For Alabama, Getting Offensive Key to a Championship

To scour the CBSsports.com NFL Draft prospect rankings of defensive for the next few years is almost like reading an Alabama depth chart. Names like Dont’a Hightower, Josh Chapman, Robert Lester stand out at their respective positions.

The depth and talent of the Tide defense is renowned. And of course, the cliche goes, “Defense wins championships.” But a defense can only do so much if it has no points backing it. Saturday, the Crimson Tide host Arkansas in one of the three main events expected to determine the SEC West, and thus SEC, championship. And of course, as recent precedent suggests, as goes the SEC title so goes the BCS’s.

Arkansas has boasted one of the most uptempo, high scoring offenses in the nation the last season-plus. Last season’s version finished No. 17 in the Bowl Subdivision — yet, right behind it at 18 was Alabama. And last year when these teams met, the Tide defense contained the Razorbacks to 20 points. That was low for the Hog offense’s standards, but high for the Tide defense. The ‘Bama offense featuring Mark Ingram, Julio Jones and Greg McElroy managed 24 points, just enough for the win.

In Arkansas’s O, Bama’s D has a worthy foil. The Hogs will score some points — certainly nowhere near the 47 they currently average, but enough to put pressure on an unproven Alabama offense. Those aforementioned names Ingram, Jones and McElroy synonymous with the recent Tide success are gone. Sure, Trent Richardson is still there. Richardson is widely considered the best NFL prospect among the nation’s running backs and might be better than the 2009 Heisman winner Ingram.

But quarterback AJ McCarron remains something of an unknown, and the offensive line has undergone much change. Barrett Jones has individually played four different spot on the line this season.

“[The line positions] all so different. All have such different footwork,” Jones said in a teleconference Tuesday afternoon. “I played right guard for the past two years [at Alabama], and went into the spring at right guard but played left tackle in the spring game and came into this season at left tackle.”

Since, Jones has filled whatever vacancy needed a patch on the line — except his original position, right guard.

“I feel most comfortable at right guard, which is funny since that’s the one position I haven’t played this year,” he said. “I had never played center before [this season], expect the Army All-American game…when we didn’t have a back-up center,” he said.

Jones has done an admirable job leading the ‘Bama line, and the Tide have cruised through their first three games. The two-headed running back beast of Richardson and Eddie Lacy have assured that, combining for 11 touchdowns and 619 yards.

The relationship between the backs and the line is a strong one.

“I love running behind a guy like that,” Richardson said of Jones. Likewise, Jones said of the Tide duo: “I’d like to say there’s magic to [what the linemen do freeing up holes], but we just run the blocks that are called. Those guys hit their gaps well.”

With that kind of combination, there would seemingly be no worries with the Tide’s ability to score points. Furthermore, ‘Bama has crossed the 40-point threshold twice this year. But those wins were over Kent State and North Texas, defenses in no way comparable to a Razorback unit Jones praised as being rich in experience and ability.

UA cruised in its third win over Penn State, but the offense looked sluggish at times against the Nittany Lion defense. For the effort its D was throwing, the score could have been far more lopsided than the 27-11 final. At the center is the quarterback controversy.

McCarron is the clear starter, but in three games has thrown only two touchdowns. More vexing is he’s equaled his scoring output with interceptions. Reserve Phillip Sims has two picks as well, but without the touchdowns.

Richardson compared McCarron favorably to McElroy, but McElroy threw just 10 interceptions his entire career. Razorback defensive coordinator Willy Robinson could load the box and use his upperclassmen-laden defensive line to pressure the backfield and force McCarron into more throwing situations.

The possibility will test an otherwise untested passer, and ultimately decide Alabama’s fate come Saturday.