- ABC News
- September 19, 2021
Alabama coach Nick Saban was happy to leave the Swamp with a 31-29 win over No. 11 Florida on Saturday, but he couldn't overlook the performance of his defense, which struggled to stop the run and get off the field on third down. The Gators racked up 258 rushing yards against the top-ranked Crimson Tide and converted on five third downs. It was just the fifth time that an Alabama defense under Saban gave up three rushing touchdowns in a game. "What concerned me most is we could not maintain our intensity, especially on defense," Saban said. "We had a lot of mental errors." Saban said it appeared as if players got tired and were reeling as the game wore on. He wondered whether more players would need to play in the future to provide fresh legs. Alabama outside linebacker Will Anderson Jr. appeared to hobble off the field when the game ended, but Saban said it was more a matter of fatigue than his knee, which he injured the previous game against ...