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Alabama will likely have nobody but itself to blame if it doesn’t land a spot in the BCS title game.
The second-ranked Crimson Tide look to remain perfect while trying to avoid a third straight road loss to Tennessee when the teams meet in an SEC contest Saturday night.
The conference’s lone undefeated team, Alabama (7-0, 4-0) earned the second spot in the first BCS rankings this week with a .949 average and behind No. 1 Texas at .998. As long as they stay unbeaten, the Tide should be playing for a national title in Miami on Jan. 8.
With a trip to No. 11 LSU on Nov. 8 looking as the only major road block on its remaining schedule, Alabama is in a good position, but coach Nick Saban knows his team must improve on playing a complete game.
“We have to find a way to strike more consistency for 60 minutes in the game,” Saban said. “That’s going to be critical to us in the future.”
For the third straight game, Alabama needed to survive a second-half rally from an opponent before holding on for a 24-20 win over Mississippi last week. The Tide led 24-3 at halftime, but allowed 17 points over the final two quarters and needed to stop Ole Miss on fourth down across midfield late to preserve the win.
Against then-No. 3 Georgia on Sept. 27, the Tide led 31-0 halftime, but won 41-30. A two-touchdown halftime lead turned into a 17-14 scare against Kentucky one week later. Alabama has outscored opponents 171-23 in the first half, but has been outscored 78-55 after the intermission.
“Maybe the other teams just come out a little bit more fired up than us,” Alabama defensive end Lorenzo Washington said.
Whatever the reason, Alabama can’t afford many more second-half letdowns, even against struggling Tennessee (3-4, 1-3), which is near the bottom of the SEC averaging 19.7 points per contest.
“We’re not just focused on winning, we’re focused a lot on how we’re winning,” Saban said. “A big goal for us, and I talked about it at halftime, was to go out and play and do a better job in the second half.”
While Alabama leads 45-38-7 in the all-time series with Tennessee, the Tide has not won consecutive games over the Vols since 1991-1992 and hasn’t posted a victory in Knoxville since winning 34-14 on Oct. 26, 2002.
Though Alabama’s 14th-ranked defense will be without 6-foot-5, 365-pound nose guard Terrence Cody (knee), the Volunteers still need to be at their best.
“It’s a real challenge for our football team,” Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer said. “I know our team will be excited to play this game. We’re looking forward to it.”
Eric Berry’s 72-yard interception return highlighted a pair of fourth-quarter defensive touchdowns for Tennessee in a 34-3 win over Mississippi State last Saturday. With the return, the sophomore, who has 10 career picks, became the SEC’s career interception return leader with 397 yards.
The Vols also showed balance in that contest, rushing for 139 yards and passing for 136. Balance was something Tennessee lacked in a 41-17 loss at Alabama last season.
Tide quarterback John Parker Wilson, who was 16-for-25 for a season-high 219 yards and two touchdowns last week, was 32-for-46 for a career-high 363 yards and three TDs against the Vols last season. Wilson has thrown for 521 yards and is completing 60 percent of his passes in two games against Tennessee.
The second-ranked Crimson Tide look to remain perfect while trying to avoid a third straight road loss to Tennessee when the teams meet in an SEC contest Saturday night.
The conference’s lone undefeated team, Alabama (7-0, 4-0) earned the second spot in the first BCS rankings this week with a .949 average and behind No. 1 Texas at .998. As long as they stay unbeaten, the Tide should be playing for a national title in Miami on Jan. 8.
With a trip to No. 11 LSU on Nov. 8 looking as the only major road block on its remaining schedule, Alabama is in a good position, but coach Nick Saban knows his team must improve on playing a complete game.
“We have to find a way to strike more consistency for 60 minutes in the game,” Saban said. “That’s going to be critical to us in the future.”
For the third straight game, Alabama needed to survive a second-half rally from an opponent before holding on for a 24-20 win over Mississippi last week. The Tide led 24-3 at halftime, but allowed 17 points over the final two quarters and needed to stop Ole Miss on fourth down across midfield late to preserve the win.
Against then-No. 3 Georgia on Sept. 27, the Tide led 31-0 halftime, but won 41-30. A two-touchdown halftime lead turned into a 17-14 scare against Kentucky one week later. Alabama has outscored opponents 171-23 in the first half, but has been outscored 78-55 after the intermission.
“Maybe the other teams just come out a little bit more fired up than us,” Alabama defensive end Lorenzo Washington said.
Whatever the reason, Alabama can’t afford many more second-half letdowns, even against struggling Tennessee (3-4, 1-3), which is near the bottom of the SEC averaging 19.7 points per contest.
“We’re not just focused on winning, we’re focused a lot on how we’re winning,” Saban said. “A big goal for us, and I talked about it at halftime, was to go out and play and do a better job in the second half.”
While Alabama leads 45-38-7 in the all-time series with Tennessee, the Tide has not won consecutive games over the Vols since 1991-1992 and hasn’t posted a victory in Knoxville since winning 34-14 on Oct. 26, 2002.
Though Alabama’s 14th-ranked defense will be without 6-foot-5, 365-pound nose guard Terrence Cody (knee), the Volunteers still need to be at their best.
“It’s a real challenge for our football team,” Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer said. “I know our team will be excited to play this game. We’re looking forward to it.”
Eric Berry’s 72-yard interception return highlighted a pair of fourth-quarter defensive touchdowns for Tennessee in a 34-3 win over Mississippi State last Saturday. With the return, the sophomore, who has 10 career picks, became the SEC’s career interception return leader with 397 yards.
The Vols also showed balance in that contest, rushing for 139 yards and passing for 136. Balance was something Tennessee lacked in a 41-17 loss at Alabama last season.
Tide quarterback John Parker Wilson, who was 16-for-25 for a season-high 219 yards and two touchdowns last week, was 32-for-46 for a career-high 363 yards and three TDs against the Vols last season. Wilson has thrown for 521 yards and is completing 60 percent of his passes in two games against Tennessee.
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