Charleston Southern at Alabama Complete Game Preview
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — For those who are wondering why the University of Alabama would be playing Charleston Southern, which is ranked ninth in the Football Championship Subdivision and has already clinched the Big South Conference title, the key lies with the Crimson Tide’s next opponent.
On Nov. 28, Alabama faces its primary rival Auburn, which during the Nick Saban era has scheduled the following opponents the week before:
- 2007: Bye
- 2008: Bye
- 2009: Bye
- 2010: Bye
- 2011: Samford
- 2012: Alabama A&M
- 2013: Bye
- 2014: Samford
- 2015: Idaho
Self-preservation is a key aspect to it, but also consider Alabama’s schedule if it faced another Southeastern Conference opponent the week before facing Auburn. It would play four league games on consecutive Saturdays and then a fifth if it made the SEC Championship Game.
Meanwhile, this will be Alabama’s first opponent since Arkansas on Oct. 10 that didn’t have extra time to prepare for the Crimson Tide.
Texas A&M, Tennessee and LSU were all coming off a bye, and Mississippi State faced Missouri the previous Thursday.
It’ll be the first meeting between Alabama and Charleston Southern, which will get a sizable check for making the trip. The Buccaneers started as a club program in 1989, moved up to Division III in 1991 and was reclassified as an FCS team after a 1993 NCAA rule stipulated that all sports at a school must play in the same division.
"You know, we don't have a lot of choices,” Nick Saban said about the scheduling. “It's not like going into a restaurant and getting a menu and saying 'OK, we can play these 24 different teams. Which one do you want to play?' Most of the time, we're bargaining and begging to get anybody to play us. So we don't always have a lot of choice.”
Here’s everything you need to know for Saturday’s game:
Date: Saturday, November 21
Time: 3 p.m. CT
Place: Bryant-Denny Stadium
TV: SEC Network
Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network, , Sirius 112, XM 192; 1450 WFMB-AM Charleston.
Spread: OddsShark.com does not have a line listed.
Alabama Keys to Victory
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Find its motivation
Alabama’s players have been terrific at staying focused since the Ole Miss loss, going a perfect 7-0 since then despite the difficult schedule. After back-to-back wins against No. 2 LSU and No. 17 Mississippi State, it can’t start preparing for Auburn yet because Charleston Southern isn’t a pushover.
On Oct. 31, the Buccaneers notched the biggest win in program history when they defeated FCS No. 1 Coastal Carolina, 33-25.
Meanwhile, the Crimson Tide will be celebrating Senior Day and also can’t do anything to jeopardize its playoff chances, as Alabama is three wins away from being in college football’s version of the Final Four.
Use its obvious size advantage
Charleston Southern has some size on the offensive line, especially with tackles Benny Timmons (6’2”, 300 lbs.) and Erik Austell (6’3”, 285 lbs.), but where you really see the difference is on the defensive line. The Bucs have a 3-4 scheme, and at 6’3", 250 pounds, the nose guard is roughly the same size as Alabama linebacker Denzel Devall.
That’s going to be a problem for the visiting team, especially considering that all of the linebackers will be giving up at least 20 pounds to running back Derrick Henry, and Alabama’s offensive line will be looking to help his Heisman Trophy chances.
“I think each week we are playing better and better,” sophomore left tackle Cam Robinson said. “As an offensive line, if one person’s not playing well or another person’s not playing well, it’s very easily shown because as an offensive line, you have to be a unit, you have to gel together as one. If one person’s not playing well, it’s magnified.”
Don’t miss tackles
This has been a strength of the Crimson Tide defense, but head coach Nick Saban said that the team had some of its best practices of the season at the beginning of last week and then started to look a little tired just before playing Mississippi State.
Between that and the players being a little banged up, Alabama didn’t practice on Monday.
“We probably didn't tackle as well in space as we'd like to and gave up a few big plays that we probably shouldn't have,” he said about the 31-6 victory over the Bulldogs. “Those are things that we definitely need to work on and try to fix.”
