Give Nick Saban credit. The guy can coach.
Although his short stint in the NFL with the Miami Dolphins might have been a failure, he has done nothing but win at the college level. Five years removed from winning a national championship with LSU, Saban finds himself back in the Bowl Championship Series mix8212;this time with Alabama. It only took him two years, and the Crimson Tide are back at the top of college football.
It is going to be a tough challenge for Utah to pound away at ‘Bama’s immense defense. However, offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig is just as concerned with the overall speed of the defense as he is with the size of it.
“They are big, and they are physical, but the biggest attribute they have is their speed,” Ludwig said. “That is our biggest concern, to develop a game plan that can attack their speed.”
Even though Alabama is so much bigger than the Utes up front, Ludwig still believes that a big part of its offensive scheme will revolve around Darrell Mack and Matt Asiata’s physical running style.
“We have to get them involved,” Ludwig said. “We just have to.”
Running on the Crimson Tide is difficult, and passing on them isn’t much easier. Alabama is giving up an average of 178.1 yards per game through the air, led by All-American senior free safety Rashad Johnson. Johnson has put up impressive numbers on the season with five interceptions, including three in a game against LSU.
For Utah to be able to hang around, it is crucial that Brian Johnson continue the stellar play he’s had as of late.
“The quarterback play in our offense is critical no matter who it is,” Ludwig said. “We’re counting on Brian to play like he did against BYU, San Diego State and TCU, and just the way he finished the season.”
During the past three games, Brian Johnson has passed for an average of 272 yards, and has a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 10-to-1.
On offense, Alabama has had most of its success come on the ground. The Crimson Tide like to get their two running backs, Glen Coffee and Mark Ingram, to run behind their physical offensive line. Coffee has gotten the most production out of anyone, rushing for 1,347 yards and 10 touchdowns on the year.
‘Bama’s talented left tackle Andre Smith will be going up against Utah’s Paul Kruger in what figures to be one of the biggest matchups of the game.
“I’m thriving on this,” Kruger said. “This is a great opportunity to compare myself to a guy who is ranked as the best offensive lineman in the nation. He’s obviously a great football player, but I’m going to be doing my best to prepare for this guy and to prove myself.”
Although the trench fight that will ensue between Smith and Kruger is critical, the rest of the defensive line will need to make sure that it isn’t blown off the line of scrimmage by the rest of Alabama’s big front-four.
“It’s one of the same things we’ve been going up against all year,” Kruger said. “We have a small defensive line, but we have a lot of speed. We’re going to be doing a lot of different things to try and get them on their heels and to keep them out of our faces. If it is a pushing match, they’re going to win every time. But if we sprint around and use our speed well, then I think we got a good chance.”
This game will come down to who can control the trenches. In order for Utah to win this game, it will have to neutralize Alabama’s size advantage and hope that Johnson picks up right where he left off after BYU.