Football vs. New Mexico State Postgame Notes
9/7/2019 7:26:00 PM | Football
GAME CAPTAINS: Alabama's captains for the game against New Mexico State were redshirt junior tight end Miller Forristall, redshirt senior linebacker Anfernee Jennings and junior defensive back Xavier McKinney.
FIRST TIME STARTERS: Junior running back Najee Harris made his first career start on offense, while freshman defensive back Jordan Battle got his first career nod on defense.
FIRST TIME PLAYERS: Alabama had some new faces on the field in Saturday's home-opener against New Mexico State. Four true freshmen made an appearance in the game, including tight end Jahleel Billingsley, linebacker King Mwikuta and offensive linemen Pierce Quick and Tanner Bowles. A pair of redshirt freshmen also made their Crimson Tide debuts, including linebacker Jarez Parks and defensive lineman Christian Barmore.
HOME SWEET HOME OPENERS: The Crimson Tide owns a 79-11-2 (.859) all-time record across 92 total home-opening games. Currently, UA is riding an 18-game winning streak in the team's first game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Under head coach Nick Saban, the Tide sports a perfect 12-0 record in home openers.
SABAN IN HOME OPENERS: Nick Saban is 22-2 (.917) all-time in home openers across his four stops as a head coach. He is currently riding a 19-game winning streak in the first game at his home stadium, with the last loss coming in 1998 when his Michigan State Spartans fell to Colorado State, 23-16. In home openers, Saban's teams are outscoring the opposition 932-275 (38.8-11.5 ppg) and have shut out the competition on three occasions with the most recent shutout coming in 2014's rain-shortened, 41-0 win over Florida Atlantic. For his career, he owns a 1-0 record at Toledo, 3-2 mark at Michigan State, and perfect records of 5-0,11-0 at LSU and 12-0 at Alabama.
UNRANKED, NO PROBLEM UNDER SABAN: With its 62-10 win against New Mexico State Saturday afternoon, Alabama has defeated 84 consecutive unranked teams under head coach Nick Saban, the longest streak in FBS history. Alabama's last loss to a team not ranked in the Associated Press poll was a 17-10 defeat at the hands of Auburn on Nov. 24, 2007. The current streak began with a win over Colorado on Dec. 30, 2007 in the Independence Bowl. The previous record was 72 games, shared by Miami (Fla.) (1984-95) and Florida (1989-2000). Under Saban, Alabama holds an 88-3 (.967) (84-3, .966 after vacations) mark against unranked opponents.
Defensive Notes
10 POINTS OR LESS: Alabama's 62-10 win over New Mexico State marked the 87th time under head coach Nick Saban that the Crimson Tide has held opponents to 10 points or less and the 31st time in the last 61 games dating to the start of the 2015 season.
TURNOVERS, TURNOVERS, TURNOVERS: The Crimson Tide has forced at least one turnover in 56 of its last 61 contests dating back to the start of the 2015 season. During the current run, the Crimson Tide has forced 99 turnovers (66 interceptions, 33 fumbles) and returned 22 of those miscues for touchdowns.
Offensive Notes
RUGGS, JEUDY CLIMBING CAREER TOUCHDOWN RECEPTIONS LIST: Junior wideouts Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs III passed DJ Hall's (2004-07) 17 career touchdown receptions during Saturday's game against New Mexico State. Jeudy's three TD receptions moved him to second on the Alabama all-time touchdown receptions list with 20. Ruggs is tied for fourth with Dennis Homan (1965-67) with 18 receptions. Alabama's all-time leader is Amari Cooper who recorded 31 from 2012-14.
JEUDY'S SCORING STREAK GOES ON: Junior wideout Jerry Jeudy's 21-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter marked his sixth-consecutive game with a touchdown. That stretch is the longest streak in Alabama history in the past 20 years. The streak began Nov. 24, 2018, following his 46-yard pass from Tua Tagovailoa in the 52-21 home-victory over Auburn.
TAGOVAILOA THROWS FOR 5,000+ CAREER YARDS: Tagovailoa's 21-yard pass to junior wide receiver Jerry Jeudy put him over the 5,000-yard career passing mark, with 5,012 with that completion. The junior quarterback ended the game with 227 yards to bring his career total to 5,165.
500+ YARDS OF TOTAL OFFENSE: Alabama recorded 603 yards of total offense in the home-opener. The 500-plus yard performance marked the 25th time in the last 60 games, dating to the start of the 2015 season, that the Crimson Tide has eclipsed the 500-yard mark. Last season, UA totaled 500 or more yards in 12 of 15 games to set a single season school record.
600+ YARDS OF TOTAL OFFENSE: Alabama recorded 603 yards of total offense against New Mexico State, marking the first time the Tide exceeded 600 yards of total offense since Oct. 6, 2018 at Arkansas when the Tide tallied 639 yards of offense. Overall, the Tide's 603 yards vs. Aggies was the 14th 600+ yard game under head coach Nick Saban.
ALABAMA 300+ YARDS RUSHING IN A GAME: Alabama rushed for 318 yards against New Mexico State, marking the first time the Crimson Tide rushed over 300 yards since Oct. 14, 2017, when the Tide had 308 yards against Arkansas.
BRYANT-DENNY OPENER POINTS HIGH UNDER SABAN: Alabama's 62 points against New Mexico State is the most scored by a Nick Saban team in its Bryant-Denny opener. The previous high under Saban occurred in a 57-7 win over Arkansas State on Sept. 8, 2018. The total is also the most points scored by the Tide in its Bryant-Denny season debut since a 63-14 win over Southern Miss on Sept. 27, 1969.
OPENING DRIVE TOUCHDOWNS: Alabama is currently riding a 27-game winning streak when scoring a touchdown on its first offensive possession of the game. The Tide's last loss after finding the end zone on its first drive was to the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2014 Allstate Sugar Bowl.
SCORING STREAK CONTINUES: Alabama extended its school record for consecutive games with a score to 244 with its 75-yard rushing touchdown from junior quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to junior wide receiver Henry Ruggs III in the first quarter against New Mexico State. The Crimson Tide was last held off the scoreboard in a 9-0 loss to Auburn on Nov. 18, 2000. Alabama has a 191-53 (.783) record over the course of the current streak.
131-7 UNDER SABAN WHEN LEADING AT THE HALF: Under head coach Nick Saban, the Crimson Tide is 131-7 (.950) when leading at the half. Alabama has held the lead in 48 of its last 61 games dating back to the start of the 2015 season. Alabama is also 115-4 (.966) when leading by seven or more points at the break during the Saban era.
Special Teams Notes
REICHARD GOES 2-FOR-2 IN HOME DEBUT: Freshman placekicker Will Reichard went 2-for-2 in field goal attempts against New Mexico State, making kicks of 48 and 49 yards on the day. It marked the first made field goals of his Crimson Tide career.
