Alabama
Tennessee
Alabama Football Beats Tennessee, 19-14
10/24/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - In a tight, hard-hitting struggle that lived up to the legacy of one of college football's most history-rich rivalries, the 8th-ranked University of Alabama football team (7-1 overall; 4-1 in the Southeastern Conference) used a clutch touchdown drive by its offense and a staunch outing from its defense to overcome a late deficit in a 19-14 win over Tennessee (3-3 overall; 1-2 in the SEC) on Saturday afternoon before a capacity crowd of 101,821 at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
After Tennessee tailback Jalen Hurd ran 12 yards for a touchdown with 5:49 left, the Tide offense responded with a decisive 71-yard march to the end zone. Tide quarterback Jake Coker completed key passes of 29 yards to wide receiver ArDarius Stewart and 15 yards to wide receiver Calvin Ridley on the drive that was punctuated by running back Derrick Henry's tough running. Henry carried five times for 35 yards on the winning drive, including the game-winning 14-yard touchdown run with 2:24 left.
Henry rushed for 143 yards and two touchdowns, Stewart had six catches for 114 yards, and Coker passed for 247 yards while completing 21-of-27 passes. Linebacker Reggie Ragland led the Tide defense with a game-high 12 tackles (eight solos), including a tackle for loss and punter J.K. Scott averaged 49.8 yards on four punts, including a 56-yarder.
Alabama broke on top early on a 20-yard touchdown run by Henry with 7:14 left in the first quarter. The score marked the 13th consecutive game in which Henry has scored a rushing touchdown. Tennessee struck back to tie it at 7-7 on an 11-yard pass from quarterback Joshua Dobbs to wide receiver Josh Smith with 3:00 left in the opening period.
Tied at halftime, 7-7, Alabama broke on top on the first possession of the second half by driving 73 yards in 12 plays to a 19-yard field goal by Adam Griffith for a 10-7 lead with 9:00 left in the third period.
Three Tennessee scoring opportunities ended in missed field goals, a 43-yarder in the first quarter on the game's first series, a 51-yarder on the final play of the first half, and another 51-yarder with 14:06 left in the fourth period. The first would have given the Vols a 3-0 lead, the second would have given UT a 10-7 halftime lead, and the third would have tied the game at 10-10 early in the fourth quarter.
Taking the ball at the Tide 33 with 14:06 left in the fourth period, Alabama moved 56 yards in 12 plays while eating 6:58 of game time. A key sequence on the drive began with a third-and-11 play at the UT 46 with 10:19 left. Coker completed a 15-yard pass to Stewart for a first down at the UT 31. After a 10-yard penalty created a first-and-20 at the UT 41, a pass to receiver Calvin Ridley gained 26 yards to the UT 15. Ridley adjusted back to the pass after being covered on the play, grabbing the ball at the sideline and gaining several more yards after the catch. Henry gained five yards on a rush at right tackle to the Vol 10 on first down, then was dropped for a loss of a yard on second down. On third-and-six at the UT 11, Coker's fade pass to receiver Richard Mullaney was incomplete in the end zone. That set up a 28-yard field goal attempt by Griffith with 7:13 on the clock. Griffith kicked it true to give the Tide a 13-7 lead with 7:08 left in the fourth period.
Tennessee stormed back with authority to take a 14-13 lead, blazing 75 yards in four plays to take the lead on a 12-yard run by tailback Jalen Hurd with 5:49 on the clock. Dobbs connected with Smith for 27 yards on a crossing patter to start the drive, reaching the Tide 48. Two plays later, Dobbs hit a slant pass to receiver Josh Malone for 34 yards to the Tide 12. Hurd raced around left end into the end zone on the next play.
Alabama responded on the ensuing possession. Facing 2nd and 11 at the Tide 27, Coker completed a 27-yard pass to Stewart at the UT 44 with 4:29 left. Stewart made an acrobatic catch despite tight coverage. Henry gained two yards at left guard to the UT 42 on first down, then carried for two more to Vols 40. Facing third-and-six at the 40, Coker lobbed a pass to Ridley at the left sideline and Ridley made a leaping catch over a Tennessee defender for a 15-yard gain to the Tennessee 25. Henry gained six yards at right guard on first down to the UT 19. Tennessee called its first timeout with 3:02 left. On second-and four, Henry muscled up the middle for five yards to a first down at the UT 14. With the clock running under 2:30, Henry took a handoff at left end and ran behind good blocking for 14 yards and a touchdown with 2:24 left. Leading by five points, Alabama went for a two-point conversion. A pass to Ridley was incomplete, broken up by Tennessee cornerback Justin Martin, and the Tide held a 19-14 lead with 2:24 left.
