Football vs. USC Postgame Notes

GAME CAPTAINS: Alabama's captains for tonight's game were O.J. Howard, Ryan Anderson and Dalvin Tomlinson. The Tide won the opening toss and elected to defer, with the Trojans receiving the ball to start.

ALABAMA OPENS SEASON WITH A BANG: Alabama's 46-point margin of victory over No. 20 Southern California was its largest against a top 20 team since it beat No. 14 Syracuse by 55 points (61-6) in the 1953 Orange Bowl. It is also the third largest margin of victory against any ranked team in program history with the largest being the 59-0 win over No. 21 Texas A&M in 2014.

SERIES HISTORY: Alabama and USC met for the eighth time in the history of the two programs tonight. With the win, the Crimson Tide now owns a 6-2 advantage in the series.

FIRST HALF POINTS: Jalen Hurts' 39-yard touchdown pass to ArDarius Stewart in the second quarter extended Alabama's first half scoring streak to 119 games, the longest streak in the nation. The last time UA failed to score in the first half was on Sept. 29, 2007, when Alabama and Florida State headed into halftime in a scoreless tie. The Seminoles won that game, 21-14. Alabama owns a 103-16 record during the current streak.

SCORING STREAK CONTINUES: Jalen Hurts' 39-yard touchdown pass to ArDarius Stewart in the second quarter extended Alabama's consecutive games scoring streak to 199 games – the longest streak in program history.

96-6 UNDER SABAN WHEN LEADING AT THE HALF: The Crimson Tide led USC, 17-3, at halftime. Alabama is now 96-6 (.941) when leading at halftime in the Nick Saban era.

Defensive Notes

NON-OFFENSIVE TDs IN THE SABAN ERA: Marlon Humphrey's 18-yard interception return in the second quarter was the 47th non-offensive touchdown of the Nick Saban era. In 2015, the Tide posted 10 non-offensive touchdowns, including four interceptions, four punt returns, one kickoff return and one blocked punt return.

ANDERSON CONTINUES STRONG PLAY: Senior linebacker Ryan Anderson led Alabama with a team-high five tackles in the first half, along with one sack. His play tonight continues a trend of excellence at the end of 2015 that saw him record eight tackles for loss and six sacks in the final six games of last season.

ALLEN PILING UP SACKS: Senior Jonathan Allen's two sacks gives him eight sacks in his last seven games dating back to the 2015 season.

HOLDING OPPONENTS UNDER 200: During head coach Nick Saban's last 111 games at the Capstone (since the start of the 2008 season), the Crimson Tide defense has held the opposing offense to fewer than 200 yards of total offense 37 times, including four times in 2015 (Florida – 180, Charleston Southern – 134, LSU – 182 yards, ULM – 92). Alabama's best came in 2009 when the Tide held Chattanooga to 84 yards of total offense.

HOLDING OPPONENTS UNDER 300: In head coach Nick Saban's tenure at Alabama, the Crimson Tide has limited opponents to under 300 yards of total offense 77 times, or 69.4 percent of the time. Alabama limited the opposition to less than 300 yards of offense 10 times in 2015 (Michigan State, 239 yards; Florida, 180; Auburn, 260; LSU, 182; Arkansas, 220; Georgia, 299; ULM, 92; Middle Tennessee, 275; Wisconsin, 268).

RUSHING DEFENSE: Alabama has surrendered only 16 individual 100-yard rushing performances dating back to the 2005 season, a mark that leads the nation. Since head coach Nick Saban's arrival in 2007, the Tide has allowed only 11 players to rush for more than 100 yards in a game: Georgia's Nick Chubb (146 on Oct. 3, 2015), Ohio State's Ezekiel Elliot (230 on Jan. 1, 2015), Auburn's Tre Mason (164 on Nov. 30, 2013), Virginia Tech's Trey Edmunds (132 on Aug. 31, 2013), Georgia's Todd Gurley (122 yards on Dec. 1, 2012), LSU's Jeremy Hill (107 on Nov. 3, 2012), Georgia Southern's Dominique Swope (153 on Nov. 19, 2011), Tennessee's Tauren Poole (117 on Oct. 23, 2010), Ole Miss's BenJarvus Green-Ellis (131 on Oct. 13, 2007), Houston's Anthony Alridge (100 on Oct. 6, 2007) and Darren McFadden of Arkansas (195 on Sept. 15, 2007).

STEWART'S CAREER NIGHT: ArDarius Stewart's third quarter 71-yard touchdown reception is the longest reception of his career. Stewart finished with career highs in touchdown receptions (2) and yards (113).

HURTS SHOWS VERSATILITY IN FIRST GAME: In his first game as a collegiate quarterback, true freshman Jalen Hurts had a versatile performance that opened up the Crimson Tide offense after a sluggish start. Hurts entered the game on the Tide's third offensive possession and lost a fumble on his first play, but he quickly settled into the role and ignited the Tide offense through the air and on the ground. Hurts ended the night accounting for four touchdowns (two rushing, two passing), the first time a Tide player has had two TDs both passing and rushing since Tyler Watts in 2001. Hurts passed for 118 yards and two touchdowns with one interception while completing six of 11 pass attempts. He rushed for 32 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries. Hurts' longest pass completion was a 71-yard touchdown strike to ArDarius Stewart in the second quarter.

Special Teams Notes

GRIFFITH CLOSING IN ON TOP TEN: Senior placekicker Adam Griffith accounted for 10 point versus USC with one field goal and seven successful extra-point kicks. With 238 career points (37 FG, 127 PAT), Griffith moved into 10th place on Alabama's all-time scoring list. On Saturday night, Griffith passed running back Johnny Musso who scored 232 points (38 TD, 2 2-point conversions) from 1969-71 and currently sits in 10th. Griffith is currently No. 6 on Alabama's all-time kick-scoring list. Jeremy Shelley is No. 5 on the list with 304 kicking points (44 FG, 133 PAT) from 2009-12.

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