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5 keys to victory for Alabama as they face off against the LSU Tigers.
No. 2 Alabama is set to host the LSU Tigers this Saturday night in Tuscaloosa. With the dismissal of Ed Orgeron looming, the matchup doesn’t have quite the amount of anticipation as in seasons past.
Even with the lack of national exposure, this is a significant matchup within the western division of the SEC.
Let’s take a look at five keys to victory for Alabama as they face off against the Bayou Bengals as well as the remainder of its regular-season schedule.
Here is a closer look at Alabama’s offensive stats as the Tide head into the BYE week.
Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide currently sit ranked at No. 3 with a 7-1 overall record and a 4-1 record in the SEC.
Now that the Tide has entered into its BYE week, I thought it was a good time to take a closer look at some of the team and individual stats on both sides of the football.
Today we look at the offensive side of the ball. Let’s get right to it!
Alabama was able to easily handle Southern Miss on Saturday. Here is what we learned from the Tide’s dominating performance!
No. 1 Alabama easily handled the Southern Miss Golden Eagles on Saturday night 63-14.
After last week’s performance against the Gators, there were several questions that were raised. While you can’t say the team completely answered those questions, Alabama played their best overall game of the season and competed for the entire contest.
Let’s take a look at few things we learned from today’s matchup!
Bryce Young continues to prove why he is QB1!
Alabama’s offense has only touched the field once, but they are now up 14 over Southern Miss thanks to a 100-yard kick return on the opening kickoff by Jameson Williams.
Bryce Young in his first drive of the night completed all five of his passing attempts for 51 yards and one touchdown.
In the final play of the Drive, Young throws a perfect pass that falls perfectly into the arms of tight end Jahleel Billingsley in the corner of the end zone.
Perfect throw by Bryce to find Billingsley, what a dime.
14-0 good guys. #RollTide pic.twitter.com/o4UjhQFPu0
— Chicago Gump (@GriffinTSmith) September 25, 2021
Roll Tide Wire will continue to cover the Crimson Tide as they take on Southern Miss.
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow AJ Spurr on Twitter @SpurrFM.
Cameron Latu recently participated in a Q&A with the press. The Alabama tight end had a lot to say!
Alabama tight end Cameron Latu caught two passes for 19 yards against Florida on Saturday, and according to him, he’s just happy to be in a position to contribute in Bill O’Brien’s offense.
“It’s been great,” Latu said of his start to the season. “I know these last few years transitioning to tight end from outside linebacker has been a journey, and finally being out there and contributing to help the team has been a blast. I just know I’ve been working hard for it.”
Through the first quarter of the season, Latu has caught a total of five passes for 62 yards, finding the end zone twice. He’s proven to be an efficient option in the red zone.
Latu, now in his fourth season with the Tide, third at tight end, had to wait his turn behind guys like Miller Forristall at the tight end position. He gave an idea on how he managed to keep a level head sitting behind other tight ends on the depth chart.
“The best advice was just to keep my head down and work,” Latu said. “Nothing else matters besides your development as a player and to help the team grow. Put the team first and everything else will just fall in place. Be consistent, as well.”
The tight ends for the Crimson Tide, as a cohesive unit, haven’t been the most targeted group on the field. Bryce Young doesn’t seem, as of yet, too willing to throw to tight ends on a consistent basis. Jahleel Billingsley was finally able to score after catching a touchdown pass from Young on Saturday against Florida He had issues off-the-field to straighten up before being able to contribute in a meaningful way.
Latu made a candid statement regarding Billingsley during his Q&A.
“One thing I expect from him is to make a lot more plays,” Latu said. “He’s a very useful weapon for our offense, and I love playing beside him, and he’s going to help our team a lot.”
When asked about the Southern Miss defense, Latu gave an assessment.
“Watching them, they have a lot of movement up front,” Latu said. “They’re a good run defense, so we just have to adjust to sticking to our fundamentals and our technique and our rules just to keep our eyes open for how they move a lot up front. So just adjust to that.”
