Alabama hangs on for 24-20 win

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A tirade, a discussion about another second-half meltdown, even a four-letter word.

Just another Nick Saban news conference after an Alabama win, this time 24-20 over Ole Miss on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Saban’s time with the media reflects his team’s performance the last three games: joyful at the beginning, frustrated by the end.

Once again, Saban said he was pleased with the win. And, once again, his frustration became more evident as he continued to speak. He seemed to determine the cause of his team’s inability to finish games — Alabama nearly blew a 24-3 lead and didn’t score in the second half — as he spoke.

He cited a roughing-the-passer penalty against Lorenzo Washington in the third quarter and Marquis Maze’s celebration penalty following his 26-yard touchdown catch that gave Alabama a 7-3 lead in the first quarter. Alabama, Saban said, must have a discipline problem.

“Maybe that’s part of it. You’ve got to have the self-discipline,” he said. “Discipline is doing what you’re supposed to do when you’re supposed to do it the way it’s supposed to get done.

“We need to show a little more of that in the second half. So if there’s a common thread to our problems in the second half, I’d say that might be it.”

The Tide’s win was also marred by a knee injury to massive 365-pound noseguard Terrence Cody, a favorite among the fans and players, in the third quarter. Saban said Cody will get an MRI but didn’t think the injury would require surgery. He will not play against Tennessee this Saturday.

“I would assume he would be out for a couple of weeks,” Saban said.

Fans chanted, “Cody! Cody!” after he remained on the ground and gave him an ovation when he was carted off the sideline. But the crowd was in a better mood at that point in the game, when Alabama led 24-3.

But the Rebels (3-4, 1-3 SEC), like Georgia and Kentucky in previous weeks, kept those fans in their seats until the end. The Rebels scored on a fake field goal, a 17-yard pass from Jevan Snead to Shay Hodge in front of Javier Arenas and a 35-yard field goal by Joshua Shene with 6:09 remaining to cut Alabama’s lead to 24-20.

Ole Miss had a first down at Alabama’s 48-yard line with 1:50 remaining, but Brandon Deaderick sacked Snead, who threw an incomplete pass on the next play. On fourth-and-5 with 1:06 remaining, pressure from Arenas forced Snead to throw the ball before he wanted and it fell incomplete to keep Alabama’s national championship hopes intact.

“I felt like I had to get rid of the ball, and unfortunately I wasn’t able to get it where I wanted to go with it,” Snead said. “I should have gone back to the drag, but I felt pressured and I’m sure the drag was open. If I could go back, I would.”

Saban reflected on his halftime speech to the second-ranked Tide, which centered around playing the second half like the first. It didn’t happen. Trailing for the first time all season, Alabama played impressively. It’s playing with a big lead that seems to trouble the Tide (7-0, 4-0).

“To let them get in the game like that, it’s pretty frustrating,” Deaderick said. “We have better character than that. We’ve got to learn from our mistake. That’s like the third win a row that’s happened. We still got the win, but we want to dominate.”

The Tide didn’t do that Saturday, getting outgained 359-326 and turning the ball over on a John Parker Wilson interception and another Glen Coffee fumble. Wilson completed 16 of 25 passes for 219 yards and two touchdowns, including one to Maze that ended with the receiver posing in the end zone.

Saban ripped into Maze on the sideline and didn’t seem any less angry when he spoke to the media.

“We have to quit doing stupid stuff,” Saban said, his voice rising. “No disrespect to the player that did it, but when you get a penalty for scoring a touchdown, please act like you’ve been there and act like you have enough maturity to say, ‘I’m a good player. I made a good play and everybody knows it. I don’t need to do all this ... to get a 15-yard penalty.’ It’s selfish and it hurts the team.”

And Saban would say later he was merely “on the verge” of a tirade. Just another day with an undefeated team.