The pressure is on Morgan, who enters with a straight-line speed disadvantage against an explosive team.
Rejoice, for this is the day that we Gump, and happy TGIF to you all. We’re just over 24 hours away from kickoff in what is apt to be the quarterback clash of the season: State v Bama, Kamario v Keelon. But first, let’s check our headlines and news.
We’ve always loved Jalen Hurts around here. No one comported themselves with more class and grace than he did in his time on campus.
But no one, absolutely no one, loves Jalen more than Nick Saban. From yesterday’s Rich Eisen show…Jalen could give quite a few people lessons in how to be man.
Hard to believe, but ‘Bama baseball is beginning its fall exhibition season, and the team announced that schedule yesterday, where there are some surprisingly good matchups, including Georgia Tech and UAB.
RBR has the score and prediction roundups over yonder. Most talking heads see the Tide/Bulldogs as a one-score game played somewhere in the upper 20s/mid 30s, like 35-28ish.
I differ sharply though. As we shall discuss in the preview coming a bit later (see that foreshadowing?), there are many reasons to think this is a two- or three-score game, with the visitors easily capable of blowing the door off the hometown Bulldogs.
Former ‘Bama corner Levi Wallace just retired after a seven-year NFL career. In his autobiographical sketch in The Athletic, he details what a destructive career professional football is, and how many sacrifices have to be made to chase that dream.
It’s excellent, but a painful read.
Body, this is where I demanded the most from you. Long flights. Short recovery windows. Thursdays that still hurt from Sundays. Sundays that still hurt from the season before.
The NFL taught us how to compartmentalize pain. Physical pain. Emotional pain.
We learned how to smile in interviews while you, Body, were breaking quietly underneath. We learned how to smile in interviews while the world questioned our worst moments and worst plays.
The world never saw the rehab hours. The training rooms that became more familiar than home.
Hunter De Silva has a superb Three Matchups article up over at SI, and you definitely need to check that out. Hardly a glib analysis of some intriguing personnel battles.
That’s an important matchup to me, because as fast as the MSU outside receivers are, Morgan’s ability to maintain leverage in the slot position, in the absence of a speed advantage could be crucial. That’s doubly the case when you have an opponent so reliant on the big play, like Mississippi State.
Anthony Evans III vs. Red Morgan
Like Russell, Alabama defensive back Red Morgan has grown with every game he’s played during the first month of the 2026 season. Morgan is one of five players in the SEC with two interceptions and one of nine with a pick-six, alongside Tide linebackers Yhonzae Pierre and Luke Metz.
Morgan plays the Husky position, which is a hybrid between safety and linebacker while often lining up as the slot cornerback. Morgan has been open about his versatility in the past and has modeled his game after former Alabama standout and NFL Pro Bowl safety Brian Branch. Morgan will need to embrace those Branch instincts on Saturday against Mississippi State slot receiver Anthony Evans III.
Evans is Taylor’s favorite target and his 28 receptions — tied for the most in the SEC — reflect that notion. Evans is fourth in the conference in receiving yards with 408 and has found the end zone three times. He’s logged between six and eight receptions in each of these first four games with yardage marks of 118, 121, 55 and 114.
Most of the top wide receivers Alabama has faced this season have played the X or Z spots, but Evans’ speed, deep-threat and diving abilities on the inside will be a big challenge for Morgan. Mississippi State’s other two starting wide receivers have combined for 24 receptions, meaning that the neutralization of Evans will make a major impact on the final result.
Literally no one wants this. And when the details emerge, they’re going to like it any less. There’s just one month left in the “exclusive negotiating window” between ESPN/CFP, and the commish contingent is counting on FOMO to get the best of the Mouse. Can’t let Fox get those rights!
The CFP faces a Dec. 1 deadline to make format changes for the 2027-28 season. A vote to expand before then would not, by itself, put 24 teams on the field next year. If the logistics can’t be finished in time, the bigger bracket would wait until 2028 at the earliest.
The emerging favorite model includes the top 23 teams in the CFP Selection Committee’s final rankings and the highest-ranked Group of Six team. The playoff would begin two weeks after the regular season, in the second week of December, and would require the sunsetting of conference championship games. The first two rounds of the CFP would be played on campuses. Eight games would be played in the first round and eight more in the second round, with eight teams receiving byes and awaiting the first-round winners.
