Three Bama Facts To Ease Your Election Anxiety
Regardless of who your candidate is this week, we are all under immense stress with each passing minute of this hectic 2020 presidential election. As many of our hosts, writers, and staff at Tide 100.9 would attest, sports is a great way to distract from the craziness of every day life.
Sadly, that's been difficult for Alabama fans in particular because the Crimson Tide are on a bye week. Coming off a statement 41-0 victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs, another weekend lies between the Tide and a revenge trip to Baton Rouge where the LSU Tigers await.
So, to ease my mind and those of my fellow Crimson Tide faithful, I thought it best to simply remind us all of the great things happening for the Crimson Tide on the gridiron in 2020.
1. Mac Jones is Playing at a Heisman Trophy Winning Level.
With Trevor Lawrence missing two weeks due to the Coronavirus, and we do indeed wish him a speedy recovery, quarterback Mac Jones has taken a strong lead in the Heisman Trophy race. His numbers stack up with 2019 winner Joe Burrow on nearly every level through six weeks and, objectively, Jones has played a tougher schedule in that time span.
And while yes, Jones is surrounded by a supporting cast unlike any quarterback has seen in recent memory, the Joker has shown NFL like traits in his pocket presence, accuracy, and decision making. He isn't a product of his environment, he's a fixture in it.
While fans adore individual awards and head coach Nick Saban and his program don't give them a second thought until they are awarded, there's no denying the correlation between winning individual awards at the quarterback position and team success.
As Jones continues to play at this level, the Crimson Tide will remain on trajectory for the ultimate goal, an 18th National Championship.
2. The Crimson Tide defense is Surging at just the right time.
There's been reason to praise the 2020 Crimson Tide defense and there has been reason to hurl insults. We've seen elite play from the likes of Will Anderson, Patrick Surtain, and Dylan Moses and we've seen head scratching lapses in coverage, frustrating missed tackles, and painful examples of miscommunication.
While the offenses in front of the Crimson Tide since that forgetful trip to Oxford haven't been the most elite in the country, let alone the SEC, Alabama's defense has shown serious signs of improvement.
Shutting out Georgia in the second half of a monumental cross division game between top-3 teams was impressive enough. The next week Alabama allowed 302 yards, shutting down the Vols with ease. Getting a shutout against any team is impressive, regardless of how poorly the Bulldogs have played since Week 1.
And as we'll get to in the next point, the offenses facing the Tide to round out the season aren't the kinds that incite fear.
3. The remaining Schedule for Alabama is in the Tide's favor.
I'll be the first to ask for tough competition and scoff at wanting an easy road to Atlanta and eventually the College Football Playoff. That being said, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, and Georgia were strong tests for the Crimson Tide. With four games remaing, we have a good idea of how the league shapes up and what this Crimson Tide team is made of.
That said, with a hungover LSU program, a rollercoaster Kentucky team, the voodoo of the Auburn Tigers, and the underdog Razorbacks remaining, the Crimson Tide are in the driver seat to the playoffs.
Yes, the games have to be played, and all four teams will give Alabama their best, but the Crimson Tide has a strong track record when it comes to this sort of opportunity.
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