Alabama is taking no chances with the noise it expects in Starkville.
With the Crimson Tide headed to Mississippi State on Saturday afternoon, Kalen DeBoer said the offense has been working through practice with simulated crowd sound to get ready for what should be a loud road test. That matters especially for sophomore quarterback Keelon Russell, who will need to operate cleanly again after his promising showing in Lexington against Kentucky in Week 2.
DeBoer laid out the approach plainly: the staff wants the unit used to hearing everything through the din, from the quarterback to the signal callers to the linemen. “There certainly is an aspect to operating when it’s loud.”
DeBoer said. “When we’re calling plays in practice, we got to have the noise.
We’re pumping that out of speakers and all that. Keelon’s got to hear plays, signalers got to hear plays and guys got to be able to communicate on the line.
These are long weeks for the offensive side of the ball when we go on the road in the SEC, that speaker is usually right behind the offense which is right behind where the coaches also stand. Those comments happen at about the end of every week, it’s like okay, we got through that one, now we got to go and take the show on the road.”
That kind of prep is aimed at avoiding the communication issues that can show up fast in a hostile setting. Alabama’s offense had to settle in after a slow start against Kentucky, then found its rhythm and finished strong in Lexington. This weekend, the Tide will need that same poise from the opening snap, with Russell again asked to tune out the chaos and keep the operation moving.
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Nick Saban Just Took Another Hard Line In The Pay Fight
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Sabans argument was rooted in the idea that player pay and coach pay operate in separate markets, with him comparing a students scholarship to a professors salary as part of his broader case. The legislation also includes a retention fund for athlete compensation, which puts the debate squarely at the intersection of fairness, roster stability and the future shape of college sports, the same terrain Saban has been challenging for years. [Read more 🡒]