Alabama’s first two SEC wins have turned some heads around the league. Many coaches don’t watch games other than to prepare for their opponents, but wasting Vanderbilt 59-0 and dominating Ole Miss 66-3 has made an impression.
“I was just very impressed with them overall,” Ole Miss coach Matt Luke said. “I didn’t see any weaknesses.”
It’s the first time Alabama has scored 59 or more in a two-game stretch since 1945, when the Crimson Tide beat Kentucky 60-19 and Vanderbilt 71-0. But the 122-point margin in the last two games surpasses even that.
“It doesn’t really surprise me, anything at Alabama,” Arkansas coach Bret Bielema said. “Alabama is a really good football team. Other than seeing the scores I hadn’t really seen any of the games.”
Alabama set a school record with 582 total points scored last season. UA had 220 total points after five games last season; it’s ahead of that pace now with 231.
“I thought they were the same Alabama team,” said Luke, who has been at Ole Miss since 2012. “I thought they were better offensively, more efficient. They did some things in the pass game, they had tailbacks coming out of the backfield. They were very efficient on offense. On defense, it was the same. They don’t change.”
The massive margin in the first two games hasn’t been about the competition level or the state of the SEC, Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said.
“I think it says a lot about where Alabama is,” Sumlin said. “They’ve stepped up outside our league and have won also.”
