Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer has a lot of respect for the Georgia Bulldogs after Alabama topped Georgia 41-34 at home. DeBoer, who is in his first season at Alabama, helped the Crimson Tide build a 28-0 lead.
However, Georgia slowly chipped away at Alabama’s lead and eventually held their own lead (34-33) late in the fourth quarter. DeBoer and the Crimson Tide had an immediate response. Alabama star quarterback Jalen Milroe connected with wide receiver Ryan Williams for a 75 yard touchdown to give the Crimson Tide another lead that they would not lose.
“Tip the cap to Georgia. They’re a heck of a football team. We pushed each other to the very end,” said DeBoer. The game was finally over after Carson Beck threw his third interception of the night into Alabama’s end zone.
DeBoer in the Crimson Tide made several adjustments in the second half to try to limit Georgia’s comeback.
“Yeah, well, we hit the one to Ryan (Williams) in the third quarter. Made this kind of a circus catch,” said DeBoer. “There was more of that. We’ve done it throughout the season, but there was certainly a heavier dose of that.”
“I really felt when we went empty (backfield), Jalen (Milroe) did a good job of seeing the space, seeing the coverage, and that’s what I love,” continued DeBoer. Milroe is a tough matchup because he forces defenses to defend him as a rusher and as a passer and that does not chance when the backfield is empty.
“Because we have a lot of playmakers out there, and it’s just sometimes getting the ball in their hands. There’s adjustments going back and forth,” said DeBoer. “They did a nice job with some things, and then we had to counter back, as well.”
Alabama’s final counters proved to be critical for the Crimson Tide. Alabama cornerback Zavien Brown was not turning his head to locate the ball for most of the game, but that changed on his fourth quarter interception.
“You know there’s going to be a strong push,” said DeBoer on Alabama building a 28-0 lead. “They (Georgia) did a nice job converting on some fourth downs. I think that was really the story in the second half, was those fourth-down calls, fourth-down plays. We gave them one or two of those, and really I think the game looks different in the second half. But yeah, those are the battles.”
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Georgia went five of five on fourth downs, which helped the Bulldogs score 27 second half points.