Alabama Football: Hard Fought Game With Arkansas, But Dre Saved The Day For Bama

It was not the game that Alabama fans expected, but it could have been the game that they needed to have to make a stretch run for another championship.

There are several reasons to believe that after a come-from-behind 24-20 victory over Arkansas.

1. With bigger and possibly better teams coming at them quickly, Alabama needed to know what weaknesses they had so they could concentrate on fixing them. The second-half adjustments made by Saban and company show that already have a handle on doing that.

There is now plenty of game film for Saban and the Tide to look at that shows areas of improvement that are needed.

2. They needed to come from behind on the road in a hostile environment to build their confidence level. With away games still remaining at South Carolina and LSU, that could be a big plus.

Should this situation arise again, they'll know they've been there and done that before and can do it again.

3. They didn't lose their poise. Greg McElroy had a bad day of bad judgments and turnovers, but he didn't have a bad game.

He kept his calm and poise, and with the game on the line, just as he has done every time, he calmly marched his team in for a game-winning score.

The defensive backs looked more out of place than Evander Holyfield on "Dancing with the Stars" in the first half. But by the second half, they had calmed down and also shut down Ryan Mallett.

In the game, Mallett threw for 357 yards, but only 82 of them came in the second half. He also threw two interceptions in the second half.

Conversely, the offense, which sputtered in the first half, came alive when it mattered in the second half. There was never a sense of desperation.

Mark Ingram proved that he deserves more Heisman consideration despite missing the first two games this year.

4. This was a reality check for the Crimson Tide. Maybe now they realize that they can't just show up and win.

They certainly did not bring their A game to Fayetteville for this game and they saw what could have and almost happened when you do that.

5. The players saw Saban have faith that they win this game on their terms. With fourth and inches, Saban went for the sure win late in the game by going for a first down rather than punting.

The players know that Nick Saban knows no one can stop that team for gaining a yard and he showed it.

It would have been a gutsy call for some coaches, but Saban feels if you can stop his team from gaining six inches, you may deserve to beat his team.

6. Everybody had to do their best in the second half and know that somebody would make a play because of it.

One player after another made a key play, a key block, a key throw, or a key catch or run, but in the end it was Dre Kirkpatrick that saved the day by picking off Ryan Mallett one last time that let Alabama seal the deal.

7. The belief that Alabama will always find a way to win goes on for one more week.

Should Alabama finish another undefeated season, many may point to this game as the one where where this team forged its and came to believe that they are a team of destiny.