Alabama is a heavy favorite going into the game against the Golden Eagles this Saturday. The Crimson Tide will look to polish up some fine details and attempt to establish a balanced gameplan.
Stay tuned to Roll Tide Wire to remain updated on everything Alabama!
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Layne Gerbig on Twitter @LayneG_29
Why Alabama fans should not worry about the Jahleel Billingsley situation
The excitement for the start of the college football season grows daily. We are now just eleven days until Alabama kicks off the 2021 season against Miami in Atlanta.
This time of year there are always questions about injuries, depth charts, and the overall development of players. We even learn of some of the players that are in the proverbial “doghouse” with the coaching staff.
Look, I am not here to kick a man when he is down, but it would also be disingenuous to not even speak on the matter. We have all heard coach Saban talk about Jahleel Billingsley this fall. Earlier in fall camp, Billingsley was held out of a couple of practices and Nick Saban said he had to buy into the principles of the team but would have to work his way back up the depth chart.
Billingsley has since been practicing with the team and the situation was somewhat quiet for several days. Then, in coach Saban’s press conference following the second scrimmage, he was once again asked about Billingsley and proceeded to deliver his epic “this is not a democracy” rant.
In short, at the moment Jahleel Billingsley is not the starting TE and still has some work to do to regain that spot.
As talented as Billingsley is, here are three reasons why you should not worry about the current situation:
That last one is probably going to rub some people the wrong way, but that is the cold hard truth.
Like I mentioned earlier, I do not want to kick the young man while he is down and I have not done that. I wish nothing but the absolute best for Jahleel Billingsley. Billingsley is a talented player with a bright future. We should all do our part to help support these young men during this very impressionable time in their lives.
Stay tuned to Roll Tide Wire for all the latest on the Crimson Tide!
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Stacey Blackwood on Twitter @Blackwood89.
Nick Saban’s thoughts after the second scrimmage of fall camp
Alabama held their second scrimmage of fall camp yesterday and afterward head coach Nick Saban addressed the media.
Here are some of coach Saban’s thoughts:
Stay tuned to Roll Tide Wire for all the latest on the Crimson Tide!
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.
Cameron Latu continues to shine for Alabama
The biggest storyline out of spring practice was the development of redshirt junior TE Cameron Latu.
In the spring Latu was able to grab a touchdown catch in each of the scrimmages including the annual A-Day game on April 17.
Another one of my "breakout" players for this year is Alabama's TE "Cameron Latu". Latu & Billingsley will arguably be the BEST TE duo in the country this year. Our two-headed monster at the TE position will give defenses fits. Excited to see this offense this year #RollTide 🐘❤ pic.twitter.com/RKR88eEqQX
— Alabama Rydeouts 🐘🅰️ (@MarvinBama16) July 8, 2021
Latu continued his touchdown streak in the first scrimmage of the fall this past Saturday. In a video released by the Alabama Football Twitter account, you can see Latu catching a touchdown pass from Bryce Young.
Scrimmage one in the 📚 #BamaFactor #RollTide pic.twitter.com/OsmCyTIEMA
— Alabama Football (@AlabamaFTBL) August 15, 2021
Latu came to Alabama as a four-star defensive end according to 247 Composite Rankings. He made the transition to TE after his freshman season and has seen some action in goal-line situations over the last couple of seasons. It now looks like Latu has developed into a legitimate receiving threat to pair with the talented Jahleel Billingsley.
Alabama now has two TE’s that can make plays in the passing game, which is always nice when you are breaking in a new QB.
Stay tuned to Roll Tide Wire for all the latest on the Crimson Tide!
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Stacey Blackwood on Twitter @Blackwood89.
Who will be the offensive MVP for Alabama this year?
Fall camp will start in a couple of days and the 2021-2022 season will officially kickoff. A new season brings new players, and new players bring new opportunities. One opportunity that has presented itself, is who will be this year’s offensive MVP for Alabama.
Last season saw Mac Jones, DeVonta Smith, and Najee Harris all become finalists for the Heisman Trophy. While I am not expecting anything remotely close to that this season, it doesn’t mean that the offense will be chopped liver.
So who will take charge this year for the Tide?