Charleston Southern Keys to Victory
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Play keep-away with the ball
The Charleston Southern coaching staff may want to think about showing its team the Crimson Tide’s 2011 game against Georgia Southern, when Alabama was in almost the exact same position and gave up 302 rushing yards.
Of course, Alabama still won 45-21.
“There are some similarities,” Nick Saban said about their offenses. “It's not totally the same, but it's option football. Georgia Southern basically ran more Georgia Tech style offense, which is more three-back, which they have some of. But they mostly do it with two backs in the backfield and multiple formations, which create adjustment issues to be able to stay sound on the option.”
The more the Bucs can keep the ball away from the Crimson Tide, the more they can keep Alabama’s running game from pounding away.
Don’t be intimidated
Charleston Southern needs to forget that since 2002 it has played 16 games against a team from the Football Bowl Subdivision and lost them all. Earlier this season, it came up short at Troy 44-16, and in 2014 it played two SEC teams, losing 55-9 to Georgia and 21-20 at Vanderbilt.
Offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Gabe Giardina was a walk-on at Alabama who later served as a graduate assistant to Saban for a season, but it’ll still be the biggest crowd the Buccaneers have ever played before.
Although the Buccaneers will be eager to show what they can do, the coaches have to keep in mind that they’re on the bubble for getting a first-round bye for the FCS playoffs. If they don’t get it, Charleston Southern will be playing next weekend.
Play to its strengths
Charleston Southern has the nation's top-ranked defense at the FCS level, giving up just 252.9 yards per game and 4.30 per play. The Bucs are ninth in rushing defense at 101.2 and 3.03, respectively.
However, they’re tied for No. 93 in turnovers gained, a statistic they’ll have to have an edge with to have any chance of winning at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
The offense returned nine starters, including everyone on the offensive line, with the five players having combined to start 139 games and play in 168 games. They’ll need that experience against Alabama’s imposing front seven.
Alabama Players to Watch
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Running backs Damien Harris/Bo Scarbrough
With senior Kenyan Drake out for a couple of weeks with an arm fracture, Alabama needs one of the freshmen running backs to step up. Harris has 34 carries for 109 yards, and Scarbrough five attempts for 18 yards, but what they do when they don’t get the ball (blocking, etc.) will be just as important.
“Both guys are going to have to play a role, there's no question about that,” Nick Saban said. “They're young guys, so are they going to step up to the challenge and compete and show the maturity you need to get ready to play a game and play it well and do it on a consistent basis? That's the challenge for all the young guys."
“We've had a couple do a great job of that. Minkah [Fitzpatrick] has done a great job of that. Calvin Ridley has done a good job of that. Sustaining the standard. Nobody is entitled to anything. You have to earn it.”
Tight end O.J. Howard
Look for offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin to call some plays that will only make it harder for Auburn to prepare, so don’t be surprised to see a new wrinkle or two and more passes to someone like Howard.
Although he’s third on the team in receptions with 29 for 323 yards, Howard has yet to see the end zone this season. Charleston Southern probably hasn’t seen too many tight ends with his size and speed, so look for Kiffin to try and get him a pass or two in open field.
Linebacker Reuben Foster
Despite suffering a wrist injury and leaving Davis Wade Stadium with a cast on his right hand last Saturday, Foster led the team in total tackles with 10 while recording two pass breakups and two quarterback hurries.
Two weeks ago, he had a career-high 11 tackles and he’s moved into second in team tackles with 50 behind only Reggie Ragland’s 82.
Chances are no one on the Crimson Tide will come close to double digits in tackles this week, but Foster is beginning to fulfill his potential as a prime recruit in the 2013 signing class.
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Charleston Southern Players to Watch
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Quarterback Austin Brown
Senior quarterback Austin Brown has completed 56.3 percent of his pass attempts (103-of-183) for 1,356 yards and 11 touchdowns. He averages 150.7 yards per game, and his longest completion has been for 47 yards.
