Alabama Learning From Past Road Tests to Prepare for Death Valley

Bryce Young and the leadership group are working to create a better team energy in the locker room and on the field.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The last time Alabama football played on the road, it resulted in a loss to Tennessee. Crimson Tide captain Will Anderson Jr. said the team played with some anxiety facing a big test on the road. 

Now, as No. 6 Alabama prepares for a night game in Death Valley against No. 15 LSU, Bryce Young and the rest of the leadership team are trying to make sure that doesn't happen again.

"We just want to make a better environment as a leadership group and as a team," Young said Monday. "We all have each other’s back, we all play for each other so a lot of it’s in the preparation we have throughout the week. And then on game days just making sure that we have a good environment, we have good energy in the locker room and out on the field."

Despite the loss, crowd noise didn't end up being a huge factor for the Alabama offense against Tennessee. The Crimson Tide still moved the ball effectively and put up 49 points. Neyland Stadium wasn't the first hostile environment Alabama had played in this season with games at Texas and Arkansas. Young said going to LSU is a "new challenge" that the team has to step up and prepare for. 

Offensive lineman Emil Ekiyor Jr. was a redshirt freshman the last time Alabama played in front of a capacity crowd at Tiger Stadium in 2018. (The Crimson Tide's last trip to Baton Rouge was in front of a limited crowd because of COVID restrictions in 2020. He did not make the trip as a redshirt, but said his teammates told him it was the "craziest environment" they'd ever been a part of. 

Ekiyor feels that Alabama's past trials at Tennessee and Texas this season and Florida and Texas A&M last season have this team prepared for the trip to LSU this Saturday. 

"I think we've had a lot of experience within the last few years with hostile environments and having to deal with them," Ekiyor said. "So I think this group is pretty much as well-equipped for it as anybody in the country. We'll just continue to focus on our communication, practicing with crowd noise, operating with hand signals and things of that nature.”

Nick Saban is as familiar with Death Valley as any coach in the SEC. He has a 6-1 record there as the Alabama head coach and spent five seasons as the Tigers' head coach from 2000-2004. The key for Saban this weekend is making sure the Crimson Tide doesn't do things to beat themselves in a tough environment. 

"It’s always challenging to play on the road in this league, anywhere you play—obviously this is one of the more challenging places," Saban said. "All the more reason to have great focus and attention to detail. We can’t beat ourselves. We have to be able to have enough poise to be able to execute in this kind of environment, not let it affect us in terms of how we go about one play at a time and how we want to execute and get things done.”

Alabama and LSU will kick off at 6 p.m. on ESPN. 

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