Tennessee took possession at its 25 following a touchback on the kickoff. On the third play of the possession, Alabama defensive end Jonathan Allen sacked Dobbs for a nine-yard loss at the UT 26. Facing a second-and-24 at the UT 21 following a false start penalty, Dobbs was sacked by Tide linebacker Ryan Anderson for a loss of 10 at the UT 11. Dobbs fumbled on the play and Alabama's A'Shawn Robinson recovered at the UT 13. Robinson returned the fumble nine yards to the UT 4 with 1:18 left. Coker took a knee on three consecutive snaps to end the game.
Alabama will enjoy next weekend off from competition before resuming its season on Saturday, Nov. 7, at Bryant-Denny Stadium against the Louisiana State University. Kickoff time and television plans for the Alabama-LSU game were not finalized at the time of this report.
Alabama won the opening toss and deferred to the second half. Tennessee elected to receive to begin the game. The Vols were on the move quickly following a touchback on the kickoff led by their quarterback, Joshua Dobbs. He completed his first pass of the game to Von Pearson for 10 yards and a first down, then carried the ball twice for a total of 25 yards to move into Crimson Tide territory. Dobbs was sacked by senior defensive lineman D.J. Pettway on first-and-10 at the Alabama 33, but responded by completing a screen pass to running back Alvin Kamara that went for 20 yards. That moved Tennessee into the red zone, where the drive would stall after a sack by junior linebacker Reuben Foster on third down. Vols kicker Aaron Medley came out to attempt a 43-yard field goal but pushed it wide right.
It appeared Coker and the Tide offense would go three-and-out, but Tennessee was called for holding in the secondary on third-and-5. Tide running back Derrick Henry took his initial carry of the game for 12 yards, and Coker found wide receiver ArDarius Stewart open for a 15-yard gain two plays later. After another first down moved Alabama into the red zone, Henry capped off the drive with an explosive 20-yard run into the end zone after breaking two tackles. The scoring drive covered 75 yards in nine plays and took 3:15 off the clock as the Tide grabbed an early 7-0 lead.
Tennessee's offense responded. Running back Jalen Hurd carried the ball three consecutive times to gain 23 yards before Dobbs connected with receiver Johnathon Johnson for 18 yards. Dobbs converted another first down with a run, then a pass interference call on the Alabama defense moved the ball down to the Tide 13. Two plays later, on third-and-8 from the Tide 11, Dobbs rolled to his left and found receiver Josh Smith in the back corner of the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown completion. The Vols' drive lasted 10 plays and totaled 75 yards in 4:14 to even the score at 7-7.
The Tide's next drive got off to a promising start, with Coker floating a pass down the sideline to freshman wide receiver Calvin Ridley for 16 yards. Ridley was able to elevate over a defender and get his feet in bounds before being pushed out. Two plays later the Vols defense came up with a sack of Coker, resulting in a loss of eight yards. Alabama couldn't recover and was forced to punt it away in the closing seconds of the quarter.
Score: Alabama 7, Tennessee 7.
The second quarter began with Alabama freshman Da'Ron Payne and junior A'Shawn Robinson combining for a sack of Dobbs on second down. After a short scramble by Dobbs on third-and-19, the Vols punted the ball away, a 53-yard effort from Trevor Daniel that rolled out of bounds at the Alabama 33.
The Tide picked up two first downs to move into Tennessee territory, but a sack of Coker by defensive lineman Corey Vereen put Alabama behind the chains. Coker was pressured again on third-and-17 from midfield, just able to escape long enough to throw the ball away. Alabama punted.
After Tennessee running back Alvin Kamara took the ball around left end for 12 yards to begin the drive, Tide freshman defensive back Ronnie Harrison nearly came up with the game's first turnover. Dobbs forced a pass intended for Jauan Jennings into double coverage, and Harrison got both hands on the ball before Jennings was able to break up the interception as Harrison fell to the ground. The Tide defense was still able to force another punt, setting up the offense with a first-and-10 at the Alabama 40.
Following a play-action roll by Coker that resulted in a completion of 18 yards to tight end O.J. Howard, Alabama's offense seemed poised to march into the end zone to reclaim the lead. However, Tennessee's Derek Barnett sacked Coker on second-and-7, then Brian Randolph picked off Coker at the Vols' 25 on third-and-12. The Vols were able to convert on third-and-5 to open their next possession, but could not do the same on third-and-10 and had to punt the ball back to the Tide.
Penalties plagued Alabama's next offensive drive, including a false start on second-and-3 and an unsportsmanlike conduct flag on third-and-8. Those mistakes forced another J.K. Scott punt, who boomed a 56-yard kick that was fair caught at the 31. Tennessee was able to get in long field goal range to end the half, mostly thanks to a 29-yard run by Hurd on third-and-16. Medley came out to try a 51-yard field goal attempt on the final play of the half, but his attempt was wide left.
