Alabama Football: Game preview, prediction, live stream vs. Vanderbilt
Alabama football travels to Nashville to take on the Vanderbilt Commodores in an early-season SEC cross-division matchup.
Vanderbilt and Alabama meeting on the gridiron doesn’t usually bring up thoughts of a good game. In fact, it would more than likely drum up thoughts of a very one sided match. 2017 does not look like that type of game. Vanderbilt is hot off a huge win over Kansas State at home. Alabama looks to have some kinks in their armor, particularly on defense. This could be a very interesting matchup in Nashville.
As mentioned, Vanderbilt defeated 18th ranked Kansas State last Saturday. The Commodores showed that they have an elite SEC defense, as they shut down KSU quarterback Jesse Ertz and the rest of the offense, a team that had scored 55 points in back to back games, to only seven points.
Vanderbilt’s offense, while not putting up a lot of points in last weeks contest, looked efficient and took care of the ball. Quarterback Kyle Shurmur is leaps and bounds ahead of where he was last year. Shurmur will be crucial in the Commodores being able to pull off another upset this weekend.
Alabama faced Colorado State last Saturday in Tuscaloosa and as expected, won the game. But the Crimson Tide weren’t as strong on defense as they normally are. They allowed almost 400 yards of offense to CSU in the win.
Injuries have mounted for Alabama, particularly at linebacker, and they could be vulnerable to a team with a steady offense and an incredible defense, like Vanderbilt. On the positive side, quarterback Jalen Hurts looked good for Alabama, definitely looking as though he has improved from the first game of the year against Florida State. Alabama will need Hurts to be on his ‘A’ game against Vanderbilt as they could be difficult to contend with in Nashville.
Here is how you can watch this SEC matchup:
Date: Saturday, Sept. 23
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Venue: Vanderbilt Stadium
TV: CBS
Live Stream: CBS Sports SEC Live
Keys to Victory
In this game, Vanderbilt needs to not let the moment get too big for them. Breathe and play to their strengths. The offense cannot force thing but they also need to score more than 14. Alabama’s offense will be more efficient than Kansas State. If Hurts isn’t hurting the defense in the air then he’ll do it on the ground. Or hand off to Bo Scarbrough. Vanderbilt needs to keep doing what they’ve been doing on defense.
The defense has been lights out and has a chance to take it to the number one team in the land. I think they can handle their own. They’ll just need a little help from the offense. If Shurmur plays a clean game, then things could swing in Vanderbilt’s favor.
For the first time in years, the outcome of this game might fall more on the shoulders of the Alabama offense, than their defense. I’m not saying that Alabama’s defense is bad, Colorado State has a great offense, but when was the last time Alabama gave up nearly 400 yards of offense to a non-conference opponent?
Vanderbilt will be at home and the atmosphere will be rocking for them. The Commodores have weapons on offense so the defense will be tested. Jalen Hurts, Bo Scarbrough and the rest of the offense will be the key to this game. If the offense can outlast the Vanderbilt defense and get the better of them, then the Tide can win this game.
Next: NFL Mock Draft 2018: Quarterbacks dominate first round
Prediction
This game has upset potential written all over it. One team has questions on defense and the other is riding off of a huge win at home just last week. Vanderbilt has momentum. And as said earlier, if they were to get early scores on offense and their defense limits the Crimson Tide then it very well could go the way of an upset. With that said, Alabama is a proven winner and comes through in games that people might doubt them in. As much as I think Vanderbilt could pull the upset, I’ll believe it when I see it.
Final Score: Alabama 20, Vanderbilt 16