Alabama football head coach Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide breezed through Arkansas State in its home opener at Bryant-Denny Stadium, to the tune of a 57-7 win on last week.
The coaching staff honored eight players with weekly honors, including four on defense.
Running back Najee Harris, offensive lineman Ross Pierschbacher and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa represented Alabama’s offense. Harris turned in a career day with 135 yards rushing and one touchdown on 13 carries.
The sophomore averaged 10.4 yards per rush and totaled six attempts that resulted in either a first down or touchdown.
Pierschbacher graded out at a team-high 92 percent, despite missing one assignment. Hailing from Iowa, Pierschbacher guided the Tide to 599 yards offensively and 278 total yards rushing.
Tagovailoa recorded four touchdown passes in his second consecutive start and posted his second performance of completing 60 percent or better on his attempts – 13 of 19, 68.4 percent – en route to 228 passing yards.
The trio of Raekwon Davis, Isaiah Buggs and Quinnen Williams on Alabama’s defensive line helped the team to only allow one score to Arkansas State. While Buggs put five tackles, one sack and a quarterback pressure, the duo of Davis and Williams had two tackles apiece.
Redshirt junior Deionte Thompson collected six tackles from his safety spot.
He finished second behind Xavier McKinney (seven stops) and helped the Tide’s defensive secondary limit the Red Wolves to 22 completions on 51 tries and allowed 218 yards passing.
Redshirt freshman Joseph Bulovas earned honors for special teams.
After early struggles plagued Austin Jones, Bulovas came in midway through the first half and provided consistency in the kicking game. He nailed all five of his extra points and connected on a 39-yard field goal, to give Alabama a 43-7 lead in the third quarter. Bulovas also averaged 57 yards on kickoffs to earn his first-ever weekly honor from the coaching staff.
Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
