The briefest recap of a football victory of the century endured Saturday at the sweaty, stuffy, oppressive Darrell K. Royal Stadium: If there’s a quarterback, there’s a chance. Bryce Young reminded us of that mantra on the day No. 1 Alabama played their worst game ever. The current Heisman Trophy winner owned the 4th quarter against Texas.
Ultimately, that was enough for the day when the Crimson Tide played long hours like I knew the Crimson Tide was a three-touchdown favorite and didn’t want to work. please do not worry. After the match Nick Saban had a lot to say about it.
At this point, it only mattered that Young was a sterling while Texas’ best quarterback had his left arm sidelined in a sling. , looked set to have a magical afternoon when he was hit and knocked out by Dallas Turner.
With Ewers starting for the second time in his career, it’s easy to imagine a comfortable win for Texas. The Ohio State transfer completed 9 of 12 passes for 134 yards on a big 46-yard toss to wide receiver Xavier Worthy, who was in the process of his own breakout performance.
At the first meeting between the strong programs in 12 years, the Longhorns have risen well enough to gain what many Orangebloods deemed a success: progress.
“If it’s the best team in the country,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said.
Texas has been down for so long that a moral victory, while not normally accepted, could probably be defended on this important Saturday. I limped most of the time. The card had enough left to lead the Horns to a 49-yard field goal from Bert Auburn with 1:29 remaining.
The DKR was ready to explode. Headings were pre-made: Auburn beats Alabama. In the end, Auburn scored 12 of Texas’ 19 points in the game.
But it was Young who carried the Tide with the desired, but dramatic, results. Alabama’s Will Reichard scored his goal on the final game-winning 33-yard field with 10 seconds left in the 20–19 win.
It helped Saban avoid their first non-conference regular season loss since their first year in the program (2007 vs. Louisiana Monroe). It avoided a staggering 15 penalties, a record for a team coached by Saban in the SEC (Bama, LSU). This circumvented his plans for a great game by Texas defensive his coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski and sidekick Gary Patterson (defensive his analyst and former TCU legend his coach).
While his team trailed 16-10 just minutes into the fourth quarter, Young completed 15 of his last 19 passes for 136 yards and finished the last 13 minutes of the game. achieved a touchdown. More importantly, he put most of his sputtering offense in position for Richard’s kick.
“It’s like taking over the game,” Saban said.
“We train for moments like this,” said linebacker Will Anderson Jr.
“We have no hesitation,” Young said.
In fact, there were many hesitations. It’s just that Young didn’t let the Tide collapse. His 213 yards (27 of 39 passes) were his third-lowest of his career since becoming a starter last season. It stemmed from a campaign in which Heisman scored his pass for nearly 5,000 yards and he had 47 touchdowns, and Alabama qualified for his college football playoffs against Georgia for his national championship. Leading until the 4th quarter.
Young probably has to be mentioned as the best quarterback in Bama’s history. rice field. Texas added two more on Saturday. The defense of the evidence has been ruled not to allow successive Young to become part of his Heisman.
With time running out and his wide receiver not performing consistently in the game, Young countered.
“Being placed in these positions allows us to learn about ourselves as a team,” he said.
The 15 penalties committed by Bama are the most since 2022 under Dennis Francione. The Alabama kicker hadn’t made a game-winning spike with less than five minutes of his time remaining since 2006. The tide is usually going comfortably.
This is how it should have been. In a meeting more about brands than backyard brawls, Alabama was his 20-point favorite. The rout appeared to begin when Jace McClellan went free on his 81-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
Texas then proved to be a match for Bama. at least. The DKR crowd kicked in, causing his four false starts by the Tide’s aggressive linemen. Secondary – Saban baby as positional coach – pegged with two pass interference penalties on back-to-back plays (defensive back Kool-Aid McKinstry). The Big 12 crew may have missed a few more.
Young’s biggest play may have been avoiding a safety in the third quarter. With the game he tied 10-10, Texas’s T’Vondre Sweat appeared to sack Young in the end zone. On the same play, Horns linebacker Demarbion Overshawn was called out for roughing and targeting passers.
None of it was accurate. The Big 12 referee reversed the targeting, bizarrely denying the roughing call and explaining that he had been given the wrong information. (Think about it.) Young was desperate for safety. He threw the ball out of Overshawn’s helmet and rolled on Sweat’s back for an incompleteness before it touched the ground.
It was gymnastics. It was athletic. Given the way Texas approached, it could have saved the game. A grinder in a low scoring game could have returned the ball safely.
“Why is he so good? Even if I could actually say it, I don’t know if I would do this,” Saban said of Young. Good job. [Seriously], the guy studies and prepares well for the game. He understands what defenses are doing and what they’re going to do…and he’s very instinctive. He plays quarterback like a point guard in basketball . “
That point guard is expanding his portfolio. As great as Young may be on the field, his recent string of Dr Pepper “Funsville” commercials proves kids can act.
Saturday didn’t matter. At that Sweatbox stadium, and for the Alabama dynasty, all that mattered was that the quarterback looked down on that field late in the fourth quarter and saw his team trail and win.
“That’s where we want to go,” said Young.
Comments
Post a Comment