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Revisited: Bama checks 4 of 5 boxes on list of secondary goals
By Clint Lamb
Published:
With Alabama being a 43-point favorite over Fresno State, no one expected the contest to be close. Still, there were a lot of things that the Tide needed to work on following their 24-7 victory over Florida State in Week 1.
On Friday, we talked about five ways that Alabama could get the most out of the Week 2 matchup against the Bulldogs. So, how many of those things were they able to accomplish?
1. Continue to build Hurts’ confidence
After completing only 55.6 percent of his passes for only 96 yards against Florida State, Jalen Hurts faced some criticism for another game filled with a lack of statistical production. Those people don’t have nearly as much to be critical of this week.
The sophomore finished with 282 total yards (128 passing, 154 rushing) while adding 3 total touchdowns (1 passing, 2 rushing) — including this 23-yard strike to TE Hale Hentges.
Jalen Hurts' with the 23-yard strike to Hale Hentges. pic.twitter.com/N3F4zRme1G
— Clint Lamb (@ClintRLamb) September 10, 2017
He completed 77.8 percent of his passes in Saturday’s 41-10 victory while spreading the ball around to nine teammates — a major criticism following last week’s performance was that Hurts targeted Calvin Ridley too much.
Overall, Hurts was able to gain more confidence, which will only benefit him and his development moving forward.
2. Tagovailoa sees his first action
Hurts wasn’t the only quarterback to “wow” fans on Saturday. Tua Tagovailoa, the highly recruited freshman out of Hawaii, saw his first action, and he didn’t disappoint.
The true freshman finished with the exact same yards per attempt as Hurts (7.1) while throwing for 64 yards and a touchdown — completing 66.7 percent of his passes in the process. His lone touchdown pass came on a 16-yard completion to freshman receiver Henry Ruggs III.
Overall, Tagovailoa looked impressive, and he should only get better from here. The reps he received will prove crucial in the event of a Hurts injury.
3. Young linebackers start to emerge
Following the losses of Christian Miller and Terrell Lewis for the season, Alabama was left trying to figure out how to restock at the position. Anfernee Jennings and Rashaan Evans were also forced to miss the game against Fresno State, which gave the coaching staff a chance to see a lot of younger guys in action.
Former walk-on Jamey Mosley got his first start at the Sam linebacker, while true freshman Chris Allen was the first to jog out there as the Jack linebacker. While neither came away with a sack, both were impressive.
Nice job by the former walk-on Jamey Mosley. pic.twitter.com/RkagwNxoSu
— Clint Lamb (@ClintRLamb) September 10, 2017
Once the Tide defense gets Jennings and Evans back, the depth at outside linebacker looks like it’s going to be fine.
4. See if Bulovas can improve the kicking game
Seeing Joseph Bulovas get his first game action is going to have to wait for at least another week. Andy Pappanastos, the grad transfer from Ole Miss, continued to be the only kicker to see game reps against Fresno State.
The results were much better for Pappanastos, however. In last week’s game, he only converted 60 percent of his field goal attempts (3 of 5), while this week he converted 100 percent (2 of 2).
Pappanastos doesn’t have the leg strength to be the Tide’s long-distance field goal kicker, but if he can become a consistent threat inside the 40-yard line, he’ll make a big impact for Alabama.
5. Find out if Wills is the guy at right tackle
Jedrick Wills, a true freshman offensive lineman, did end up seeing his first action of the season when he entered the game early in the second quarterback. However, he didn’t do enough to show why he should be the starter at right tackle over Matt Womack.
No one should’ve expected a freshman who didn’t enroll until the summer to come out and immediately start dominating Division I football, but the reps he received will be extremely valuable for him as the season progresses.
Next week’s game against Colorado State should allow Wills to see even more reps, including some with the first-team offense, so don’t be surprised if he emerges as the long-term answer at right tackle sooner rather than later.
Clint helps cover the SEC West for Saturday Down South. His work can also be found on USA TODAY Sports, The 'Bama Beat podcast and The Bullpen with TonyMac and The Lamb. Previous stops include SEC Country, 247Sports and Touchdown Alabama Magazine.
