Alabama’s Senior OL Reflects on Dominating 56-0 win Over EIU

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.- The Crimson Tide's 56-point shutout against Eastern Illinois featured a dominant ground performance, with six players scoring rushing touchdowns. All eight of the Tide's touchdowns came from rushing plays, as they accumulated a total of 269 rushing yards, thanks in large part to the strong play of Alabama's offensive linemen.

After the game, redshirt senior offensive lineman Geno VanDeMark shared his thoughts on the team's performance, discussed the impact of Ryan Grubb being on the sideline, and talked about his experience playing center in tonight's game.

VanDeMark started his eighth game of the season today, but he played a different role than usual on the offensive line. The senior has started six games at right guard and one at left guard. However, tonight he switched to center, taking over for Parker Brailsford, who was out due to injury. Brailsford is expected to return for the Iron Bowl next week.

When asked about his experience returning to the center position to replace Brailsford today, VanDeMark shared how much he enjoys playing center and contributing to the team's success. He emphasized his versatility on the offensive line.

“It’s fun, I mean, it's the only position on the offensive line that you get to touch the ball, so that's definitely fun, but it's tough to fill Parker’s shoes, but I've been working on it for my whole career, I mean, I'm a versatile guy. I was upset that I couldn't play next to Parker because I love that dude, I mean, he's a great football player, but I mean, it's just fun to get out there and get to play some center.”

VanDeMark praised his running backs for their excellent decision-making during the game. He mentioned that they had been focusing on this aspect during practice all week, and it was evident in Saturday's match. The Tide managed to rush for eight touchdowns in today's win.

“Credit to the running backs, they did a great job at reading our blocks, making us right if we were wrong. It was an emphasis all week, you know, it's a good feeling to go out there and run the ball.”

VanDeMark was asked what the Tide did right to run so effectively in Saturday’s win. He mentioned that several factors contributed to their success, including their understanding of the game plan and their effective execution of double teams. However, the primary reason he emphasized was the offensive line's strong communication throughout the game, with the entire unit in sync from start to finish.

“We did a good job of just really understanding the game plan, just really taking coaching throughout the week, fitting up our doubles well. Communication at the line of scrimmage was a big emphasis for us, too, and it takes everybody on offense.” VanDeMark added, “Receivers blocking their tails off on the edge, us doing our jobs upfront, and the running backs just doing a great job again at just finding a place to run.”

In today’s game, Alabama’s offensive coordinator, Ryan Grubb, changed his usual position from the booth to the sideline. This shift appeared to ignite the team, boosting their motivation and enabling him to coach the offense more effectively during the game. VanDeMark believes this move contributed to the Crimson Tide’s dominant offensive performance.

“It was awesome, he would come over and coach us up. He told us he was gonna be on the sidelines because he felt like he could help, and I think he did. It was a big positive for sure.”

Alabama will improve to 9-2 as they prepare for next week's regular season finale against Auburn in the Iron Bowl. This game will take place at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday, November 29th. It is a must-win for the Crimson Tide if they want to keep their hopes for the SEC championship and the playoff alive.