Kalen DeBoer liked plenty of what he saw from Alabama’s ground game in the 50-36 win over Florida State on Saturday, Sept. 19. The Crimson Tide coach said his backs were finding lanes, making defenders miss and powering through second- and third-level contact all game long.
But one moment stood out enough that he didn’t need to name names.
Alabama center Racin Delgatty did that for him.
"We got EJ (Crowell) hurdling guys," Delgatty said. "It doesn't get much better than that."
That was freshman running back EJ Crowell, who finished with 51 rushing yards on seven carries and a touchdown while also flashing the kind of athleticism that had Alabama players stunned. Crowell cleared Florida State defenders twice, and Delgatty said that kind of move had never shown up in practice.
He said Crowell never talked about it, either. It simply appeared in game action against the Seminoles.
"You just seen what EJ did," Delgatty said. "Trae'shawn too, but this guy's hurdling kids at, what is he, 17? It's insane."
Through three games, Crowell has already become a key piece of Alabama’s rushing attack. He has three touchdowns on 17 carries and is averaging more than 6 yards per carry.
Quarterback Keelon Russell trusts him, and Russell says Crowell is still only scratching the surface of what he can do.
"That dude's phenomenal," Russell said. "He's a ballplayer.
He's a great player. He's only showing y'all half of what he can do, and I'm sure that coming into these next couple weeks, he's going to show you more phenomenal things."
In Other News...
Alabama Just Got A Troubling Roster Update Fans Didnt Expect
Alabamas roster picture shifted again this week, and not in a way that brings much comfort to a team still trying to settle into the rhythm of the season. Head coach Kalen DeBoer said offensive lineman Chris Booker is no longer with the Crimson Tide, though he did not spell out why, leaving another blank spot on a unit that is always under the microscope in Tuscaloosa.
There was at least some better news on the injury front, even if it came with a costly setback elsewhere. Linebacker Cayden Jones is out for the season because of an undisclosed injury, while running back AK Dear and wide receiver Noah Rogers are expected to be available after working back from their own injuries. For Alabama, the challenge now is absorbing the loss of depth without losing much more ground as the roster keeps changing around it. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama's First Night Game Brings Another Dangerous South Carolina Test
After a five-year gap between meetings, Alabama and South Carolina are now lining up for their third straight season of football against each other, and the recent history has made the matchup feel tighter than the long drought before it. Alabama has won the last two, but both came down to the final minutes, which is enough to keep this one from feeling routine even with the Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
The setting adds a little more edge, too, because this will be Alabamas first scheduled night game of the season, with a 6 p.m. kickoff on ESPN in Tuscaloosa. For a team that has already had to work to separate from South Carolina late, the combination of a prime-time stage and another tricky SEC test gives the game a different kind of weight than a typical early-season home date. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Just Got A Clearer SEC Warning Before Week 4
Week 3 around the SEC did not leave much room for comfort, and the leagues middle tier only got more crowded as Arkansas, South Carolina, Auburn, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, Mississippi State, Florida and Texas A&M all came out of the weekend with their own fresh questions. Ole Miss and LSU drew the biggest attention, but the broader picture mattered just as much for Alabama, which is watching the conference sort itself out one week at a time as the schedule tightens.
The updated power rankings reflect a league where every result seems to matter twice, once for the standings and again for how it shapes the next Saturday. Week 4 now brings another round of tests for those same teams, and Alabama has plenty of reason to track how the rest of the SEC handles it, because the warning signs are getting clearer even if the full picture is still coming into focus. [Read more 🡒]