TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Saturday night, the Crimson Tide redeemed themselves in front of a sold-out crowd after the loss in Tallahassee with a shut-out performance over the ULM Warhawks.
“We got to continue to sustain the intensity and focus. The guys did a good job playing from snap to whistle,” said Alabama Football head coach Kalen DeBoer.
The first quarter, Alabama had eight first downs, rushed 163 total yards, and nine minutes of possession, scoring on every drive they had of the quarter. The tide kept this energy going throughout the night ending with 583 total yards rushing, 29 first downs, no turnovers, and ruled the field with 34 minutes of possession.
Simpson completed 17 of 17 consecutive passes during the game compared to his performance versus Florida State where he only completed 53% of his attempts. The Alabama receiver room ended the night with 371 yards rushing led by Germie Bernard with 67 yards, Lotzeir Brooks with 58, and Isaiah Horton with 51. Rushing yards totaled to 212, led by AK Dear with 76 yards and Kevin Riley with 69.
“On Sunday, I could tell it was going to be a different type of week, different type of vibe… it was really great to see.” Crimson Tide starting quarterback, Simpson said.
On the defensive end, there was a total of 61 tackles. James Smith had four solo tackles and Deonate Lawson, and Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. had four total tackles.
ULM struggled all night ending with only nine first downs and no points. With incomplete passes and penalties, the Warhawks only rushed 148 yards with three turnovers.
How it happened
First Quarter
To start off the night, the Tide received the football, their opening drive started off with a 22-yard pass but then they got set back five yards due to a false start. However, Alabama kept pushing down the field to end their first drive with a 29-yard touchdown caught by Bernard. Under 3-minutes the Crimson Tide is on the board, already painting a different picture than previous Florida State game.
The Alabama defense opens with a bang, not letting the Warhawks get a single down on their first drive.
ULM’s defense struggled to hold the Tide’s offense, with allowing another scoring drive, 16-yard touchdown pass from Simpson to Bernard once again. Another 5-play drive, once again under 3- minutes.
After another unsuccessful attempt by the Warhawks, Cole Adams returned the punt for 36 yards, which turned into a scoring drive ending with a 3-yard TD run by Richard Young.
The quarter ends with the score 21-0.
Second Quarter
Keeping up their energy, the Tide at once comes out and scores on the first drive of this quarter with Simpson getting his first touchdown of the night with an 8-yard carry.
Trying to convert their first third down of the night, ULM’s quarterback Aidan Armenta throws an interception, caught by Jefferson. After a timeout by the Warhawks, Austin Mack leads the Crimson Tide to the fifth scoring drive of the night with a 6-yard pass to Kaleb Edwards.
ULM completed their first down of the night, which ended up going nowhere as they punted the ball away.
After a pass-interference call overturned a scoring play, the Tide converted a fourth down to continue pushing down the field. Nearing the end of the fourth quarter, the Tide was pushed back due to a holding penalty, overturning another touchdown. However, with 31 seconds left, the Tide gets another touchdown, Simpson completing a 29-yard pass to Horton.
The first half ends with the Crimson Tide having a score of 42 and the Warhawks still not on the board.
“We just got to stay consistent… we have to build on what we did today,” LT Overton said at the post-game press conference.
Third Quarter
ULM receives the ball to start off the second half and immediately gets a first down to start off the drive. However, it once again turned into a missed opportunity for the Warhawks, who were forced to punt the ball away.
During their first drive of the second half, the Crimson Tide did not score a touchdown for the first time during the game but still scored points from a successful 46-yard field goal by Conor Talty.
Due to a kick catch interference call, Alabama started with an immediate first down, which began another scoring drive where Mack threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Josh Cuevas, bringing the score to 52-0.
Fourth Quarter
Starting off the final quarter, the Warhawks were moving down the field until there was a fumble by Rico Powers, which was recovered by QB Reese. Keelon Russell successfully took this chance for an 18-yard pass to Adams for a touchdown.
Kirkpatrick Jr. received a targeting penalty giving ULM a 15-yard gain which turned into another missed opportunity for them to score.
Alabama capitalized on next drive with a touchdown pass from Russell, MJ Chirgwin scored the ninth touchdown of the game.
With their final drive, the Crimson Tide AKDear scored a 56-yard rushing touchdown to end the game, with a final score of 73-0.
Coach DeBoer added, “All we can control is what we had in front of us.”
Up next
After this win, Alabama is now 1-1, and 0-0 in conference play. On September 13, the Crimson Tide will face Wisconsin at home. Kick-off is 11 am CT, on ABC/ESPN.
