Alabama at Texas A&M Complete Game Preview
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — They were teams going in opposite directions when the met last year. The University of Alabama was looking to rebound having already experienced its only loss of the regular season while Texas A&M had experienced two straight defeats after opening the season 5-0.
No one expected what happened at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Oct. 18, 2014, a 59-0 rout by the Crimson Tide. Alabama’s offense, which had struggled the week before at Arkansas, scored every time it had the ball during the first half.
“We just had a crazy game where things went right for us and not much went right for them,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said. “They had a good team last year, those guys have all gotten better. Kyle Allen became the quarterback so he got a lot of experience last year. He's a lot better player now than then, and I think he played very well then.
“I think experience has helped him. The receivers are really, really good. The addition of their No. 1 receiver [Christian] Kirk, who's a freshman, great returner, as well as 32 receptions. They have really good skill players. Their players have gotten better. They've improved, which is a sign of a good program."
Of course Alabama went on to play in the SEC Championship Game and in the inaugural College Football Playoff, but the game also was also a turning point for Texas A&M.
“What we did from a chronological standpoint immediately after that was changes in personnel, [that’s] probably the biggest thing that came out of that,” Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin said during his press conference last week. “There were guys in critical roles that were replaced. Last four games of the season, we won a few of them and were within a touchdown of the other two. Then we won the bowl game. That's probably the biggest immediate impact out of that game, personnel changes.”
It’s also arguably why the Aggies are off to another 5-0 start.
Here’s everything you need to know for Saturday’s game:
Date: Saturday, October 17
Time: 2:30 p.m. CT
Place: Kyle Field, College Station, Texas
TV: CBS
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network, Texas A&M Radio Network, Compass Media Networks, Sirius 93, XM 191
Spread: Alabama -4 according to OddsShark.
Alabama Crimson Tide Keys to Victory
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Avoid Sacks
Both Myles Garrett (7.5) and Daeshon Hall (5.0) are among the top-12 players in the nation in sacks, and combined they’re averaging 2.5 per game. Don’t be surprised if Alabama uses a max-protection package sort of like it used against Georgia, especially with sophomore left tackle Cam Robinson less-than-full strength.
“He wasn't able to practice as much last week as what he usually does, and I think it's pretty typical that when a player can't practice it affects their performance a little bit,” Saban said. "I think that was an issue with Cam last week. Cam is a really good player for us. He's played really well at times this year. I don't think he would say or I would say that this last game was one of his best games. But we have a lot of confidence in him as a player and we have a high expectation for how we'd like for him to play and how he needs to play for our offense to be effective.
Don’t Let the Aggies Dictate Tempo
If Texas A&M’s offense can get into a rhythm it could be a long day for Alabama, which has to switch gears defensively after facing more traditional offenses the past couple of weeks.
“We have to change the game up a little bit, get more of a pass rush and we have to affect the quarterback way more this week,” senior defensive lineman Jarran Reed said.
With sophomore quarterback Kyle Allen a perfect 11-of-11 on first drives during the past four games, Texas A&M has outscored opponents 121-37 in the first quarter. A key statistic to watch will be third downs, as Texas A&M is converting 45.2 percent of its opportunities, up from last year’s 40.8. The Aggies were just 2-of-13 in last year’s game, but 5-of-8 in the 2013 game that Alabama won 49-42.
Play Ball Control
The best way to slow down the Aggies’ high-powered offense is to keep it off the field. Look for a lot of Derrick Henry and Kenyan Drake—Texas A&M is 12th in the SEC in rushing defense, and 85th in the nation.
“I always felt that I want to take advantage of any opportunity I get, so I might try to do it too much in the sense of every time I get the ball I want to score a touchdown,” senior running back Kenyan Drake said. “Well, anyone would want to, but everyone will have the will to win, but has to have the will to prepare to win. I think I had my best week of practice last week, and I felt I played my best game last week, too.”
Texas A&M Aggies Keys to Victory
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Shake Off the Bye-Week Rust
A bye can come at a good time or a bad time, and Texas A&M had built up some good momentum while starting out 5-0.
“They need time. Need time away from me. Time away from [reporters], who tell them how good or bad they are. That's the truth.” Sumlin said during last week’s press conference. “To play at this level, I've said before, the biggest deal with a guy making the transition from high school is that not every week do you play against guys with similar talents and skills, and in high school if you screw up you might get your picture in the paper. But you don't have to watch it over and over and over and over again all Saturday night on every channel, and then the next day, and then people talk about it all day Monday. Those guys are still kids, and I think people forget about that.”
Win the Turnover Battle
Texas A&M is very much like Ole Miss in the way it approaches the offense, and the two are ranked first and second in the SEC in scoring offense, total offense and passing offense. However, the Rebels needed five turnovers to beat the Crimson Tide 43-37 on Sept. 19.
Texas A&M is plus-two in turnover margin, while Alabama is even with 12 turnovers gained and lost. Of note, sophomore quarterback Kyle Allen has attempted 79 passes without an interception, and over the past four games the Aggies have had 11 touchdown passes compared to just one interception.
Ride the crowd
One of the keys to Alabama’s dominating 38-10 victory at No. 8 Georgia was taking the crowd out of the game in the first half. It’ll be a lot tougher to do so at a renovated Kyle Field, where capacity has gone from 83,002 to 102,000-plus.
“(The) atmosphere was really electric,” Drake said about the 2013 visit. “Obviously the temperature is probably going to be a little different. That was I think our third game of the season, our first SEC game, so it was hot there. But the atmosphere was really electric and that was before they added their latest renovation and added a few thousand seats to become the largest SEC stadium. It was very loud then, it will be interesting to see how loud it will be now.”