Three of the more significant returners from last year’s team are John Metchie, Brian Robinson, and Jahleel Billingsley. While I am expecting really good seasons from each of those guys, I don’t see them having such spectacular seasons that they would be awarded offensive MVP.
Metchie will be the primary receiving target out-wide for Bill O’Brien and Bryce Young, but I am expecting a heavy dose of both TE’s Jahleel Billingsley and Cameron Latu, especially early on in the season while Bryce Young is getting his feet wet.
Robinson will likely be the number one back this season, but with the loaded stable of running backs, it looks to be more of a running back by committee this fall. Jace McClellan, Roydell Williams, and maybe even freshman five-star Camar Wheaton will likely see plenty of playing time.
Billingsley is one of the top TE’s in the entire country and will flourish under first-year offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien. But the guy who generated the most buzz this spring was Cameron Latu. It is possible that Alabama has the best TE duo in the nation.
Now, I love the big guys up front as much as anyone, but let’s keep it real here, an offensive lineman is not going to be MVP.
We are left with sophomore QB Bryce Young. To some, this was the obvious choice and this article could have been one paragraph, but I have a word count criteria that I have to meet!
In all seriousness, Bryce Young is a former five-star prospect that many thought would come to Alabama and overtake Mac Jones as the starter last fall. Young may not be the biggest guy, but he is a very instinctive player and plays much bigger than his size would indicate. Young has the ability to move around and outside the pocket to extend plays both on the ground and through the air.
He may not throw for 4,500 yards like Mac did last season, and it may even take him a few games to get adjusted to the college game, but Bryce has the physical tools and the mental aptitude to be an elite college football QB. For this reason, I am projecting Bryce to be the offensive MVP for Alabama this season.
Bryce Young projected regular season stat line:
3,100 yards passing, 32 passing touchdowns, and 8 interceptions.
350 yards rushing, 4 rushing touchdowns.
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Stacey Blackwood on Twitter @Blackwood89.
NFL draft analyst Ryan Roberts believes Jahleel Billingsley will be the top tight end available in the 2022 NFL draft.
Former Florida tight end Kyle Pitts is skyrocketing up NFL draft boards in 2021. After another successful season with the Gators, Pitts is a matchup nightmare who is capable of being a lot of different things for an offense.
Next year, that player could be current Alabama tight end Jahleel Billingsley. NFL draft analyst, Ryan Roberts posted a prediction on Twitter that Billingsley would be the top player at the position when the 2022 NFL draft rolls around.
“Calling my shot early,” Roberts tweeted. “Jahleel Billingsley (Alabama) TE1 will end up the 2022 NFL Draft. Lightly built but versatile at 6’4” 230… blocks well, extremely athletic, alignment versatile.
“So athletic he has even returned kicks for the team. Put 5-10 pounds on. Prosper.”
Calling my shot early…
Jahleel Billingsley (Alabama) “TE1” will end up the 2022 NFL Draft. Lightly built but versatile at 6’4” 230… blocks well, extremely athletic, alignment versatile.
So athletic he has even returned kicks for the team. Put 5-10 pounds on. Prosper.
— Ryan Roberts (@RiseNDraft) April 4, 2021
It’s hard to argue with Roberts. There is so much potential for Billingsley.
After posting on two catches for 16 yards as a freshman in 2019, the former four-star prospect had a semi-breakout season in 2020. He only hauled in 18 catches, but they went for 287 yards (15.94 yards per catch) and three touchdowns.
His involvement continued to increase, especially once Jaylen Waddle went out with a broken leg against Tennessee. And as Roberts points out, Billingsley even returned a few kickoffs for the Crimson Tide.
Now that Waddle and DeVonta Smith, Alabama needs seasoned pass-catchers to help whoever is the new starter at quarterback. John Metchie is one reliable option, and Slade Bolden has quite a bit of experience. Outside of those two, Billingsley is the most experienced.
Plus, he adds something to the group of weapons in the passing game. His size, similarly to Pitts, is a problem for opposing defensive backs, so his usage should automatically increase in the red zone.
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.
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