offense went 0-of-7 on third downs.
Despite the uninspiring offensive performance in the opening half, the Crimson Tide’s defense contained Tennessee in the red zone. The Volunteers settled for field goals from kicker Cooper Ranvier four times in the opening period as Alabama’s offense continued to struggle.
“We played a lot of snaps defensively, and honestly, I think we played fairly well,” defensive back Bray Hubbard said. “Obviously, you don’t want those two touchdowns, but like I said earlier, just the spots we got into, whether it was the turnovers — whatever it was — about all you can do is hold them to a field goal or try to take the ball away.”
Alabama will return to action for its Homecoming game next Saturday, hosting the Texas A&M Aggies. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT at Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium, and can be seen on ABC.
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