Disappointed but not discouraged after trip to The Swamp

By Chris Stewart

(Gainesville, FL) - Saturday morning was no different for me than any Alabama football game day for the past 36 years. I woke up thinking the Crimson Tide would win.

When I left the team hotel in Ocala Saturday morning, I certainly didn't expect Bama to route the Gators, as had been the case in Tuscaloosa 12 months earlier. However, I did believe that the Tide had enough weapons to do more than just play Florida close. I thought they could win.

I was right. Alabama could have won. But they didn't.

When Florida handed the Crimson Tide an early gift, Bama responded royally. Prince Hall scooped up a mistimed snap and raced 50 yards to give the visitors a 7-0 lead. Unfortunately, most of the remaining gifts from the Gators were wasted.

When Alabama held a 10-0 lead in the 2nd quarter, Florida was on the ropes. The announced crowd of 90,000 plus had grown silent at best - surly at worst. The boo birds were beginning to sing again in the direction of Gator quarterback Chris Leak, and momentum was wearing crimson.

The chance to deliver the knockout blow came and went - twice in the last seven minutes of the half.

The first opportunity came on a first down play from the Florida 5-yard line. Leak threw into triple coverage and hit Alabama's preseason All-SEC cornerback Ramzee Robinson right on the number. But Robinson couldn't hang on at the Gator 18.

Instead of getting a pick six and taking a commanding 17-0 lead into intermission, Florida would march down the field and get inside the Tide 20. Another missed opportunity occurred when Simeon Castille couldn't hang onto an interception in the end zone. It was a tough play, but if he had pulled it off, Florida would have gone to the locker room scoreless and scrambling for answers.

Even after the Gators scored, Alabama had one more chance to take the air out of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. The Tide drove inside the Florida 20, with a shot at no worse than a medium range field goal attempt. But John Parker Wilson couldn't unload the football, took a sack for a huge loss, and Jamie Christensen's long field goal try never came close.

Leading 10-7 at the half gives you a chance to win. Leading 17-0 at the half often guarantees it. One play is all the Tide needed in order to take a double-digit lead to the locker room. As was case last week, Bama couldn't make the one play it needed to walk away a winner.

That's why you have to be extremely disappointment over the fact that Alabama is 3-2, rather than 5-0. The Tide could easily have matched last year's start at this point in the season by making a couple of plays that are the difference in winning and losing.

That's the reason to be disappointed. It's also the reason Bama fans should not be discouraged.

Being just two plays away from 5-0, when your current team is far removed from the one that had the same record last year, shows that this squad is indeed close to being where everybody with Bama Fever wants them to be.

There is obviously much work to be done. The running game was better, but not where it should be. While he has thrown for more than 200 yards in all five starts, and has shown a level of toughness rarely ever seen at the quarterback spot, John Parker Wilson has also had turnovers that resulted in touchdowns each of the past two games.

The Tide defense has shown flashes of greatness, but also has allowed golden opportunities to slip through their fingers.

And the kicking game, well - you know all about the ups, and especially the downs.

While improvement must be made to have a shot against the likes of Tennessee, LSU, and Auburn, there is every reason for me to believe that much success lies ahead if those improvements are made.

 

Chris Stewart writes a weekly column for bamafever.com. Stewart is the radio play-by-play announcer for University of Alabama men's basketball. He is also the pre and post game host for the Crimson Tide Sports Network's coverage of Alabama Football. In addition, he hosts a talk show each weekday morning from 7 until 9 on Tuscaloosa's Sports Radio 1420, The Tusk. Bama Fever is a company devoted to providing University of Alabama Crimson Tide merchandise. We have stores in Birmingham, Tuscaloosa  and Huntsville and have now created an online catalog for Crimson Tide fans all over the world searching for that hard to find merchandise. We carry over 7,000 items in our stores and have posted many of these items right here in our online catalog.

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