As the clock ticked down on FSU’s 31-17 victory against Alabama on opening day, it was painfully clear that the Crimson Tide was in a new era, a much lesser one than what Nick Saban had been able to provide. The Week 1 loss immediately shook the public’s faith in what used to be one of the most trustworthy programs in all of college football.
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Nevertheless, Kalen DeBoer was able to rally his troops and has now rattled off three consecutive wins, with the most recent one being an upset win over the vaunted Georgia Bulldogs. As a result, the flagship critic of ESPN, Stephen A. Smith, is attempting to be one of the first to admit that he overreacted in Week 1, but even then, he’s still not trusting what DeBoer is selling, at least for now, anyways.
After a fan rightfully called in to point out that Smith, along with several others, has been louder about Alabama’s loss than they have been about their wins, Smith felt the need to reassert his stance on the latest iteration of the Crimson Tide. In noting the improvements that Ty Simpson has shown in recent weeks, Smith admitted that “Alabama deserves all of the credit in the world. I think you’re right, and I was wrong.”
As mentioned, however, his concession came with a caveat. “I’m still not sold on Kalen DeBoer.”
“I think you need some rough riders if you’re going to succeed Nick Saban. You can’t bring finesse ball from the PAC-12 to the SEC. That’s my personal take. But, he did beat Georgia and has beaten Georgia in back-to-back seasons… I’m just looking at it and I’m like, alright, I got it. I see where y’all are coming from, I see what y’all are saying, but I’m just not sold on it. I’m not sold on Alabama, but that was a big win.”
Moving forward, the Tide figures to command a bit more respect than they had received prior to the win against Georgia, but they’ll have to let go of that win rather quickly. They’ve got yet another nationally ranked opponent to look forward to in the Vanderbilt Commodores.
Vandy is currently averaging 49 points per game, making them one of the most potent offenses in all of college football. Even though they’ll be traveling to Bryant-Denny Stadium for this one, this still figures to be another measuring-stick game for an Alabama team that is hoping to prove that they are as dangerous as ever.
For what it’s worth, it seems as if the folks over in Las Vegas are already of that belief, as Alabama is currently listed as a -10.5 point betting favorite. Should they manage to cover that number, then it’s incredibly likely that they could find themselves with a single-digit number next to their names once again.
At that point, it’ll be even more difficult for Smith to get through a taping of his show without having to eat yet another slice of humble pie.
