Alabama Football: Preview, prediction, live stream vs. Colorado State
Colorado State travels to face the king of the college football world, Alabama football. Here’s everything you need to know for the matchup.
Sure this seems like an odd matchup. Especially after Alabama played Fresno State last week, but this game was put together back when Jim McElwain (former Alabama OC) was the head coach at Colorado State.
These teams last played each other in 2013 and not much has really changed as far as program level for either team. Alabama has consistently remained a top national title contender. And Colorado State has mostly remained as a top Mountain West team, with the potential to win the conference.
Colorado State comes into this game no stranger to power five teams, as they’ve already faced Oregon State and Colorado to this point. CSU was 1-1 in those matchups, but Alabama is on a whole other level than either of those Pac-12 teams. The Rams will come into this game looking to make a statement. A statement that they can play with the best of the best. The Rams destroyed Oregon State but they were in a defensive dogfight with Colorado.
Which Rams team shows up will dictate how they play and finish in this game? There is always a shot at an upset, and the Rams will have to give it their all if they want to leave Alabama with a win.
For Alabama, the Tide just have to keep doing what they’ve been doing; play sound football. Bama has been impressive in their first two games. The defense was up to the task of slowing down Florida State. And the offense, led by quarterback Jalen Hurts, came alive in the Fresno State game. All Alabama has to do to win this game is just be themselves and don’t turn the ball over. Colorado State’s offense can be lethal, so the Tide cannot sleep walk this game.
Here is how you can watch Saturday’s Alabama football game online:
Date: Saturday, Sept. 16
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
Location: Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Venue: Bryant-Denny Stadium
TV: ESPN2
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Keys to Victory
If Colorado State wants to be more than just competitive in this game then the offense has to come out firing on all cylinders. Quarterback Nick Stevens and wide receiver Michael Gallup will be counted on heavily to make plays in order to pull off the upset. Izzy Matthews will be needed for tough running against the Tide defensive line. To go with that, the offensive line of the Rams will have to play better than they have played all year. Without them, the offense won’t be able to do anything against Alabama.
The Crimson Tide, as stated earlier just need to be themselves. It would be good to see more improvement from Jalen Hurts in this game. His start to the season was rocky at best against FSU and the game against Fresno State was better, but we still need to see more in order to say that solid improvement in his game is occurring. The Alabama defense has to stay sharp in this game, Colorado State’s offense can be potent. If Alabama allows an inch, CSU just might take a mile.
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Prediction
I really do think Colorado State will play better in this game than most. It can be competitive and it’s a no-quit type of team. Even if the Rams were to get buried early, they won’t quit, that team has a lot to play for this year and could end up being the winner of the Mountain West at season’s end. With that said, pulling off the upset in Tuscaloosa is difficult. Not many teams have done it since Nick Saban became the head coach back in 2007. Because of this, I still expect Alabama to come out on top, they’re just on a whole different level than CSU.
Final Score: Alabama 52, Colorado State 21