Answering our questions from Alabama’s loss to Florida State

Heading into Alabama’s season opener at Florida State, we came up with five key questions to determine the Crimson Tide’s success. The answers to those weren’t pretty, as the Tide came out flat in a 31-17 defeat. 

Here’s a look back at how Alabama responded to last week’s points of emphasis. 

Question: Will injuries trip up the Tide? 

Answer: To be clear, injuries weren’t the only reason Alabama lost over the weekend. They certainly didn’t help, though. 

It’s safe to say the Tide missed starting running back Jamarion Miller, who missed the game with a dislocated collarbone. Without its leading back, Alabama managed just 87 rushing yards on 29 carries. 

The running game was especially dormant on plays to the right side, as starting right guard Jaeden Roberts sat out the game while continuing to recover from a concussion he suffered in preseason camp. Alabama managed just 12 yards on six designed runs to the right side against Florida State. None of those went for first downs, and only one of them netted more than 3 yards. 

On the defensive side of the ball, Alabama’s run defense suffered without defensive tackle Tim Keenan III, who is out with an ankle injury. The team captain’s absence contributed to Florida State piling up 230 yards and four touchdowns on 49 carries. 

Alabama will have back-to-back winnable games, as it hosts Louisiana-Monroe this weekend before welcoming Wisconsin to Bryant-Denny Stadium next week. From there, the Tide will have an open week before its trip to Georgia on Sept. 27. That should be enough time for all of Alabama’s injured starters to heal up. 

Question: Can Alabama help Simpson with a fast start?

Answer: Ty Simpson and the Tide’s offense got off to a fast start, driving 75 yards on 16 plays, capped off by a 2-yard touchdown pass from the quarterback to tight end Josh Cuevas. However, Simpson’s defense failed to take the pressure off during his first start, as it allowed Florida State to score on its first three drives. 

Alabama’s defense nearly followed up its offense’s long touchdown drive by forcing a three-and-out. However, a defensive holding penalty on Domani Jackson extended Florida State’s drive on what would have been a third-and-five incompletion. Three plays later, the Seminoles completed a 40-yard pass on third-and-11, as quarterback Thomas Castellanos hit receiver Squirrel White down the right sideline. Castellanos ran the ball in from 9 yards out on the next play, sucking the early wind out of Alabama’s sails. 

Meanwhile, Simpson was unable to follow up on his initial success, as Alabama failed to score on its next four drives. Simpson finished the game 23 of 43 for 254 yards and two touchdowns. While the redshirt junior played a role in Alabama’s offensive struggles, digging the Tide out of an early hole made his starting debut more difficult than it could have been. 

Question: Will Alabama players have the last laugh against Thomas Castellanos?

Answer: To be fair, maybe Alabama’s defense was able to laugh at itself when looking back at its feeble attempts to stop Castellanos over the weekend. After boldly proclaiming this offseason that Alabama doesn’t “have Nick Saban to save them” and stating “I just don’t see them stopping me” Castellanos backed up his trash talk in the opener. 

The Boston College transfer, who was benched by a 7-6 Eagles team last year, caused headaches all afternoon for the Tide. Castellanos completed just 9 of 14 passes for 152 yards but frustrated Alabama with his feet, rushing for 78 yards and a touchdown on 16 attempts. 

Following the game, Castellanos’ website even came out with a shirt that read “Nick can’t save them.”

Alabama’s struggles against a mobile quarterback are nothing new. The Tide failed to contain Diego Pavia during its 40-35 loss to Vanderbilt last year. Later in the season, it ran into the same problems against another dual-threat passer in Jackson Arnold during its 24-3 loss at Oklahoma. 

“I think there’s a pattern right now of when teams are moving laterally in the one-plus quarterback system,” Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack said on Monday. “We saw it against Vanderbilt last year, we saw it in the first half against Oklahoma and then it showed up this week.

“I thought those are things that you have to look at and you’ve got to, we had a good week of preparation, but we weren’t able to execute well enough on game day, so schematically what do I need to do to make sure I give our players the best chance to be successful based upon the body of work that we’ve put on the field? So we’re looking to address those issues.”

Question: Can Alabama catch Squirrel White? 

Answer: White had just one catch for 40 yards. However, the grab proved to be costly, as it set up Florida State’s first score of the afternoon. 

White’s reception came against true freshman Dijon Lee Jr. Throughout camp, Alabama has praised Lee, stating that they view him as a “starter-level player.” His blown coverage came on one of his five defensive snaps on the day. Lee wasn’t the only youngster to play over the weekend, as Wommack used 23 defenders throughout the game.

“We did have some guys that we felt like had earned an opportunity to get go out there on the field,” Wommack explained. Game 1, you want to make sure you give people opportunities to do that, and then based off of the body of work and what they do on the field on game day will reflect some of the rep base that you see moving forward. I don’t think you have to make big, sweeping changes. There was enough blame to go around, even from some of our best players. So you want to give people an opportunity to get things corrected. But certainly the body of work on the field will dictate the right rep base moving forward in the season.”

Question: Will Ryan Williams jumpstart a special season? 

Answer: No. Williams put in an unspectacular performance before leaving with a concussion in the fourth quarter. The star receiver netted five receptions on 11 targets while recording three drops.

Williams has recorded at least one drop in seven of his last 10 games. Over that span, he has 10 drops compared to three touchdown grabs. 

During his Monday press conference, Kalen DeBoer said Williams “will go through concussion protocol throughout the week,” as the team prepares for its home opener against Louisiana-Monroe.