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The Alabama football team narrowly escaped being sent on a two-game losing skid by outlasting the South Carolina Gamecocks 27-25 in Tuscaloosa. While the team got the win, not everyone around the program was happy with the performance.
The defense struggled for a second consecutive week while QB Jalen Milroe had maybe he worst game of the season.
Fans expected a bounce back effort for the Crimson Tide following their 40-35 loss to Vanderbilt the week prior, but after jumping out to a quick 14-0 lead, Alabama quickly found itself in a dogfight.
South Carolina stormed back to score 12 points in the final two minutes of the second half before taking a 19-14 lead on their first possession following the break.
From there, a nailbiter ensued.
In many ways, unforced errors (and maybe a questionable call or two), kept South Carolina from pulling off the upset. The Tide took a fourth quarter lead following a fumbled handoff exchange by the Gamecocks then held off late comeback attempt.
South Carolina had a chance to tie after scoring a touchdown in the final minute, but a LaNorris Sellers two-point conversion pass sailed over the head of a wide-open receiver.
Even then, the Tide weren’t completely out of the woods. There was more drama to be had!
The Gamecocks recovered the ensuing onside kick before Sellers threw an interception on the final drive to end the upset bid.
The close win caused discomfort throughout the fanbase as the Crimson Tide seemingly did all it could to give the game away. In the end, though, they emerged victorious to keep playoff hopes alive.
After the game, the Alabama football team celebrated the SEC win. Offensive line Tyler Booker doesn’t care what the critics thought about game. He’s strictly worried about the outcome.
Alabama OG Tyler Booker told @NextRoundLive that the team reacted to the narrow win against SC similarly to last year, after Alabama realized that they might have been taking winning for granted.
“We decided to celebrate every win as if it was the biggest win we were ever going… pic.twitter.com/42jZ9sDRZu
— Sidelines – Bama (@SSN_Alabama) October 14, 2024
“Contrary to popular belief, it actually was kind of similar to what it was like last year,” Booker said. “Something we came to a realization of last year was we kind of took winning for granted, as a program. We didn’t enjoy our wins as much.”
Booker was there in Nick Saban’s final year where many began to insinuate that the coach’s dominant reign was ending. The Crimson Tide fell to Texas before escaping a battle with South Florida early in the year.
While doubters began criticizing the program, Booker and Co. stayed the course. Alabama would rip off 11 straight wins capped by an SEC Championship victory over top-ranked Georgia to book a ticket to the College Football Playoff.
Though they’d lose in overtime to eventual national champion Michigan, the Crimson Tide proved that things weren’t nearly as bad as they seemed.
A win is a win, and cleaning up mistakes is much more enjoyable following victory than defeat. Tyler Booker’s not worried about the outside noise. He’s celebrating the wins, as he should!