Alabama’s offense, Jalen Milroe inconsistencies will prevent the Tide from achieving their goals

On By Littum

NORMAN, Okla. – Ryan Williams fell to his knees in disbelief. Jalen Milroe went scoreless to the sideline. Kalen DeBoer gave an earful and more. The aftermath of a play that didn’t decide the game against Oklahoma but was a polarizing moment was emblematic of the night for Alabama. Within seconds, a miraculous fourth-down touchdown reception that would have cut the deficit to 24-10 was called back, and Alabama’s offense was held scoreless for the seventh straight possession.

Milroe was still searching for answers after the game.

“Didn’t get a confirmation on that,” Milroe said. “But we shouldn’t put ourselves in the tight position of officials making calls. We need to take ownership to start faster and take advantage of every opportunity.”

The official call, an illegal touch that ruled Williams offside, making him ineligible, was one of a long line of problems for Alabama’s offense in a stunning 24-3 loss to the Sooners, the Tide’s third in this season. An offense that entered Saturday ranked seventh nationally was held to its fewest points since October 2004. A unit averaging 438 yards per carry. game was held to a season-low 234 yards. A three-game turnover-free streak was snapped in the worst possible way — three interceptions in the second half, two leading to touchdowns and the third resulting in Oklahoma running out 6 minutes, 34 seconds remaining.

A performance like that, in a loss to a 5-5 team as double-digit favorites, is hard to swallow. But it’s even more bitter considering the timing. Chaos ensued around Alabama before Saturday’s kickoff, and everything worked in its favor. No. 5 Indiana suffered a 23-point loss to Ohio State, No. 9 Ole Miss fell to Florida, which helped clear the SEC deck, while Missouri beat Mississippi State, meaning all that was left for Alabama to do to clinch the SEC championship was win its next two games. With everything straight ahead, Alabama’s offense collapsed.

“We just didn’t execute,” offensive lineman Tyler Booker said. “You have to execute better. You have to execute better. The plays were there to be made, we just didn’t execute.”

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At the center of Alabama’s offensive woes was the worst game of Milroe’s season, arguably the worst of his career, going 11-of-26 passing for 164 yards and three interceptions. Oklahoma’s defense, coming off a bye week, had a master game plan to contain Milroe’s running ability. Alabama’s offense made a concerted effort to give Milroe running touches with seven attempts in the first quarter alone, but there was little room.

Oklahoma held Milroe to just seven yards on 15 carries, and Alabama’s offense managed just 70 rushing yards for the game. Milroe had as many carries as running backs Jam Miller and Justice Haynes combined.

“They have a lot of guys who are physical and play strong up front,” Milroe said. “And then obviously when you play Alabama, you want to give your best, especially here at home. So it’s about just attacking, having the 1-0 mentality, regrouping and just recognizing what we have to do to fix it .”

There was never a doubt in DeBoer’s mind about sitting Milroe in the middle of the games. In DeBoer’s estimation, his quarterback’s mistakes were part of a holistic failure of the offense.

“Stepping back, I just felt like there were different things early in the game,” DeBoer said. “I mean drops, just balls falling all the way out. We dropped (the ball) in the lights, just different uncharacteristic things, weird things that happened. And I thought he actually put the ball where he was supposed to, we just had to help him little.

“But there was still a lot of play left and I felt like there were a lot of things he did, he fought and fought and did a lot of things well for our football team and we just all needed to get a little bit better.”

There were several notable drops in the first half by tight ends CJ Dippre and Ryan Williams that would have extended drives. Alabama’s offensive operation seemed out of whack, most times still trying to get lined up and snapped off the game clock. But still, the game was within reach at 10-3 at halftime. Led by Milroe’s turnover, Alabama’s second-half driving record went as follows: interception, pick-six, punt, turnover on downs, interception.

Milroe’s first interception looked like a wide receiver mistake. There appeared to be a lackluster effort that allowed the Oklahoma defender to catch the pass untouched.

“Screen pass, they skip it,” DeBoer said. “You have to assume those blocks are going to happen and you’re reading a different defender.”

The costly, back-breaking pick-6 is straight at Milroe, who either never saw the defender or predetermined the throw. Regardless, it was a crucial mistake at the worst time.

“If I threw it sooner, we would have completed the ball,” Milroe said. “It’s a pass you have to complete, so I take full ownership of it.”

His third interception was no fault of his own, but another microcosm of the game. Oklahoma sent a pressure that came home, Milroe was hit as he threw and the ball popped up for the catch. The Sooner defensive line kept Milroe under duress throughout the game, something Alabama couldn’t do on the other end.

“Some of the momentum stuff early in the game kind of took the wind out of our sails,” DeBoer said. “That put them on the field. They kind of start grinding out yards on the ground and win time of possession there. And we couldn’t get over the hump tonight. That’s the unfortunate thing.”

As unfortunate as it is, that has been Alabama’s reality this season. Before Saturday, Alabama outscored its last three opponents by a 128-20 margin, then managed just one field goal in a must-win game. The highs have been to the moon, the lows to rock bottom. Ultimately, the inconsistencies on this team, highlighted by the offense on Saturday, will likely keep the Tide out of the College Football Playoff.

Perhaps another chaotic Saturday is ahead that could salvage Alabama’s chances, but for now the only thing guaranteed is the Iron Bowl against Auburn, which upset the No. 15 Texas A&M in four overtimes and will play for bowl eligibility next week. Meanwhile, Alabama’s goals all but disappeared, and seeing the Crimson Tide disappear behind an anemic offensive performance was unexpected.

Still, DeBoer maintained after the game that the team is hurt but intact. If he gets it wrong, another dangerous opponent could deliver a similar fate next week.

“There’s a big game next week,” DeBoer said. “So we’ve got to regroup, stick together. The right things are being said in there by the guys, as much as they hurt. And just keep playing and be proud of who we are and get the job done.”

(Photo: William Purnell / Imagn Images)