The last time a Kalen DeBoer-coached team lost two games by mid-October, his Washington Huskies suddenly went on a tear.
DeBoer and No. 9 Alabama would love a similar run of sustained success after a dominant road win over then-No. 14 LSU. Those Huskies went on to win 21 consecutive games following road losses to UCLA and Arizona State in 2022, a streak that extended all the way into last season's national championship game.
Alabama (7-2, No. 9 CFP) gets a reprieve from Southeastern Conference play Saturday against FCS team Mercer (9-1) before resuming the chase for league championship and playoff shots. Barring a monumental upset, of course.
“Honestly, it’s really simple,” DeBoer said. “You’ve got momentum to build off of, and you make sure you take advantage of it, and then you also continue to keep the pedal down, keep focused on what you believe in. And we’ve been doing that. We were doing that then, that year, and we’re doing that now.”
Alabama has won two straight blowouts against ranked teams — 42-13 at LSU and 34-0 over then-No. 21 Missouri — since road losses to Vanderbilt and Tennessee. The team closes DeBoer's first regular season against Oklahoma and Auburn.
It's a tall order to replicate that success starting in his debut season at Washington, but DeBoer said it's something he can look at and “try to figure out what worked and what didn’t to keep the team moving in the right direction.”
Mercer coach Mike Jacobs knows his team can't treat this game as “a tourist thing” but wants to play well on a national stage.
“The reality is most kids grow up wanting to play in the SEC or the Big Ten and I think it provides them an opportunity to prove themselves,” Jacobs said.
He said quarterback DJ Smith is day to day for the game with a “lower body injury.”
Unlike Alabama, the Bears are already in the playoffs, at the FCS level. They have clinched at least a share of the Southern Conference championship and the league’s automatic berth. It’s Mercer’s first league title since winning the Dixie Conference in 1932, and a win over Furman on Nov. 23 would give the Bears the outright league title.
Mercer's only loss this season came in the state of Alabama, falling 55-35 at Samford on Oct. 19.
Quarterback Jalen Milroe joined Shaun Alexander as the only Alabama players with multiple games scoring at least four rushing touchdowns. Milroe accomplished the feat against LSU last weekend and also against the Tigers last season.
Alabama backup quarterback Ty Simpson is a former five-star recruit who hasn’t seen much action this season behind Milroe but figures to contend for the starting job next season. The third-year sophomore has played in four games this season, completing 9 of 14 passes for 96 yards. Simpson could see more extended action if this game goes as expected.
Alabama’s 21 forced turnovers (eight fumbles, 13 interceptions) leads the SEC and is fourth-most in FBS. Malachi Moore has forced two fumbles and intercepted a pair of passes.
The Bears, meanwhile, have had three straight turnover-free games.
Both coaches are high on the list of Division I winning percentages among coaches with at least five seasons. DeBoer leads all active D-1 coaches with a winning percentage 88.7 (110-14). Mercer's Jacobs (82.2%, 83-18) is fourth. ___
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