This wasn’t just a big game in front of the friendly, home crowd. It wasn’t just a game between two ranked foes.

It was the game of the week in college football, on the grandest stage. Heisman front-runner against Heisman winner in the biggest game in Fayetteville in decades…the campus practically shut down in anticipation for almost a week as the largest crowd ever to watch a game in Pigville filed into town.

And what did the Tide do? What Alabama does best. Take the air out of the hype machine and slowly pound their opponent into submission. At their place. On their turf. In front of their fans, supporters, girlfriends and band.

Prior to the game and even during, broadcasters were committing verbal fornication with the latest object of their lust, Ryan Mallett. Not since Tim Tebow had I seen such uncomfortable preoccupation with a player.

But after a learning curve for a young but talented secondary, Alabama dropped a mallet on Ryan Mallett, keeping his Hogs out of the end zone in the second half when they couldn’t afford to stay out of the end zone.

At times in the first half and part of the 3rd quarter there was reason for concern. 313 yard through the air through three quarters at times made Bama’s newbie defensive backs look silly.

But in the end it was the big QB that was the butt of the joke, throwing for just 44 yards and a 37.0 passing efficiency in the final period. Oh, and two INT’s at the hands of a swarming Bama defense that knows when to step on the gas. Bama took Mallett for three picks for the game.

“You could just see the look on those guys’ faces,” said junior receiver Julio Jones. “They were gasping for air, and we were going to keep the tempo going and stay on them.”

Sophomore offensive guard Barrett Jones sensed the same notion:

“I felt they were getting a little tired and could feel the momentum swinging, and that’s when we wanted to drive the nail in the coffin, as we put it, and put the hammer down.”

All in all, this is a team that refuses to lose.

“We’re a team that just refuses to lose,” said Alabama QB Greg McElroy. (See, I told you.)

And maybe most importantly, it’s a team that knows what to do with hyped-up quarterbacks in big, all or nothing games. Maybe because they’ve been there so many times since the start of the 2008 season.

Black outs. Red outs. Retro uni’s. National audiences. Your place. Our place. Regular season games. Championship games. BCS National Championship games. Doesn’t matter.

Thanks to Alabama head coach Nick Saban, if you’re the next opponent on the schedule, this Alabama team knows what to do with you. Whether you like it or not, they will finish you.

And in the end, there isn’t a single thing you can do about it.

(Follow me on Twitter at ITK4BAMA for capstonereport.com news, updates and smack.)

13 thoughts on “Bama knows what to do with hyped QBs”

  1. itk, i love the spirit, but we went up there and played and coached bad and got away with it.

    i glad somebody on the staff had enough sense to know at the half to come out and give the damn ball to ingram.

    i learned long ago the difference between a good back and a great one is knowing where to run. how many talented backs have you seen over the years that missed the hole time after time. ingram anticipates the hole and hits it. he rarely runs the wrong way. he blocks. he catches the ball. the difference between he and richardson is #3 isn’t quite as good at hitting the hole……..yet.

    i heard brando at the half yesterday in a build-up to the michigan highlights say ingram already had his heisman. then he went on praising the michigan qb.

    if there’s a better college player in the country right now than mark ingram, i haven’t seen him. now i could care less about the heisman because it’s a popularity contest.

    but i just don’t believe there’s a better college football player right now than mark ingram.

    understand though the only team that will beat alabama right now is alabama and we almost did it yesterday.

    also understand that righting the ship and winning a tough road game means something too.

    let’s just tamp that rammer jammer down a couple of notches 😉

  2. and another thing, did we not go “back-to-the-future” with the crappy sec officiating.

    we got some god-awful spots and calls yesterday. the late hit. the hanks block-in-the-back. but to their credit, i don’t recall a drive that was killed by a penalty. (i didn’t start watching ’til the middle of the second qtr. in all honesty)

    that’s a big deal, though. how many offensive series have you seen killed by a penalty, especially deep in your own territory.

    but that doesn’t change the fact that the officiating took several steps back……way back.

  3. You’re welcome to your opinion finebammer, but what I saw for four quarters (who the heck starts watching a Bama game in the middle of the 2nd quarter?) was a team with a young, wet defense walk into a buzz saw and come out in one piece on the other side.

    How we adjusted and affected Mallett told the tale.

  4. Don’t be too hard on ITK. He is right about Mallett, although I don’t think I’d be bragging on the secondary too much after coughing up 300+ yds passing. Mallet is incredibly talented, but he doesn’t have the moxie to pull it off when a big game is on the line (and no, UGA does not qualify as a “big game”.) I’ll give McElroy credit…he’s not the most talented guy in the world, but he’s clutch when the game’s on the line. Mallet just choked…plain and simple.

  5. i don’t think i was hard on itk.

    (and did you notice julio taking up for you, buddy??? now that’s something you don’t see everyday!)

    and for the record, i just got out of the hospital yesterday and had to throw a fit (literally)to get them to let me out when they did!

    (wasn’t going to say anything but my fanhood was challenged!)

  9. Hell no. Anybody got a defibulator? That D grew up. Now if they’re just smart enough to remember next week that you have to play 60 minutes the way you played the second half. Phuck the 360 yards passing for the game. The only meaningful stat is 120 total yards and 3
    points in the second half. Oh, and did ya’ll read GMAC’s quote where he said “The only way your going to beat this feam is to KILL it”. Cool!!!! RTR!

  13. As Beano Cook said…….

    “Is there a better way to spend three hours on a Saturday afternoon than watching the college (football) game? Well, I did see a cartoon in Playboy magazine with a couple in bed with the same question as the caption. Perhaps there is one better way.

    Gotta love the Pope of CFB for his levity and wit; and for predicting that Ron Pawlus would win four heismans.

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