Don't Look Now, But Alabama Beginning to Find Its 'Hateful" Attitude

The way the Crimson Tide dominated the Commodores was reminiscent of some relentless Alabama teams, the kind that went on to win championships.

Christopher Walsh | Sep 24, 2022

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Alabama Crimson Tide

Did we all sort of time travel to 2017 on Saturday night?

It kind of felt like it until the LED lights would fire off and remind us that the game was being played in the new-and-improved Bryant-Denny Stadium. The last time the Alabama Crimson Tide faced Vanderbilt wasn't even a home game, as the blowout win occurred in Nashville. However the outcome sure looked familiar.

So did the way the Crimson Tide went about things, making the Commodores probably wonder why they made the trip (or least thankful to be in the other Southeastern Conference division). Yes, Alabama dominated, 55-3, while winning its 23rd-straight game against the team from Music City.

That the visitors were left singing the blues was anything but surprising.

Call it what you will, attitude, swagger, relentlessness, this Crimson Tide team is beginning to play with it.

Granted, Bryce Young looked like Bryce Young (385 yards and four touchdown passes). Will Anderson Jr. looked like Will Anderson Jr. (3.5 sacks). The veteran defense didn't yield a touchdown for the third time this season. Wide receiver Ja'Corey Brooks may have had a breakout game.

So yes, No. 2 Alabama (4-0, 1-0 SEC) dominated. But it did more than that. It punished the Commodores.

Go back to five years ago on this very weekend. The team that went on to beat Georgia in overtime in the national championship game, Alabama absolutely destroyed Vanderbilt, 59-0.

Everything seemed to go the Crimson Tide's way that day as it simply ran over the home team. Running back Damien Harris ran for 151 yards and three touchdowns, and Bo Scarbrough scored two more as Alabama out-gained Vanderbilt in total offense 677-78.

You may remember, Nick Saban's credo at the time was simple: Make their asses quit.

The coach started pushing that button with this team after the narrow win at Texas two weeks ago. He talked about how Alabama used to have "hateful competitors on our team, and when they played on the road, they were mad at 100,000 people, not just the 11 guys they were playing against. They wanted to prove something to everybody."

Saban wants the 2022 version of that, or at least what offensive tackle D.J. Fluker used to say, play like they took your lunch money.

It's beginning to do just that.

"The defense played really well," Saban said after outgaining the Commodores by nearly 500 yards (628-129).

On both sides of the ball, Alabama wouldn't be denied Saturday. It threw when it wanted to throw. It run when it wanted to run. It scored in abundance while the defense reminded some of the fans on hand of what they may have seen from teams coached by Gene Stallings or Paul W. "Bear" Bryant.

Vanderbilt (3-2, 0-1) never had a chance to get into a rhythm, and Alabama won the big plays.

For example, on its first possession, the Commodores had third-and-1. It sent the quarterback wide and did a direct snap to running back Ray Davis. Only linebacker Henry To'oTo'o read it and stuffed it for a 4-yard loss at the Vanderbilt 23.

Vanderbilt managed its only points of the night on its second possession, an 11-play drive for 52 yards with former Crimson Tide kicker Joseph Bulovas making a 41-yard field goal. On third-and-2 at the 31, the Commodores made a nice shift to get the backside open, and Davis managed to go four yards for the first down.

But Vanderbilt still ended up in third-and-long and sophomore cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry read the receiver, Jayden McGowan, and knocked the crucial pass down. The visitors never got a snuff of the end zone again.

The Commodores' third possession ended any remaining speculation about how things would end up. When going for it on fourth-and-1 at their own 34, the zone read was nullified by Anderson and quarterback A.J. Swann was stopped for no gain.

The next snap, Alabama went for the jugular and an insurmountable 21-3 lead, with a 34-yard touchdown strike to Brooks.

It didn't mess around.

Be a Champion, Alabama players in the tunnel / Alabama Athletics

Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Ja'Corey Brooks (7) pushes away Vanderbilt Commodores defensive back Jeffrey Ugochukwu (38) during the first half at Bryant-Denny Stadium / Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Vanderbilt Commodores linebacker Anfernee Orji (0) and linebacker Ethan Barr (32) combine to stop Alabama Crimson Tide running back Jase McClellan (2) at Bryant-Denny Stadium / Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

Alabama Crimson Tide linebacker Henry To'oTo'o (10) reacts after a play against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first half at Bryant-Denny Stadium / Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Alabama Crimson Tide running back Jahmyr Gibbs (1) and wide receiver Ja'Corey Brooks (7) celebrates after a touchdown against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Bryant-Denny Stadium / Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Bryce Young (9) throws a touchdown pass against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Bryant-Denny Stadium / Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

Bryce Young leads the players out of the tunnel / Alabama Athletics

Traeshon Holden scores a touchdown against Vanderbilt / Alabama Athletics

Alabama Crimson Tide linebacker Will Anderson Jr. (31) sacks Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback AJ Swann (13) during the second half at Bryant-Denny Stadium / Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Alabama Crimson Tide running back Jamarion Miller (26) celebrates with wide receiver/running back Emmanuel Henderson Jr. (24) and wide receiver Shazz Preston (18) after scoring a touchdown against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama won 55-3 / Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Ja'Corey Brooks (7) mishandles the pass against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the second half at Bryant-Denny Stadium / Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Brooks had been the focal point of the first scoring drive as well, four passes all to the sophomore for 68 yards including a 21-yard touchdown. It began with the Commodores playing too far off the wideout, and ended with them playing too tight and subsequently getting burned by Young.

It was as if to say, "Go ahead and make your adjustments, it doesn't matter."

From then on, Alabama seemed to take turns while profiling various playmakers almost at will.

The second scoring drive was Jermaine Burton's turn with completions of 24 and 14 yards to get Alabama out of its own territory. Brooks had a big reception on third-and-long, and Traeshon Holden wrapped up the possession with the 8-yard touchdown.

Eventually, the Crimson Tide turned to the running game, and kept stiff-arming its way down the field. It was more than symbolic.

Coming in we already knew this was a good team in terms of talent. It had the reigning Heisman Trophy winner on offense, and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner on defense.

Offensively, it had a lot of weapons, although there were still questions about the offensive line and wide receivers. They're beginning to come into their own.

Defensively, the Crimson Tide was ranked seventh nationally in total defense (225.3 yards per game), eighth in passing yards allowed (146.7), ninth in scoring defense (8.7 points per game), 16th in rush defense (78.7 yards) and 17th in pass efficiency defense (97.45). It was also eighth in third-down conversion defense (21.7 percent), and second in the SEC.

It had the potential for more, though, a lot more.

But only if it started to play with a chip on its shoulder.

"I think we took a big step," Anderson said.

Yes, it was Vanderbilt, which may be in Alabama's league in name only. Moreover the score wasn't quite as lopsided as the last time. Five years ago, Alabama led 31-0 at the half. This time it was 31-3 against a better Vanderbilt team even with a freshman quarterback.

Alabama didn't really try to exploit his inexperience. It didn't have to.

Despite the deja vu, that's where the comparisons end. Are we sold on the 2022 version of the Crimson Tide yet? No. This was just the first conference opponent and Alabama now hits maybe the toughest part of its schedule with at Arkansas, Texas A&M and at Tennessee next up.

All three are more than dangerous, with two of the games on the road.

But if this teams plays with an attitude, it won't matter what anyone else thinks.

Christopher Walsh's column appears regularly on BamaCentral.

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