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PULLED PORK
Defense delivers another dominant effort as offense surges in second half of Crimson Tide’s victory over Razorbacks
STAFF PHOTO | MICHELLE LEPIANKA CARTER
Alabama defenders Dalvin Tomlinson (54), Jarran Reed (90), Daron Payne (94) and Eddie Jackson (4) tackle Arkansas running back Alex Collins during the second quarter of Saturday’s game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama allowed just 44 rushing yards.
Tide offense finally gets in gear after sluggish first half By Cecil Hurt
The defense brought the thunder promptly, and with pain. The offense was a little late with the lightning, having apparently taken a wrong turn on the way to the stadium, then stopping for a sandwich and fi xing a fl at. But when it arrived, it arrived with a vengeance. No. 8 Alabama, trailing with two minutes to go in the third quarter, exploded for 24 unanswered points before giving up a late touchdown, rolling to a 27-14 victory over the Arkansas R azorbacks, the ninth straight Crimson Tide win in the SEC West rivalry. “I think we played a different kind
of team this week than we did last week (at Georgia),” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said. “I think if we’d fi nished a couple of drives in the fi rst half, people would be saying we played great. I didn’t think there was any letdown. The players played hard, gave great effort, but we just didn’t execute sometimes. “Their defense does an outstanding job. They get off blocks, they can run and their secondary doesn’t give up many big plays. We were fortunate to make one tonight. But at the end of the day, we did enough to have success in the game.” With 1:59 remaining in the third quarter, despite a dominant defensive effort, Alabama trailed 7-3, having allowed an Arkansas touchdown SEE T IDE | 3C
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Sports Editor
TIDE LEADER Ragland everywhere on the field to lead Alabama defense
DIALING IT UP Touchdown pass to Ridley called at the perfect time
BROKEN LINE
Tide offensive line struggles to keep Razorbacks off Coker
SO CLOSE Arkansas had it all under control until late in the third quarter
It took time, but Tide did what it wanted to do
T
PHOTO | NOAH SUTTON
Alabama running back Derrick Henry rushed for 95 yards on 27 carries with one touchdown. He has scored a touchdown in 11 straight games to break a school record.
pretty. They aren’t games, they are collisions. They are tractor pulls, not the Indianapolis 500. Alabama won ugly in Fayetteville last year, inspiring a famous Saban rant about appreciation of a one-point win. It wasn’t much prettier this year for the Crimson Tide, even if it wasn’t quite so scary. Maybe Alabama had something to do with it. The fi rst half of the 27-14 win CECIL had a distinct Ole Miss feel to it. The HURT Crimson Tide was playing at home, at night (although not quite as late as the Ole Miss game) and the crowd, while certainly not quiet, seemed a bit weary after a full day of Homecoming festivities. Then came the turnovers and the missed field goals and the quirky bounces, like SEE HURT | 4C
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PAGE 5C ANALYSIS Five plays that helped shape the outcome of Saturday’s game
NOTEBOOK Tide gets commitment for 2017 class from four-star quarterback
he Alabama-Arkansas matchup, now and for as long as Nick Saban and Bret Bielema are coaching at their respective schools, isn’t built to be
FOUR DOWNS How the Crimson Tide answered questions against Arkansas
For video and a photo gallery of Alabama’s game with Arkansas, go to www.tidesports.com and www.tuscaloosanews.com