Minutes after Alabama fell 20-17 to No. 2 Georgia, Keelon Russell stayed put while everyone else seemed to be moving on.
Inside Bryant-Denny Stadium, teammates had already headed for the locker room after the loss. Some were angry, some looked stunned, and some just wanted out of there as fast as possible. Russell, though, remained on the field and waited for Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton to finish an ESPN interview so he could congratulate him in person.
For a first-year starter taking his first loss, it was a small gesture with a lot of weight behind it.
"Win or lose, I have respect for the opponent no matter what," Russell said. "Gunner Stockton is an amazing player.
Guy's a baller. I have respect for everybody that we play, so I wanted to give my dues to him that you're a great player."
The moment stood out because there wasn’t some long friendship behind it. Stockton said after the game that the two had never even talked before that exchange, even though he knew exactly what Russell brought to the field. Still, Russell waited through what felt like an endless postgame interview, even as an Alabama staffer tried to get him heading toward the locker room.
Stockton came away impressed.
"He was awesome," Stockton said. "I've tried to do better with that, trying to go shake the other quarterback's hand no matter what. Seeing that at a younger age is pretty, pretty special."
Russell’s poise matched the kind of impression he has been building all season in Tuscaloosa. The 19-year-old has already looked like more than just a promising young quarterback, and Saturday only added to that feeling. He wasn’t perfect against Georgia, but he gave Alabama a real shot to win, and the narrow finish only sharpened the feeling that a break or two could have sent the game the other way.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart didn’t downplay Russell either.
"There is no containing Russell," Smart said. "Kid's an elite athlete, an elite player.
Hopefully we affected him some tonight and he didn't have some of the numbers he's had, but he's a really good football player. He's going to be hell in this league for two years."
And based on the way he carried himself after the loss, it’s easy to see why Alabama believes the quarterback room has a centerpiece who can keep putting the Crimson Tide in position for bigger games down the road, including a possible rematch with Georgia in the SEC Championship or the College Football Playoff.
In Other News...
Georgias Win Was Just Overshadowed By An Ugly Alabama Tunnel Incident
Georgias 20-17 win over Alabama should have been remembered for the football, and in plenty of ways it was. Georgia got a strong rushing effort from Dwight Phillips Jr. and Bo Walker, while quarterback Gunner Stockton threw for 249 yards and a touchdown in a tight game that never gave either side much breathing room.
But the postgame scene near the stadium tunnel turned ugly fast. An Alabama fan physically attacked Georgia linebacker Raylen Wilson, slapping and shoving his helmet in an incident recorded by reporter Reggie Chatman Jr., and witnesses said the fan used a racially degrading term during the encounter. It was an unsettling flashpoint after a rivalry game that had already been decided on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Finebaum Defends Kalen DeBoer After Alabamas Painful Georgia Finish
The conversation around Alabamas narrow loss to Georgia did not end with the final whistle, especially after the late fourth-quarter pass interference no call drew immediate heat. Paul Finebaum jumped in on the officiating, saying the SEC had some explaining to do after what he called a terrible miss in a 20-17 finish that left plenty for Crimson Tide fans to stew over.
Kalen DeBoer also came out of the game with some praise attached to his response in the moment, with Finebaum commending the Alabama coach for how he handled the calls as the pressure mounted. For a program that expected a measuring-stick game and got a painful ending instead, the focus now sits on both the officiating controversy and the way DeBoer carried himself through it. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama's Georgia Loss Turned On One Infuriating Late Sequence
Georgias 20-17 win at Bryant-Denny Stadium was more than another SEC heavyweight fight, because it finally gave Georgia a regular-season victory over Alabama for the first time since 2007. The Crimson Tide had the kind of game that could have gone either way, and Kalen DeBoers choice late in the first half to chase a touchdown instead of taking the field goal loomed as one of the defining decisions on a night when every point felt like it mattered.
Alabama still had a chance to escape with a signature win before the finish turned messy. Instead, the closing sequence left the Tide staring at a controversial no-call on potential pass interference and a personal foul on Dijon Lee Jr. that kept Georgias final drive alive, a brutal ending in a game decided by the smallest margins. [Read more 🡒]