The University of Alabama Football and Crimson Tide Sports Source
April 26, 2024
November 15, 2014
One Big Winner
Today in Tuscaloosa one of these teams will emerge as a big winner. If Alabama wins it will have taken the next step toward the SEC title game. If Mississippi State wins they will have gone where no Bulldog team has gone before. The stakes are high.
All of Alabama’s remaining games are in Tuscaloosa. This team has played remarkably well at home. That’s advantage Alabama. After allowing the LSU quarterback to make big gains on third down runs the Tide defense finally adjusted and took away that aspect of the Tiger’s game. Right now, Alabama’s defense is playing better than they've played all season.
Mississippi State is the number one team in the country in all of the poles including the playoff poll. They are vulnerable on defense. They have a good running game and a great play action passing game. They can and likely will score points on the Tide. The question is will they score enough points to win and can they stop Alabama.
LSU scored 29 points on State sure many of those were after the game was out of reach. Auburn scored 23 points both of those games were in Starkville. Texas A&M and Kentucky both put 31 points on the Bulldog defense. A&M was at home and UK was in Lexington. State’s defense has issues especially in the passing game and they say they are not going to double cover Amari Cooper – that could be advantage Alabama.
State is coming in with a chip on its shoulder. They feel that they are number one and nobody respects them. Alabama was leaped by TCU in the playoff poll after the big win at LSU. Since loosing to Ole Miss Alabama has been dismissed as not as good as the other Alabama championship teams. Both teams feel they have something to prove.
The game will come down to defense. Can Alabama stop Mississippi State’s running game – especially the running of quarterback Dak Prescott? Will State be able to stop Alabama’s passing game? Most importantly, if State get a lead can they hold it? They barely did that against Kentucky and Arkansas and Alabama is not Arkansas and Kentucky.
I could be wrong but I don’t think State will be able to stop Alabama’s passing game. I also think Alabama will make some yards on the ground against the Bulldogs. State will also get some yards on the ground, LSU did. No doubt Prescott will make a big play or two. He is a great player and those kinds of individuals play their best in big games. Though the same can be said of Alabama’s playmakers.
If Alabama loses this game their season is essentially over. They can still beat Auburn and make a decent bowl game but any sort of championship is simply out the window. This Alabama team has been an enigma all season. There was the whole quarterback controversy that turned out to not be. The pass defense that has simply gotten better as the season has progressed. In fact, that’s the whole thing about this team. It's, for the most part, a young team that has grown as the season has progressed. It's a better team in November than it was in September. This is a team that could be special, a real feel good story, at least for Alabama fans.
I think Alabama will win this game. I don’t know when the last time both Mississippi schools beat Alabama in the same season. I don’t know if that’s ever happened, it could have. I just don’t think it’s going to happen this year. My guess Alabama 48 Mississippi 31.
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