Week 6: Alabama looks for revenge against Vanderbilt

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (WIAT) — Alabama football looks to do something no team has done so far this season, defeat the Vanderbilt Commodores.

The No. 10 Crimson Tide comes into this matchup after going into Athens and beating the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs for the 10th time in its last 11 meetings. Impressive is an understatement, as many analysts had the Dawgs winning the game, but the Crimson Tide proved once again that Kirby Smart has an Alabama problem, as he falls to 1-7 against them. But, Bama must quickly get over that win because this year’s Vandy team is a serious threat.

Vanderbilt comes into this matchup 5-0 and ranked No. 16 in the country. The Commodores defeated Alabama last season, 40-35, and bring back its biggest weapon — Diego Pavia. So far this season, the ‘Dores have scored more than 30 in each of its contests and Pavia has thrown for 1,211 yards to go with 13 touchdowns. He’s also added 294 yards on the ground and two scores.

College GameDay will be in attendance and Theo Von has been announced as the guest picker. Kick off is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on ABC. Here’s what to look for in Alabama vs. Vanderbilt:

Alabama must be able to stop the run

• In last seasons matchup, Vanderbilt finished with 418 total yards, including 166 on the ground, and the time of possession was 42:08 to 17:52. They went 12-of-18 on third down, and 1-1 on fourth down. They ran the ball a total of 54 times and continuously, slowly but surely, marched down field.
• Alabama has not done a good job of stopping the run at all this season, as Georgia rushed for 227 yards on them a week ago. If Alabama doesn’t want a repeat of last season, they have to do a better job of setting the edge and getting off the field on third down.

Alabama offense must capitalize every possession

• If Alabama struggles to get stops, there’s going to be a ton of pressure to score every time they touch the ball. Vandy will likely approach this game like a season ago, and try to limit the Crimson Tide’s possession. So it’s key for Alabama to score when they have the ball. This Bama receiving room will be the best Vandy has faced and the Commodores gave up 35 points to Utah State.

This game has the potential to be a shootout

• If you told a Vanderbilt fan years ago that they would only be a 10.5-point underdog on the road in Tuscaloosa, you’d probably get some crazy looks. But that’s a testament to the job Clark Lea has done in building this program. This team is more than capable of winning this game and has the blueprint to do it.
• Both teams will put up points, the team to get that crucial stop likely will come away with it.

Betting Lines

• Spread: Alabama (-10.5)
• Over-under: 55.5
• Moneyline: Bama (-425) Vandy (+330)