Alabama Players to Watch
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Cornerback Marlon Humphrey
When Georgia went after the redshirt freshman, Alabama swapped the cornerbacks and mixed up the coverages, and that was pretty much the last anyone saw of wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell. Before Arkansas got a late touchdown, it also struggled to get its passing game going last week.
“Just get completions, get whatever yards we can to keep us in third-[down] management where we can have an array of calls to convert on third down,” Arkansas quarterback Brandon Allen said about facing the Crimson Tide defense. “When you’re third-and-long it’s kind of difficult to call plays back when you have to get that many yards so it’s something we didn’t want to be in and we found ourselves in too many times.”
Tim Williams and Co.
By shutting down the running lanes, Alabama’s been able to attack quarterbacks without having to blitz much. Considering how Texas A&M likes to spread out defenders, this could be a game in which fans see more of the Crimson Tide’s speedy pass-rushers like linebacker Tim Williams and Rashaan Evans and defensive end Jonathan Allen.
Besides, considering all the attention Texas A&M sack artists have been getting, they’re probably pretty eager to show what they can do too.
Quarterback Jake Coker
Texas A&M defensive coordinator John Chavis is notorious for his man coverage using the corners so Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin will take his shots, but has to be careful not to expose his quarterback.
If Coker keeps trying to step up and deliver long passes downfield he’s going to keep taking hard hits and turning the ball over. The guess here is that Alabama will attempt more screens and under-coverage passes this week.
"The confidence, game-in and game-out, is obviously there," running back Kenyan Drake said. "Before he was more of a quiet, reserved guy, but now he has a lot more fire on the field and that is something we rally around with him being our quarterback—and also his ability to scramble and make plays on his feet. A lot of people didn’t guess that he would have that ability, too. All the different things he can do on and off the field gives all the people around him an edge and we rally around him.”
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Texas A&M Players to Watch
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Quarterback Kyle Allen
The sophomore has completed 89-of-139 passes with 13 touchdowns and just two interceptions. His 254.8 average in passing yards ranks third in the SEC, while his 169.0 efficiency rating is second.
Before the bye week, Allen completed 25-of-41 passes for 322 yards and a pair of scores and added 65 rushing yards in a 30-17 win over then-No. 21 Mississippi State.
Wide receiver Christian Kirk
Even though Kirk is only a freshman, he tops the Texas A&M receiving corps with 32 catches for 519 yards and four touchdowns. His 103.8 yards per game leads the SEC, while the 6.4 catches per game is second.
"He doesn't really line up outside,” Saban said. “He lines up in the slot quite a bit, so you can't really just put a guy on him, especially a guy who’s not used to playing in the slot. Corners usually play out here. But he is very explosive, great run after the catch guy, very good out of the break, very quick, has good hands, great balance and body control. This guy is a really, really good player and you would never know he was a freshman by watching him play.”
Myles Garrett/Daeshon Hall
Garrett leads the SEC in sacks while Hall is tied for second. They’re also second and tied for six, respectively, in tackles for a loss. They’ll be lining up against tackles Cam Robinson and Dominick Jackson, who have about 50 pounds on either of them so look for Alabama to go after them in the run game and provide some help in passing situations.
"A&M's front seven, they're long, they're big, they're fast, they get off the ball,” said Alabama guard Alphonse Taylor, who told reporters on Tuesday that when he arrived he weighed 385, but is now 325. “It's gonna be a good competition up front this week.”
What They're Saying
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Nick Saban on the difficulty of facing Texas A&M’s offense:
“They have really good skill guys. They spread you out a lot. Sometimes they're in empty, sometimes they're in four wides with a back. So the skill players they have are capable of beating you one-on-one. I think they have really good receivers. It's going to be a real challenge for us to be able to cover them and keep them cut off and not give them plays down the field. They have really good play-action schemes that go with their running plays that make it really difficult. They utilities formations into the boundary. They do a lot of things that are real challenges when it comes to big plays. If you make one mistake when you're that spread out, you have a chance for a guy to catch it and run with it.”
Kevin Sumlin about having John Chavis as defensive coordinator:
“Said right from the beginning it was a good fit for both of us. He was at a place and time where he was ready for a change. We were in same place. [The] ability for him to come in and communicate with our coaches, with recruiting as it was going on at the time, and also with the players, was a big deal. Buy in was immediate. We're not great but we've definitely improved. You can see signs we're getting better. We'll see here coming up. We’ll get challenged in different ways. I like our energy. I like the pace we play with on defense. A lot more aggressive on perimeter. Got to clean up penalties across the board as a team, but certainly in the last two weeks being plus-four on turnover margin is a team deal. We're better at hanging on to the ball but also creating them this year. That means two things. Not only are you getting the ball out, but it means you've got guys running to the ball and when it's on the ground you're getting it. Guys breaking on tipped balls, things like that. Effort is there. Attitude is good.”
Prediction
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This is the third game in a tough four-game stretch in which Alabama faces SEC opponents, and the second tough venue this month. Playing at Kyle Field will be a tougher challenge than Sanford Stadium was two weeks ago, but this is when the Crimson Tide’s defensive depth might really pay off.
The Crimson Tide will try and play grind-it-out football while the Aggies will counter with their spread, up-tempo style. Alabama has the edge, though, because its defense will be the best unit on the field.
Prediction: Alabama 27, Texas A&M 24
Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
Christopher Walsh is a lead SEC college football writer. Follow Christopher on Twitter @WritingWalsh.
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