Score: Alabama 7, Tennessee 7.
Alabama had the ball first to open up the second half and immediately got going behind the strong running of Henry. The junior carried four straight times, compiling 21 yards. Coker then completed back-to-back passes, first to Ridley for 11 yards, and then to Mullaney for 13 more. A slant to Stewart gained 26, giving the Tide first-and-goal at the 8. A screen pass to Howard looked as if it would be an easy touchdown, but the tight end was tripped up at the 1. The Tennessee defense then hit Henry in the backfield for a loss of a yard, then broke up a pass to Ridley at the goal line. That brought out junior kicker Adam Griffith for a 19-yard field goal attempt, which he knocked through the uprights. The drive lasted exactly six minutes, covering 73 yards in 12 plays and gave the Tide a 10-7 lead with 9:00 to play in the third quarter.
Alabama forced a quick three-and-out on the Vols first possession, but was only able to pick up one first down before having to punt. Scott came through with a 55-yard punt this time, giving the ball back to Tennessee at its own 11 late in the third.
The quarter ended with Tennessee on a drive, thanks to two conversions on third downs. On third-and-1 from the 34, Hurd took the handoff straight ahead for two yards. Then, on the next series, Dobbs kept the ball on third-and-6 for a nine-yard gain. The next play was the biggest of the drive, as Dobbs found Kamara along the sideline for 18 yards.
Score: Alabama 10, Tennessee 7.
The fourth quarter began with Tennessee facing a second-and-8 from the 31. Dobbs was dropped for a loss of two yards on a quarterback draw, then nearly threw an interception to freshman defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick on third down. On fourth-and-10 from the 33, Medley was brought on for another attempt of 50+ yards, but could not convert, preserving the 10-7 lead for the Tide.
Alabama took over at its own 33, and put together an extended drive despite two major penalties. After Henry carried the ball for 10 yards, Coker hit Ridley on a slant pattern for a big gain that was negated by a chop block. Another 10-yard gain by Henry and a 15-yard reception by Stewart allowed the offense to overcome that flag, but on first-and-10 from the Tennessee 31, the Tide was called for holding. Following the holding call, Coker connected with Ridley on a perfectly thrown pass to the freshman's back shoulder. The completion gained 26 yards, moving the ball all the way to the Vols 15. Alabama could not punch it into the end zone from there, however, and settled for three points on the drive. Griffith made a 28-yard kick, extending the lead to 13-7 midway through the fourth quarter.
Tennessee wasted no time in responding. After a touchback on the kickoff, Dobbs rolled out and threw a strike to Josh Smith for 27 yards right before Smith stepped out of bounds. Kamara carried the ball for two yards on the next play, then Dobbs lofted a pass to Josh Malone over the middle for 34 yards. On the fourth play of the drive, Hurd got the handoff and took it around right end for a 12-yard touchdown. The extra point was good, and the Vols had the lead for the first time at 14-13 with 5:49 left to play.
The ensuing Alabama drive started ominously, as Coker was sacked for a loss of two yards on the first play. On the next play, Coker lobbed a pass to Stewart, who out-jumped a defender in an attempt to make the catch. He juggled the ball, but eventually reeled it in just as he was going to the ground, picking up 29 yards. After consecutive two-yard rushes by Henry, the Tide offense was facing a third-and-six from the Tennessee 40. This time Coker went to the opposite side of the field to Ridley, who plucked the ball out of the air for a 15-yard reception. From there, it was all Henry, who carried the ball on the final three plays of the drive, including his 14-yard touchdown run, as he cut left at the line and took the ball into the end zone for the second time in the game. The Tide went for two to make the margin seven points, but a pass intended for Ridley was broken up in the end zone, making the score 19-14.
The Alabama defense closed out the game in impressive fashion to seal the victory. The Vols got the ball at the 25 after a touchback, and picked up one first down on a completion from Dobbs to Josh Malone. After an illegal formation flag was thrown on the offense, junior defensive lineman Jonathan Allen sacked Dobbs for a loss of nine yards, forcing Tennessee to call a timeout to stop the clock at 1:27. On the very next play, junior linebacker Ryan Anderson got to Dobbs again in the backfield, this time causing a fumble. The ball was immediately scooped up by junior defensive lineman A'Shawn Robinson, who returned the fumble to the 4.
Coker then took a knee on three straight plays out of the victory formation to run out the clock, giving Alabama the hard-fought 19-14 victory.
Final Score: Alabama 19, Tennessee 14.