Against No. 1 Coastal Carolina, he threw for 199 yards and two touchdowns in the first half alone. He finished 13-of-21 for 252 yards, which was his career high until throwing for 301 yards and four touchdowns against Liberty last week.
“Their quarterback, Austin Brown, does a really good job," Nick Saban said, "He's a very athletic guy who can run, as well as is a good passer."
Running backs Darius Hammond/Mike Holloway
The junior tandem has combined for 207 carries for 1,249 rushing yards and 15 of the Buccaneers’ 24 rushing touchdowns.
Hammond also returns kicks and punts and has 1,384 all-purpose yards this season.
Something to keep an eye on is that Holloway and junior Ben Robinson both have had three fumbles, with two lost.
Weak-side linebacker Aaron Brown
The senior leads Charleston Southern with 63 tackles, followed by sophomore linebacker Zane Cruz with 50. Brown had a 53-yard fumble return for a touchdown in the season opener against Division II North Greenville.
Sophomore defensive end Anthony Ellis leads the line with 34 tackles including 14 for a loss and 6.5 sacks. He had a 61-yard fumble return for a touchdown against Kennesaw State.
No one has more than one interception, although senior cornerback, and team captain, Malcolm Jackson has been credited with 12 passes broken up.
What They’re Saying
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Nick Saban on facing Charleston Southern:
"“Charleston Southern is 9-1, one of the probably best teams in their FCS division. They're ranked in the Top 10 in almost every category. One of the top defenses in that league as well as very productive offensively with a different style of offense than what we've played against. A lot of option, split-back kind of options, that we have not played against. This is going to be a challenging game for us from a preparation standpoint."
“Their defense has created a lot of negative plays, very quick. They play a 3-4 and they do a good job with their pressure package and create negative plays. This is a good team that we're playing, and hopefully our players will have the kind of respect they need to go out and play good, positive, winning football against them.”
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Third-year head coach Jamey Chadwell on facing Alabama:
"“Everyone knows how good they are. They’re one of the best teams in the country, and obviously a tough challenge for us. We’re looking forward to representing Charleston Southern and the Big South down there. We’ll go down there like we do for every game and expect to win, go out and hopefully play our very best. But we understand that if they play their worst and we play our best it still may not matter. We understand the challenge we have, but we’re looking forward to it. We’ve been in a lot of games at Charleston Southern, have played a lot of SEC teams, Top 5 programs. It’s one of those things that can help you get more recognition nationally, helps with recruiting, helps our budget. It’s one of those games that helps us continue with facilities upgrades. So there are a lot of benefits for us going down there. I’m a little nervous about going to the [FCS] playoffs after playing a team like Alabama, you worry about some injuries this late in the season, but our guys will persevere through those things.”
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Chadwell on facing running back Derrick Henry:
"“He’s obviously a phenomenal player, may win the Heisman. One of our current players was a high school teammate, so we obviously hear a lot about him. It’s going to take a complete team effort to try and corral him because he has a combination of size and speed that you don’t see at our level. If we don’t fit things right and don’t tackle he’s going to be able to take it to the house…"
“They’ve texted and talked and we’ve asked him to tell him to take it easy on us and only play a quarter, but he won’t jive. He says coach won’t let him do that right now. We’re trying to get him to get sick or have the flu, but he won’t go for it.”
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Prediction
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The game is a mismatch on paper, and unless it comes out incredibly flat, Alabama’s aim will be to get its work in and then call it a day.
If Charleston Southern’s game against Troy was any indication, the Crimson Tide ought to have some big plays. The offense needs to work on its timing, and the defense wants to show the home crowd one final time just how intimidating it can be.
Even if push comes to shove for some reason, Alabama just has too much size and talent for the Buccaneers.
Prediction: Alabama 45, Charleston Southern 10
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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