What was that?
The only question left asking the 2024 Alabama Crimson Tide as its season came to a close on Tuesday with a 19-13 loss to Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
Instead of proving a point to the College Football Playoff committee that it had made the wrong decision in snubbing the (then) three loss Crimson Tide, it came out with an absolute dud against the Wolverines. The first four offensive drives told the story of the day for Alabama which began with a Jalen Milroe sack to turn it over on downs and would then be followed by three straight turnovers by Milroe.
It wasn’t the ideal showing for any member in crimson, but for Milroe it was a particularly difficult showing in what is widely expected to be his final game at Alabama. Milroe ended the game completing 16-of-32 passes for 192 yards with 1 touchdown and one interception.
The ground games wasn’t even there for the Crimson Tide as Milroe rushed for just 7 yards on top of a running back room of Jam Miller and Richard Young who combined for just 33 yards through the trenches.
Missing key players and weather was certainly a factor for the Crimson Tide, but what appeared to be apparent was that it simply was not ready for this Michigan team.
The Wolverines put up just 190 yards of total offense on the day but it was its defense that carried the day led by coordinator Wink Martindale, who disrupted Nick Sheridan’s offensive output and took full advantage of the takeaways scoring 16 points in the first quarter.
Martindale consistently dialed up the pressure and fully sold out to stop the run knowing Alabama came into the game with just four healthy scholarship wide receivers.
The usual spark from freshman phenom, Ryan Williams, wasn’t there as he was held to three catches for 8 yards as Milroe was unable to connect deep on any attempts.
Even when the offensive line was able to keep the pressure in check, Milroe was unable to get the ball out downfield which also resulted in Alabama getting behind the sticks from Michigan’s five sacks.
Defensively, Alabama certainly played with pride even with the terrible field positioning. After allowing 16 points in the first quarter it would allow just three the remainder of the game while also allowed 9 passing yards total in the second half of play.
The performance should come off as puzzling but after watching this season’s version of Alabama it may just fit right in line.
The Crimson Tide showed glimpses of a playoff team especially in dominating performances against Georgia and LSU, but was far too prone to laying eggs against the likes of Vanderbilt and Oklahoma to get things together.
For head coach Kalen DeBoer, it was far from a disaster of a first season especially when considering the challenge of replacing the greatest college coach of all-time, but it DeBoer got a clear glimpse of where expectations are for this program and where it needs to be moving forward.
*Get the BEST Alabama football insider information, message board access, and recruiting coverage today! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our subscriber only content!*
Patrick Dowd is a Reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter, via Pat_Dowd77
