Florida vs. Alabama: Score and Twitter Reaction
The Alabama Crimson Tide, powered by a standout passing attack, survived an early onslaught of turnovers to handily defeat the Florida Gators 42-21 in a wildly entertaining Week 4 SEC matchup on Saturday.
Here is a look at the quarter-by-quarter scoreline from the game:
| Florida | 14 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| Alabama | 14 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 42 |
Alabama head coach Nick Saban is the epitome of a control-freak coach, and it was a shock that he wasn't spotted frothing at the mouth with the mistake-filled first half the Crimson Tide had.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
After the game, Saban acknowledged his team had things to improve on, per John Zenor of The Associated Press: "Obviously everybody that watched the game could tell that there were some things that we did extremely well and some things (that) were pretty sloppy. But I thought in the second half we really controlled the game."
Things got off to a blazing start for Alabama, however, when Blake Sims found running back Kenyan Drake wide open down the sideline for an 87-yard touchdown pass. ESPN College Football provided a quick summary of Alabama's scoring drive:
This incredible start was mitigated by three Crimson Tide fumbles in the first quarter. Drake fumbled the ball on Alabama's second possession, allowing the Gators to score on a short field with a 28-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jeff Driskel to wide receiver Valdez Showers.
Alabama wideout DeAndrew White not only killed his team's drive with a fumble on the next possession, but Florida defensive back Keanu Neal scooped up the ball and returned it 49 yards for a touchdown and a surprising 14-7 Florida lead.
Sims, not known for his ability to throw the deep ball, couldn't help but take advantage of the Gators' wayward secondary. As it turns out, hanging with Amari Cooper is no easy feat for opposing cornerbacks. Sims found his favorite wide receiver wide open down the middle of the field late in the first quarter and hit the receiver in stride for a 79-yard scoring play that tied the game at 14 points apiece.
That play was just one electrifying half of Cooper's receiving-yards total during the first quarter.
Sims' favorite target quickly surpassed the 100-yard mark on the game, as noted by SportsCenter:
Perhaps Sims' big day shouldn't have been too much of a surprise.
ESPN's Alex Scarborough noted he was pumped up before the game:
The oddities and sloppy plays, alien concepts to a Saban-run team, extended into the second quarter.
Alabama punter JK Scott made a glaring error of his own, shanking a punt in the second quarter that just barely carried past the 50-yard line. Fortunately for Saban's blood pressure, Florida fumbled on the second play of the ensuing drive, and 'Bama's Reggie Ragland scooped up the ball, atoning for his team's turnover sins.
At halftime, there was little in the stat line to suggest this was anything resembling a quality SEC matchup.
The Crimson Tide went into the locker room with just 45 yards from their running backs, a microscopic total for a team that features rushers as talented as Drake, Derrick Henry and T.J. Yeldon.
Driskel completed just five of 17 passes for 53 yards, one touchdown and one interception after 30 minutes of play, and yet the Gators were down by just one score.
The second half showed little signs of a return to normalcy, with Alabama quickly committing another turnover. Sims was the culprit this time around, as his pass was intercepted by linebacker Antonio Morrison, who returned it deep into 'Bama's half of the field.
Driskel carried the ball 14 yards for a score on just the second play of the ensuing drive to tie the ballgame early in the third quarter.
Henry turned out to be the antidote to the majority of Alabama's woes. In true Crimson Tide fashion, he trucked defenders and steadily chewed up the grass at Bryant-Denny Stadium, scoring on a three-yard run with 5:27 to go in the third quarter to hand the Crimson Tide a 28-21 lead they would not relinquish.
Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde isn't quite sure Alabama knows what it has in Henry:
ESPN's Peter Burns busted out a fine pop culture reference to describe Henry's marauding exploits:
Alabama received a scare later in the third quarter when Sims suffered an apparent shoulder injury at the end of a long run. Backup quarterback Jake Coker, who transferred to Alabama from Florida State, came in to take the reins for a drive.
ESPN Stats & Info noted Sims was in the midst of a rare performance for a Crimson Tide signal-caller:
Cooper, who finished the game with 10 catches for 201 yards and three touchdowns, provided the heroics his team needed without Sims on the field. The star wideout brought down a jump ball from Coker in the dying seconds of the third quarter to extend his side's lead to 14.
Ken Carman of 92.3 The Fan noted that Cooper looked quite a bit like NFL wideout—and former Alabama star—Julio Jones:
The Crimson Tide were now finally on a roll. Safety Landon Collins made a fantastic one-handed interception early in the fourth quarter on a Driskel pass intended for Quinton Dunbar.
Forde gave a quick take on why that play unfolded the way it did:
Sims returned to the game to quarterback Alabama's next drive. He tossed another touchdown pass to Cooper to make the score 42-21 with approximately 10 minutes to go and put the game well out of reach for the Gators.
Sims finished the game with 445 yards passing and four touchdowns against just one interception. He was close to the Alabama single-game passing yards record, but Saban opted to let Coker finish out the game and get some much-needed repetitions.
Alabama's ability to overcome the early adversity bodes well for its future. The talented stable of running backs and with the evolving play of Sims at quarterback give the team a dangerous offense to pair with its stout defense.
Sims was the team's biggest question mark heading into the season, but he's looking like the undisputed answer at quarterback. At this point in the early college football season, Alabama appears to be one of the favorites to make it to the four-team College Football Playoff.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
