Six different players scored touchdowns, including two apiece from Kevin Riley and AK Dear, and No. 10 Alabama cruised to a 56-0 win against lower-division Eastern Illinois on Saturday. Alabama held out a few key players — receiver Germie Bernard, center Parker Brailsford and tight end Josh Cuevas — with the Iron Bowl on tap next week. Cuevas was injured in practice, and his availability moving forward is up in the air, said coach Kalen DeBoer.
“We'll just have to see how he comes along in the next week,” DeBoer said.
And, Penn State didn’t come up once during the post game press conference.
News outlets including Sports Illustrated and Newsweek reported on rumors that DeBoer was among the front runners to replace James Franklin as head coach at Penn State.
Crickets from the presser.
As for the game, even without many Alabama starters, the Crimson Tide outgained the Panthers 539-34 — hardly a surprise given one is a powerhouse program, and the other is a losing team from the Football Championship Subdivision.
The lopsided contest allowed for the majority of Alabama's roster to see playing time. Quarterbacks Ty Simpson, Austin Mack and Keelon Russell led scoring drives. Alabama ran for a season-high 269 yards, with all eight offensive touchdowns coming on the ground. Alabama’s eight rushing TDs are the program's most in a game since 1979 against Vanderbilt.
A lackluster ground game has been an area of emphasis for Alabama all season. The Tide rank 123rd nationally with 108.7 yards rushing a game.
"I think it's always execution and just more reps," DeBoer said. “I thought they all ran hard and got their opportunities. Just trying to build on everything."
Alabama dominated from the onset, intercepting Eastern Illinois (3-9) on the opening possession and turning that into a touchdown. On the following possession, Alabama blocked a punt to set up another quick score. In total, 31 of Alabama's 38 first-half plays were in Eastern Illinois territory.
It wasn't all good for the home team, though. Simpson threw two interceptions, giving him seven consecutive games with a turnover, and Alabama's Conor Talty missed a 28-yard field goal. Boos rained down from the Bryant-Denny Stadium crowd after Talty's miss. He was eventually replaced.
“(Talty) had a great week of practice,” DeBoer said. "I don’t think he missed one all week. Just want everyone to support him, just like every other player on our football team giving everything he has.
“We want to try to get a number of guys opportunities. You saw we had four kickers out there that all got their chances.”
Alabama's blowout sets up a high-stakes game next Saturday, with the Tide looking to clinch a spot in the Southeastern Conference championship game. A loss could end Alabama's shot at the College Football Playoff.
“There's an excited locker room down there,” DeBoer said. “A lot of the things that we would have goals for, the things we set out to do at the beginning of the season or even way back in January are right in front of us."
Ultimately, the Panthers received $560,000 for the payday game. And, the Crimson Tide got valuable playing time for reserves and left with no new injuries ahead of the Iron Bowl.
