By Staff
TAKING HOLD Alabama tailback Santonio Beard (34) push the facemask of Southern Mississippi defensive back Leroy Johnson (20) Saturday. Photo by AP
By Mark Etheridge / special to The Star
Sept. 22, 2002
TUSCALOOSA, AL It was traditional, smash-mouth football. Alabama's running game and defense ruled the day as the Crimson Tide defeated Southern Miss 20-7 at Bryant-Denny Stadium Saturday night. Alabama won despite passing for only 21 yards, fifteen after starting quarterback Tyler Watts left the game on the first drive with a sprained ankle.
The normally balanced Alabama offense was forced to rely on their running game finishing with 351 yards on the ground led by backup running back Shaud Williams 135 yards.
The Golden Eagles turned the ball over five times. If not for a valiant effort from their stop troops, the game could have gotten out of hand. Safety Etric Pruitt led that super defensive performance with 18 tackles. Michael Boley and Rod Davis each had 13 tackles and an interception a piece.
The home standing Tide put a net around Southern Miss star running back Derrick Nix limiting him to 57 yards on 14 carries. Southern Miss could manage only 110 passing yards and garnered just eight first downs. Alabamas stout defensive line pressured Golden Eagle quarterbacks Micky DAngelo and Dustin Almond all night sacking them four times. "We did not let them have very many uncontested throws," Franchione added.
The Alabama defense was paced by safety Waine Bacon with seven tackles. The defensive line of Jarret Johnson, Kenny King, Antwan Odom, Kindal Moorehead, and company kept the Eagles off balance all night.
Alabama jumped out to a early lead with an eleven play 89 yard drive on their first possession. The big play came on Williams 44 yard run to the Eagle six. Starting tailback Ahmaad Galloway – who left the game with a foot injury in the fourth quarter with 93 yards – scored the next play on an option pitch.
Williams would factor heavily in the next scoring drive, this time in the second quarter. The junior transfer from Texas Tech ran draws of twelve and seventeen yards. After several successful running plays got the Tide to the Eagle twelve, backup quarterback Brodie Croyle reversed his field on an option play sprinting in for the score.
In the third quarter, Alabama fans received a flashback to the early season loss to Oklahoma as a Croyle pass slipped out of his grasp and into the waiting arms of Boley who returned the interception 54 yards for the touchdown. That interception, the Golden Eagles second of the game, sent a message to the Alabama coaching staff to keep the ball on the ground.
Bama kept the ball on the ground late in the game eating the clock. In fact, the Tide won the time of possession battle by almost ten minutes (39:11 to 20:49). Fortunately for the Tide, Williams stepped up when his teammates needed his running ability.
Southern Miss (3-1) travels to Army next week in Conference USA action. Alabama (3-1) opens SEC play in Fayetteville taking on Arkansas.