Alabama Football spent three-and-a-half quarters last week stuck in the mud on offense, and will need to clean up a lot of mistakes to avoid letting an upset minded Wisconsin Badgers to believe they can achieve the unthinkable.

Turnovers and penalties were the main impetuses for the Crimson Tide’s struggles a week ago, with drive-altering miscues and touchdowns being taken off the board. That cannot happen again this week as the Tide takes to the road for the first time in 2024, or they could be staring an upset right in the face.

So what does Alabama need to do to sustain offensive success in Madison? Here’s three things that will go a long way in the Crimson Tide controlling the game:

3. Avoid the miscues

Nothing stalls an offense, and breaths life into a nervous home crowd, more than the visitor shooting itself in the foot, repeatedly. Last week, Alabama committed 13 penalties and turned the ball over three times, two of which were fumbles by the offense.

There were holding penalties left and right, most of which were committed to redshirt freshman Wilkin Formby and Michigan State transfer Geno VanDeMark. Two holds took points off the board, none bigger than Jalen Milroe’s 74-yard touchdown run late in the 2nd quarter that would have given Alabama some much needed breathing room going into the locker room.

The good news is that if Kadyn Proctor and Elijah Pritchett are able to play, then Formby and VanDeMark should be on the bench until garbage time.

It will be important for Alabama to stay on-schedule offensively, and avoiding procedural penalties or holds that back the offense up to 1st-and-15 or 20 will be key.

Turnovers have to be corrected too. Alabama needs to win the turnover battle, and while the defense will have something to say about that, the offense must do its part. Three second-half fumbles against South Florida kept the Tide from extending its lead and potentially putting the game away a lot earlier than it ultimately did.

2. Establish the run and control the line of scrimmage

No matter how much football has evolved over the years, the sport remains pretty simple at its core. Usually, the team that wins the battle at both lines of scrimmage is the team that wins the game, plain and simple. No matter if you are running the wishbone or the run-and-shoot, your offense won’t be able to do much if your offensive line is getting whipped.

Alabama has been effective running the football two-weeks in, ranking 13th in the nation in rushing offense. But that is a bit misleading because the Tide struggled on the ground for three-and-a-half quarters against USF last weekend before the dam finally broke.

We’ve spoken a lot about Elijah Pritchett’s impact on the game when he got in, and if he’s able to play on Saturday along with star LT Kadyn Proctor, then I suspect we will see an Alabama offense capable of dominating opponents on the ground as they establish their identity around that.

The ‘backs are certainly good enough. Both junior Jam Miller and sophomore Justice Haynes have flashed already in two games, both showing the ability to break long touchdown runs. Armed with the most dynamic running quarterback in the country in Jalen Milroe, Alabama has the ability to be a devastating running team.

Patience will be needed to establish the run. Offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan can’t go away from it too soon – he, DeBoer, and the Tide’s running backs, need to be content hitting four or five yard gains because eventually one of those runs will break for an explosive play. More on that….

1. Take what the defense gives you

There’s an old football adage that says “you’ll never go broke by takinga profit.” That saying is essentially telling you to take the money that’s lying on the table and don’t get greedy.

Alabama and Jalen Milroe were far too greedy last week. Protection up front was poor, and yet the Tide consistently kept trying to hit the deep ball. We all love long passes and big plays; it’s what brings the crowd to its feet and they can be a back-breaker for a defense.

But you know what’s even more demoralizing for a defense? Giving up long, sustained touchdown drives. Watching an offense run the ball down your throat and hitting nickel-and-dime passes that consistently move the chains. Long drives are exhausting for a defense, and a tired defense is more likely to give up big plays as a game wears on.

If the deep shot is there, by all means take the shot. But Milroe has to be comfortable shaking off his first read down the field if it isn’t there and making quick decisions to check the ball down to a running back or tight end.

Gaining four-yards is widely considered by coaches a successful play. Those plays won’t make the highlight reels, but if you string enough of them together you’re going to find sustained offensive success and take the wind right out of the home crowd.

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