Alabama’s Worst Unit This Season Stepped Up, Giving the Tide Enough Ammo to Complete Comeback

NORMAN, Okla. - Alabama's special teams have been the bane of the Crimson Tide's existence this season, with the third phase of football harming the Tide in two of its three losses this season. In the first matchup with Oklahoma, Alabama made three errors on special teams:

- A missed tackle on punt coverage
- A fumble on a punt return
- A blocked kick at the end of the first half

In Alabama's most recent loss to the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC championship game, Alabama also had a blocked punt, resulting in a touchdown drive by the Georgia Bulldogs to give Kirby Smart his first lead over Alabama this season. Special teams had been the worst position by far for Alabama, ranking in the 100s in special teams efficiency.

Against Oklahoma in the first round of the College Football Playoffs, however, it was the special team's unit that ignited the spark Alabama needed to complete its historic comeback against the Oklahoma Sooners.

"Really big," Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said on the importance of special teams. "The punt early in the game, and just obviously, Talty making his field goals. Windy. It was kind of swirling, you know, you stand on one end, it's going one way. It kind of gets inside the stadium, goes the other. Just didn't really feel like he was affected by it, you know? And really proud of him the way he's continued to just stay the course, get the team to support him by just continuing to work.

"And the guys have done that, again, no point finger pointed ever. And just love it. Love the way these guys come together. So we know there's more battles ahead. There's more great teams out there. It's going to be the next one against Indiana. We know that they're a special team and they got special season going, and so it'd be a great challenge for us."

Talty made both of his attempted field goals on Friday night against Oklahoma, with a 35-yard kick cutting Alabama's deficit to one score in the second quarter, and a 40-yard kick pushing Alabama's lead to two scores in the third quarter.

"I think, to go up 10, make it a two-score game, give us that cushion there. Felt like we were in a good field goal range," DeBoer said. "And, you know, just just outside of, probably, you know, six yards, seven yards, a lot of different things they can dial up. But, you know, we went for it earlier, you know, and that was two to three, I think, in the first quarter, second quarter. And that was probably a little different situation, especially when you got your back to the wall. But when we got the lead, taking a two-score lead, that was actually a pretty easy decision on that one."

Alabama's big spark came on special teams, with defensive lineman Tim Keenan III blocking a punt from Sooner punter Grayson Miller. Keenan recovered the fumbled punt, and Alabama capitalized with Talty's first made field goal of the night.

"Yeah, we weren't going after it. I think just we were pretty much a conservative situation there," DeBoer said. "And so it got dropped, and [Tim Keenan III] picked up the ball. I mean, field position against an Oklahoma team is so critical with their defense. So that was huge. That was really huge for us. And, you know, the takeaways and the field position just really kind of was the opposite of the first game back at home. There's more things we can point to as well, but that was the case. You know, we got the interception for a touchdown, and we got the shorter field there in that case and took advantage of it."

On a night that Alabama needed a win to not only advance in the College Football Playoff, but to also quiet the noise around Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide's program, the most unlikely of heroes rose to the occasion for Alabama: The Crimson Tide's special teams.

Alabama's 34-24 victory in the first round of the College Football Playoffs will send the Crimson Tide to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, to take on the Indiana Hoosiers. The game is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. CT on Thursday, January 1, 2026.

Our coverage of the first round of the College Football Playoff between Alabama and Oklahoma is brought to you by Pearl River Resort and the Sportsbook at Golden Moon Casino.

Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.