The Word of the Week For the Alabama Offensive Line: Elevate

The Crimson Tide big men are eager to get back on the field after a difficult performance this past week against South Florida.

The Crimson Tide players and coaches continue working toward the season opener in practice Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. Alabama offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic directs his linemen. / Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News / USA TODAY NETWORK

It took two weeks for reality to set in for the Alabama offense. The Crimson Tide put up 600 yards of offense in the season opener against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers on their way to 63 points, but Week 2 was a different story for the Crimson Tide.

Alabama beat South Florida 42-16, but had only managed 14 points and 189 yards of offense through the first three quarters of Saturday night's action. The team closed the game with 204 yards of offense in the fourth quarter alone and ultimately claimed a clear victory but the performance made one thing clear. The Alabama offense is a work in progress.

"I mean, first of all it's frustrating to not perform at your best ability, no matter who we're playing," Alabama guard Tyler Booker said. "We could be playing Georgia or the Dallas Cowboys. We always want to perform to the best of our ability. So it really wasn't about USF, it was just us not playing to the Bama standard, so we just had to right our wrongs in the fourth quarter, which we definitely did."

The most noticeable difference came late in the game when Elijah Pritchett was subbed in at right tackle for Wilkin Formby, but Booker said schematic changes and a group decision are what really unlocked the productivity.

"We just learned some things schematically. We made some adjustments on the sidelines. That's what allowed those holes to open up. We also just made a decision like 'Look we're letting this team down as a unit. We need to fix it'. I feel like we came together great as a group and said we're going to fix it and we're going to right our wrongs right now," Booker said.

Alabama's offensive line allowed three sacks, multiple pressures and incurred numerous penalties on Saturday night, making moving the football consistently a near impossibility. How did new Crimson Tide offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic handle his unit's challenging performance?

"He's really, just focused on correcting. He's not a guy that's like, 'Oh my gosh, you're horrible.' But he's going to be like, 'Hey this is why we have to practice harder," Booker said. "This is why we have to do better in practice'. That's the great thing about Coach Kap. It's easy to learn from him."

The Crimson Tide takes on a bigger challenge this week as they head to Camp Randall Stadium to play the Wisconsin Badgers. The Badgers will be the best team the Tide has faced thus far and it will be the first time Alabama goes on the road this year, making the offensive line's performance even more important in a hostile environment.

"Elevate. The word of the week is elevate. To play to our standard, elevate to our standard, and not drop to the level of our opponent, no matter who we're playing," Booker said.