Why Alabama Is Ready to Stop Auburn's Tempo in 2014

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Don’t tell Nick Saban, but we’re going to take a peek ahead before Alabama hosts Western Carolina in what should be a stinker of a football game.

Fans of the No. 1 Crimson Tide are already looking ahead, too, at a chance for revenge over Auburn for last season’s stunning 34-28 win. The team is also looking to keep its national title hopes alive.

One storyline that Alabama and Saban seemingly can’t escape is the defense against uptempo teams, especially Auburn.

Last season, Alabama held Auburn to roughly 100 yards below the Tigers’ season average but gave up big plays at inopportune times when Auburn went tempo.

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Nick Marshall scored on a 45-yard run in the first quarter and hit Sammie Coates in the game’s final seconds for a 39-yard touchdown pass that tied the game.

While Auburn has taken a small step back offensively this season, it is still a force to be reckoned with. But this year, Alabama is ready to slow down that tempo offense even more and come away with a win in the regular-season finale.

It starts, as it always does, up front.

Alabama’s defensive line is incredibly deep this season. It has regularly used five and six defensive linemen in a rotation, keeping guys fresh as the game goes on.

And that group is playing with a mean streak. The line has looked more explosive off the ball.

“Striking. Come out of our hips. Stay in our gaps. Pushing, knocking the line back,” defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson said when asked what’s made them so good in rush defense. “I feel that’s pretty much what a defense has to do to be successful.”

All of that has been evident this season, as you can see here in a play against LSU’s Leonard Fournette:

But the biggest difference for Alabama has been behind those defensive linemen.

The Crimson Tide’s linebacking corps is much improved from last season and much more suited to stop hurry-up and spread offenses.

Reggie Ragland is a big reason for that and is Alabama’s most improved defender this season. He’s turned into an alpha dog as the season has worn on and is excellent at playing in space.

Take this play from Alabama’s win over Tennessee (2:17 mark):

Ragland tracks Tennessee quarterback Josh Dobbs, an athletic runner in open space, the whole way. He closes in, makes a play and jars the ball loose.

He’s also incredibly athletic, as he showed with this interception against Texas A&M:

On the edge, Alabama has been much better at getting to the quarterback.

The Crimson Tide are already ahead of last season’s sack total. They’ve been led by two outside linebackers who didn’t play much last season.

Xzavier Dickson leads the team with seven sacks, while Ryan Anderson is tied for second with three. The pair is a much more athletic upgrade over Adrian Hubbard and Denzel Devall, Alabama’s two starting outside linebackers last season.

The secondary is Alabama’s most improved unit on the team as a whole.

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Cyrus Jones locked down a cornerback spot, while Eddie Jackson has played well opposite him and seems to have taken control of the No. 2 spot. Landon Collins might be the best defensive player in the country at strong safety, and Nick Perry is coming into his own next to him at free safety.

Jones, in particular, has been a welcome surprise. Last week, the 5’10” converted wide receiver was matched up with the 6’5” De’Runnya Wilson of Mississippi State. He held his own, despite giving up a few inches in height.

“They see the film and know I don't shy away from contact,” Jones said. “Definitely, earlier they probably looked at my size and manhandle me and push me around. That's something I pride myself on, being physical. I think when you are my size or smaller, you have to be even more physical because you are not intimidating anyone with your size. It's just going out there and be scrappy, especially with the big receivers.”

His play culminated with this interception late in the third quarter, when he tracked the ball in the end zone and made a play:

That’s a good sign, considering Auburn has two of the most physical receivers in the country. Sammie Coates and D’haquille Williams, who both check in at 6’2”, are the kinds of receivers that have given Alabama problems. But Alabama has shown this year that size won’t be an issue at receiver.

It all should be a recipe for a success against an offense that has given Alabama fits in the past.

Marc Torrence is the Alabama lead writer for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Follow on Twitter @marctorrence.