Process. It is all about the process.

I’m reminding myself of that. It isn’t that I want instant gratification; I’d just like to see signs of improvement. And this offense hasn’t shown any signs of improvement. It will. Either this season or next. But right now, it is in a tailspin.

The reasons?

To diagnose the problem you have to look at the film. I haven’t broken down the game on film, and to be honest I don’t want to. It made me sick enough watching it the first time. But, I’ll take coach Nick Saban at his word, and I believe it takes time to create the culture needed to be a winner.

You don’t have to win every game by 50 points, but holding onto big leads is critical. Alabama, even under Shula, showed a great ability to get ahead; however, it still isn’t showing the fortitude necessary to hold a lead.

Given time, Saban and his staff will get that message through to the team.

It needs to be soon. With the big rivalry games looming, the team must develop its offensive identity. The defense is doing its best—the offense must help.

A win is a win. But wouldn’t it be nice to have a win with a team that is improving?

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For a detailed accounting of the offensive problems, Ray Melick discussed that in his Sunday column. Not much to say really. Just about what you’d expect—it was a dismal performance.

Speaking of performance, Jeff Gordon won at Talladega. I didn’t get to see any of the race, but I’m sure it didn’t make some fans very happy.

In case you want to relive the game, here’s a recap: