Alabama played a complete football game on both sides of the ball en route to a 52-7 victory over Mercer.
The Crimson Tide jumped out to an early 14-0 lead in the first quarter and the game was never in question the rest of the afternoon.
Here are a few takeaways from the game.
Started Fast
Alabama put its foot on the gas, wasting no time in putting points on the board. Less than five minutes in the first quarter, Ryan Williams took a misdirection hand-off 29 yards for the first touchdown of the game. After forcing a three and out on defense, Williams found the endzone once again by way of a 14-yard pass from Jalen Milroe to give him his second touchdown of the first quarter.
Took Care of Business
The goal against FCS opponents is to get in, get out and look good doing it. That’s exactly what Alabama was able to accomplish on Saturday. The Crimson Tide started out fast on both sides of the ball and built a big enough lead to get some quality playing time for the backups.
Swarm Defense Creates Turnovers
Outside of a rough three-game stretch in October that resulted in two losses, the Alabama defense has been lights out. The key to the defense's success has been forcing turnovers. The Crimson Tide defense forced a total of three turnovers on Saturday, two fumbles and an interception. Freshman defensive back Zabien Brown scooped up one of the fumbles and took it 68 yards for a touchdown.
Ty Simpson Time
Alabama got a more in-depth look at their future quarterback on Saturday. When Ty Simpson gets in the game, he is usually just handing the ball off to chew the last couple of minutes of the clock. On Saturday, Alabama was able to build a big enough lead that Simpson got in midway through the third quarter and was able to run the normal offense. Simpson completed five of his 10 pass attempts, including a 43-yard bomb to Josh Cuevas after breaking loose out of what looked like was going to be a sack. Simpson finished the game with 71 passing yards and 14 yards on the ground.
The Crimson Tide will travel to Oklahoma on November 23 at 6:30 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast on ABC.
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