I remember why I used to love Josh Pate. Despite working damn hard the last year to become Pate: The Brand, when he wants to, he can still uncork awesome polemics. And this is one such: The CFP is selling us lies because they’re terrible businessmen who strangled the Golden Goose and have made things worse the more they tamper with it.
Sic ’em.
Speaking of a sport that has turned into Roto-league more than football, yesterday was the reporting period for the Alston settlement, and $1.8b was distributed under revenue sharing. The really interesting part is that 63 schools distributed the fully available max for CFB: $20.5m. There just happen to be 68 teams in FBS. There has never been a clearer picture generated than that of Alston further opening the divide of the haves/have nots. Unfortunately, the payors have been redacted, so we won’t know who the five sub-max spenders were.
Or, perhaps we will: never underestimate local media’s boredom and FOIA requests.
Aye Ell dropped something worth your while: grades of the ’26 Tide to date. But I do question grading a Top 5 offense as merely A-…
Offense overall: A-
Flanagan: Alabama ranks fourth in the nation in scoring offense, with about 48 points per game. Behind number one Georgia, Florida, and Miami. Just ahead of Oregon. They’re 27th overall in passing offense, 41st in rushing offense which is obviously a vast improvement.
Stahl: It’s been really good, even if they’re started games really slow. That’s a concern. At some point, you wonder if you run into a Georgia or somebody if you start a game like they did against Florida State or Kentucky, those schools will take advantage of it and suddenly you’ll be down 28. But overall, they’ve been hanging up around 50 points per game. Pretty good. Can’t complain about that too much.
All week, people have been wetting themselves at the prospect of the Bully/Bama game perhaps occurring in the rain. Fear not: as of now, the inclement weather is being pushed back later and later into the day, with there just being a 40% chance of rain during the game. People want to see an aerial assault between Russell and Taylor; I get that. But I bet the dozens of NFL scouts on hand equally want to see how these great young QBs handle a wet ball and play in less than ideal conditions.
‘Bama’s plans to make the trip to Starkville the day of the game is also being fussed over, like it’s some new thing. It’s not. The teams have been doing so for decades…in fact, Alabama did so as recently as 2023, and there was no media furore about it then either.
Alright, I am being overly dramatic. I can’t help but find the media’s fixation on Alabama’s travel decision too funny.
Alabama will leave Tuscaloosa Saturday morning for its 11 a.m. kickoff against No.16 Mississippi State. Instead of staying overnight in Starkville, the Crimson Tide will spend Friday night at its usual team hotel in Tuscaloosa before making the roughly 85-mile trip to Starkville.
Somehow, maybe due to all the scrutiny on the Los Angeles Rams’ travel plans for their season opener in Australia, this has become a headline this week.
Wait a minute… Have we been here before?
News flash: DeBoer isn’t hiring logistics gurus and creating something completely unheard of here. He pointed out that Alabama did the same thing in 2023. You know. Under Nick Saban? They ended up winning 40-17. This isn’t a brand new strategy; Alabama has done this before, and it worked out pretty well.
There are so many actual things to discuss about this game, and we’re really relegated to handwringing about the weather and an 82-mile bus ride?
And, finally, your moment of levity. There were few people who mastered the dry one-liner quite like Steven Wright.
That’s all for now. We’ll be back in about an hour or so, with our preview of the Mississippi State – Alabama clash. But for now, you folks have a great day, thanks as always for dropping by, and take care.
Roll Tide
Stephen Wright and Mitch Hedberg, geniuses of brevity.
In this multi-part essay, I will…
I love Steven Wright. But my favorite one-liner comedian is Mitch Hedberg.
“I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to too.”
He is one of my Top 5 favorites. Bill Hicks is forever atop the list.
Why do people say it was in the last place I looked? Would you still be looking after you found it? – Mitch Hedberg. Gone too soon.
We’ll see if this formats right, but for reference this is what the per student amount comes out based on this number for all those complaining that students are taken advantage of.
$5,200,000,000/31,500 athletes ~$165,079.37 per athlete
Not bad for a backup long snapper
The aye ell dude gave all A- and frankly he is insufferable when he is on those episodes. Ben Flanagn is okay sometimes – he is a Gump but most of the carpetbaggers they bring in are just morons.
Moron and AL.com are practically synonyms. I feel bad for Nick Kelly.
It’s gonna get worse before it gets better.
Judicially is where it will happen. And wait until you see how damn maddening the House is with PCSA.