Sophomore quarterback Keelon Russell faced the first true test of his young career on the road in Lexington earlier today.
Russell flashed major potential during his first collegiate start against ECU, but the sophomore was unable to get anything going offensively in the first half of Week 2. The rising star was able to bounce back despite the hostile environment, however, and Russell ultimately did enough to secure a 45-17 victory for the Tide on the road in Kentucky.
Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer took a moment to comment on the hostile environment at Kroger Field earlier today, as DeBoer believes the new faces on the team needed to experience a true SEC matchup on the road in order to thrive against the conference moving forward.
“We know that wherever we go, we are going to get everyone’s best.” DeBoer said. “That’s just Alabama on the road, that’s the environment, it’s going to be amped up. And on top of what Kentucky is trying to do here, everything new to them and with the win last week, trying to keep the momentum. I feel like most of our guys, because there are a lot of new faces, have to really learn and feel it before you really say that we can handle it. But we got a lot of guys that get it, that have been through it last year.”
Russell recorded 188 total yards, one touchdown and two turnovers despite struggling in the first half of play. The Alabama offense as a whole was able to bounce back in major fashion after the slow start, and the Tide were nothing short of elite in all aspects throughout the second half of Saturday afternoon’s contest.
