Watching the Alabama-Texas A&M game in real time, the picture could have gone one of two ways. On one hand, Alabama looked like a team that had gotten a little help from early turnovers and was hanging around longer than it should have. On the other, the Tide seemed to be doing better than the scoreboard made it look, especially in terms of efficiency and explosiveness.
By the end, the numbers leaned toward the brighter interpretation. Alabama finished with an 8-point efficiency edge overall, posting a 44% successful play rate to Texas A&M’s 36%.
The Tide also more than doubled the Aggies in explosive rate, 15% to 7%. For Alabama, that means winning a game at home that it was supposed to win rather than having to steal one.
The down-by-down chart backed that up, too. After a stronger second half from the Alabama offense, the Tide ended up ahead of the Aggies in successful play rate and explosive rate on all three downs. That included third down, where Keelon and company had struggled for much of the afternoon.
Still, the game never felt quite as tidy as the final numbers suggest. Texas A&M stayed right there for most of it, and the cumulative charts show a contest that was tight on efficiency until Alabama separated late.
The Tide’s explosiveness was a different story from the start, with Alabama leaning on a boom-and-bust approach and posting explosive play rates above 20% for much of the first half. That helped produce a field goal and another touchdown early, while A&M mostly lived in the sub-10% range.
Then the fourth quarter hit, and everything changed.
Texas A&M went from being a stubborn opponent to getting flattened in a hurry. The Aggies produced exactly one successful play in the fourth quarter, a pass, and had zero explosive plays. Alabama, meanwhile, suddenly improved its efficiency by about 50% and began stringing plays together like it was facing a far softer opponent.
The explanation, naturally, is open to interpretation. Maybe an old curse finally got broken.
Maybe Keelon found a magic Mario mushroom in the medical tent. Maybe Grubb checked RBR for advice from the game thread.
Maybe Alabama DL Fatutoa Henry is some kind of minor deity handing out a +10 strength boost to whoever lines up around him. Maybe it was the Moon, which rose around 5 p.m. local time.
CrimsonHayate may yet arrive with the all-22 and settle the matter.
The running game, though, was its own strange story. Alabama started with a fairly balanced approach, but the first few drives were rough sledding.
The Tide didn’t register a successful play until its fifth snap, when Rico Scott caught an explosive pass, and didn’t record a successful run until its ninth play. The offense eventually drifted away from the pass late in the first half, finishing the half on a run of eight straight passes, then opening the next possession with two more throws.
There’s been plenty of talk around the running game already, including the impact of injured offensive linemen and a strong defensive front. But the pattern here suggested that Grubb tends to lean on the passing game when things get uncomfortable.
Once Alabama had a lead and things felt calmer in the fourth quarter, the ground game came back into the plan. Even then, it didn’t really get going until the closing stretch, and that had more to do with Texas A&M wearing down than anything else.
If there was a bright spot on offense, it was Rico Scott. With Ryan Coleman-Williams out, Lotzier Brooks looked like the obvious next man up, but Scott ended up filling the gap more than anyone else.
He caught 6 successful passes, and 4 of those were explosive. It was the biggest day on offense for Alabama’s receiving group.
The tight ends helped, too. Josh Ford and Kaleb Edwards combined for 6 successful catches on 7 targets, with 2 explosives between them. Marshall Pritchett also continued what has become a late-game role as Keelon’s safety blanket in the flats.
The rushing chart, by contrast, was unusual because it had no explosive runs at all. Daniel Hill still made his presence felt, showing he isn’t just fading away because the roster has talented freshmen.
Trae’shawn Brown had a tougher time getting traction, finishing with 1 successful rush on 7 carries for a 14.3% rushing success rate. Hill led the group with a 44.4% rushing success rate and added two successful catches as well.
Now Alabama turns to the bye week, and the timing could hardly be better. The injury situation is piling up, and there’s work to do. The AP Poll and SP+ numbers were already out there, and even while enjoying the win for a day - along with the other action around college football - it’s hard to ignore LSU showing up in the stats and waiting for Alabama in two weeks.
In Other News...
Alabama May Have Spotted An In-State Lineman Before Everyone Else
Alabama has already dipped into its 2027 offensive line board with a familiar kind of target for the Crimson Tide: an in-state prospect who may be more projection than polish right now. Xavier Endicott, a 6-foot-4, 280-pound lineman from Oxford, has committed to Alabama shortly after the program extended him a scholarship, and the early return suggests the staff saw enough size and athletic ability to move quickly.
Endicott is still unranked on the major recruiting sites, which only adds to the intrigue around how fast his recruitment came together. He also becomes part of a small but notable in-state foundation in the class, joining Stafford Willis as Alabama looks to stockpile offensive line talent early and identify potential before the rest of the country catches on. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Heads Into LSU Still Sorting Out Two Key Availability Concerns
Alabama kept rolling with a 31-20 win over Texas A&M even while dealing with several starters who were unavailable because of injuries and a suspension. The Crimson Tide have shown enough depth to keep winning through the absences, but the latest availability questions are still hanging over a stretch of the season that is only getting tougher from here.
Ahead of the LSU matchup, Kalen DeBoer gave updates on injured players Ryan Coleman-Williams and William Sanders, two names Alabama is still monitoring closely as it tries to get closer to full strength. The situation comes with the added backdrop of defensive back Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. being suspended indefinitely for a team rules violation after legal charges, a complication that has left Alabama sorting through both discipline and health issues at the same time. [Read more 🡒]
Keelon Russell Showed Promise In One Crucial Part Of Alabamas Offense
Alabamas offense looked far more functional against Texas A&M, finishing with more than 300 passing yards and 31 points in a performance that showed real growth after earlier inconsistencies. A big part of that progress came from the tight ends, who helped spark the passing game and accounted for two second-half touchdowns, giving the Tide a steadier, more layered attack than it had shown in some other outings.
Keelon Russell was central to that uptick, particularly in the run-pass option and play-action game, where he looked more comfortable operating within the structure of the offense. There were still missed chances along the way, but the encouraging part for Alabama is that Russells development showed up in areas that can matter most as the season goes on, especially if the Tide can keep building the kind of balance they found against the Aggies. [Read more 🡒]