Alabama has blown out its opponent in all four games this season and enters Saturday’s game against Louisiana-Lafayette as a seven-touchdown favorite, according to VegasInsider.com.
Here are five questions to consider heading into the matchup.
1. What’s next from Tagovailoa?
The only thing stopping Tua Tagovailoa this season has been the score. The sophomore has breezed through opposing defenses with such ease that he has yet to take a fourth-quarter snap. That likely won’t change this week as Louisiana-Lafayette’s No. 112-ranked defense shouldn’t present much of a test.
Still, Tagovailoa has done a lot with his limited time on the field. Through four games he leads the nation with a 230.47 quarterback rating — nearly 15 points higher than West Virginia’s Will Grier, who sits at No. 2. Tagovailoa has completed 72.5 percent of his passes for 1,033 yards and 12 touchdowns and has yet to turn the ball over. He’s been especially impressive on deep throws, completing 9 of 13 passes of 20 or more yards, including five touchdowns.
Tagovailoa earned SEC Offensive Player of the Week honors Monday after totaling 397 yards of total offense and five touchdowns against Texas A&M. He completed 22 of 28 passes for a career-best 387 yards and four touchdowns. Tagovailoa’s five total touchdowns matched the single-game touchdown mark at Alabama.
With Alabama projected to be heavy favorites in its next few games, Tagovailoa might not see much of the second half in coming weeks. However, that shouldn’t stop him from putting on a show in the meantime.
2. Will Hurts play?
Saturday will be decision day for Jalen Hurts as he heads into the fifth week of the season. The backup quarterback has already played in Alabama’s four previous games, reaching the limit allowed to still redshirt according to a new rule passed by the NCAA this season.
Barring any sudden changes, it doesn’t appear Hurts has any plans of redshirting. The junior is set to graduate in December and would have two years of eligibility remaining if he elected to sit out the remainder of the season. However, he has shown no indication of wanting to do that and will most likely continue to play out the remainder of the year as Tagovailoa’s backup.
Saban went in depth on Alabama’s quarterback situation in an article published by ESPN last week. The head coach called the situation “unique,” stating it was difficult to take the starting role away from Hurts this season.
"I understand how unique a situation this is," Saban said. "I don't know of any other precedent at any time in college football where a guy started 28 games, won 26 of them and then somebody took his place. That's never happened. So that's hard for Jalen, and it's hard for me. I'm a loyal guy and loyal to the guys who get out there and lay it on the line for you. You want to be fair to all of your players, but you also want to be fair to your team.
"We needed both quarterbacks last year, and we'll need them both again this year.”
3. Will the run game improve?
Despite piling up 524 yards against Texas A&M, Alabama’s offense was held to a season-low in rushing yards as the Aggies limited the Crimson Tide to 109 yards on the ground. Alabama ball carriers averaged just 3.9 yards per carry and uncharacteristically weren’t able to chew up the clock late in the fourth quarter.
“It's definitely a big emphasis in the running back room, just doing the little things,” running back Josh Jacobs said. “Not trying to over create and sticking to the basics like one-cut runs and getting North and South. We're trying to emphasize that in practice.”
Texas A&M boasts the nation’s No. 10 run defense, allowing opponents an average of 92.5 yards per game on the ground. This week Alabama will face a much easier challenge in Louisiana-Lafayette. Only four teams are allowing more rushing yards than the Ragin’ Cajuns, who have given up 263 yards per game on the ground.
“That’s something we’re kind of glad that happened so we know what we’re doing wrong when we look at the film we’re able to say ‘We’re not getting double teams right’ or ‘Our tight ends are not sealing the edge,’ or something like that,” tight end Hale Hentges said of Alabama’s struggles last week. “We’re able to look at that and see exactly what we’re doing wrong. It’s a multitude of things, but we’ll get it corrected, and hopefully we’ll play better next week.”
4. Can DeLong shake off his rough start?
Alabama misses JK Scott. A drop-off at the punting position was expected this season as Scott, the school’s all-time leading punter, graduated to the NFL. However, no one thought it would be this bad. Alabama currently ranks No. 120 out of 130 NCAA Division I schools, averaging 35.93 yards per punt.
Freshman punter Skyler DeLong came into the program as one of the best prospects at his position but has so far failed to deliver on his high billing. Against Texas A&M last week, DeLong punted the ball six times, averaging just 36 yards per attempt.
"The thing about Skyler is he's been a lot better in practice and done a good job in practice and actually had a really good week in practice last week," Saban said. "We know he's capable.”
DeLong flashed that potential at times last week. He tallied a 51-yard punt and also pinned the Aggies at the 1-yard line. However, Alabama will need more consistency from the freshman as it moves further into conference play.
5. Will Alabama make it out of the game injury free?
In all reality, this is the most important question heading into this week’s game. Alabama will face tougher opponents as the season progresses, and now is the time to test out younger players and provide veterans with some rest heading into the meat of the SEC schedule.
Saban gave his players Monday off before returning to the practice field on Tuesday. If all goes right Saturday, Alabama’s starters should also see a decreased workload as the Crimson Tide figures to have the game put away early.
