Three quarters of Alabama are more than enough to beat Duke

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Duke clearly beat Alabama, 0-0, on Chick-fil-A Kickoff's first day of 19:58. The draw never seemed so effective nor such an effective strategy in the Mercedes-Benz stadium, even when it was practiced on rare occasions by the home football team.

It would not last. It could not last. The universe would be straightened and put back in its tracks. The second ranked team in the country must defeat Duke in any match that does not involve a rounded ball or a circular goal.

That Bama beat Duke 42-3 was hardly the question on Saturday. That the Crimson Tide scored enough points to win was not a revelation. But that they were slow to wake up for a new season, that the points of style were rare at the beginning of these first minutes, it was at least a quick point.

"I thought our ability to run was a bit slow, but not for lack of effort or attitude," said Alabama coach Nick Saban. not disturbed. As he added: "As the game progressed, we played better and better."

Credits some old standards of Alabama for what has become an easy victory.

Too much defense – the Tide beat the Duke 512 yards to 204. A fourth quarter start and two interceptions later reinforced the already overflowing CV of this defense.

And too much Tua. You do not win a Heisman Trophy in the first game of the season – especially against Duke – but one can assume that Tua Tagovailoa could have given her chances a heavy paper score with a bland performance. No chance of that. He finished 26 of his 31 passes for 336 yards and four touchdowns.

He has a fan in Duke's coach, David Cutcliffe. "It's incredible," he said about Tagovailoa. "It is correct. He is ready. Its output is so compact and simple and fast. He can run while running. This ticks a lot of boxes.

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Credit Duke at least for not being concerned about his 34-point underdog status or being bullied by the red sea of ​​Alabama fans around him.

To start the game, Duke left the Atlanta football palace by crossing a replica of leather inflatable helmet. Smoke and fire escaped dramatically by suggesting that Kiss, not the Blue Devils' travel lineup, was on stage. . Toy cows parachuted from rafters.

And then really strange things started to happen.

Quick summary of the first three properties of Alabama:

Three-and-out.

Fumble by Jerome Ford. The Blue Devils picked up the ball on the Alabama 26-meter line and moved until 7, when the bold decision to go into the fourth and first base resulted in a straight-line run Purple purpose.

Missed a 49-yard field goal.

In short, the tide came out as ordinary. Worse than that, instant oatmeal.

Following his loss to Clemson in last year's college football playoff championship game, the Alabama offense was scoreless three times. It was not the kind of fresh start that offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian would frame and hang on the wall of his office.

Bama's fourth possession was just beginning with a promise, a possession penalty canceling a 54-yard pass by Najee Harris, one of Alabama's two-half-offensives, whose suspension for a small team offense lasted a long time. quarter.

Turning this into a penalty penalty, The Tide ran a distance of 80 yards, resulting in a fake artificial play and a 27-yard pass from Tagovailoa to Miller Forristall of Cartersville. The drought that marked Tide ended at 10:02 of the second quarter.

There, the Alabama has eliminated this bad football, like a cat spitting a ball of hair.

It would be about this point that all Duke discussions would stop. Alabama would be the only subject of each sentence to follow.

Forget this stunning first quarter, nothing more than a hiccup in a moving sermon. This has been markedly improved for Bama. A 13th consecutive victory in Atlanta was swaddled safely and in the cradle.

And those looking for longer-lasting problems, more durable signs of slippage from Alabama should swallow hard and admit that "Bama is still" Bama.

Well, there was one thing, something of a specific flaw in Alabama: The Tide had problems kicking – two failed attempts on the pitch. Something to keep in mind if someone is approaching. Saban said, "Will has been excellent. He launched a lot of touchbacks, which shows the strength of his legs. The two goals that he struck, he really hit home. It's a bit unlucky that they both hit the pole. "

If not, let's look at the first three properties of Alabama from the second half:

A nine-game, 65-yard touchdown ended with a shot from Tagovailoa's throw to Major Tennison.

After an escape from the duke – the worst of all mistakes – Tagovailoa turned around, scoring 28 yards in three games, scoring an 8-yard pass to DeVonta Smith.

Then, after going 90 yards with little resistance, one more touchdown for Tagovailoa, 21 yards for Jerry Jeudy. In the four touchdowns with four different receivers, the playmakers are not lacking in Tuscaloosa.

"We were able to operate the balloon and send it to our game makers on the perimeter and that was the difference in the game," Saban said.

Tagovailoa has accumulated its workforce in only three quarters. During his last visit to Mercedes-Benz, Tagovailoa was beaten and summoned to replace Jalen Hurts, who saved the Tide in the SEC championship match. This, however, was a substitute for mercy, with Mac Jones preparing for the Tide.

The win and trophy of the leather helmet go to the Kickoff winner. Saban did his part to try it during the medal ceremony and, yes, even to its form.

"A good victory for us," he said.

"I do not think a game restores anything, I think you have to do it over time and as a team," he said later.

Never coach, he added, "there are obviously a lot of things we can improve on."