With an SEC championship appearance highly possible for Alabama football, the team will look to continue its impressive play as of late against an Oklahoma team that has disappointed in its inaugural SEC season with a current 5-5 record.
But it won’t be as easy as it seems for the Crimson Tide, as the team will have to travel over 700 miles to play in Norman at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Combine that with a 6:30 p.m. CT start time, and Alabama will be in a tough road environment.
“Certainly this will be an electric environment,” offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan said.
Before the 2024 season, Oklahoma had a 140-13 home record the last 25 seasons, which was the best winning percentage (.915) in the nation during that period. This season, the Sooners have found more success at home than on the road, as the team has a 4-2 record in Norman compared to just 1-3 away from home.
The nighttime atmosphere in Norman will also affect the game. When the Sooners were blown out 35-9 at home against South Carolina, the game started at 11 a.m. local time. However, the team played much better against No. 10-ranked Tennessee at 6:30 p.m. local time, losing only 25-15, a far better showing.
“The place was packed and super loud all game,” Volunteers offensive lineman William Satterwhite said. “It was a great atmosphere.”
Alabama hasn’t fared as well on the road this season as it has at home. The team is 2-2 away from Bryant-Denny Stadium compared to 6-0 in Tuscaloosa.
One of those losses highlighted the challenges of playing on the road. The 24-17 loss saw a loud atmosphere in Knoxville, causing the Crimson Tide to have a season-high of 15 penalties and five pre-snap penalties on offense. Sheridan said miscommunication issues “plagued” the offense that game, and head coach Kalen DeBoer expressed similar sentiments.
“You can’t win a football game when you have mistakes like we had out there and all the penalties,” DeBoer said.
The Alabama offense hopes to see similar results to those of the team that traveled to Death Valley and beat LSU 42-13. With the Oklahoma defense giving up only 18.8 points per game at home and earning praise from DeBoer, ensuring the Crimson Tide offense is on the same page will be important.
“Their defense is, I think, an extremely tough defense in all ways,” DeBoer said. “Just what they do with their scheme and then with their personnel, the way they fly around.”
This season has already shown that SEC night games can create some upsets, like when then-No. 4 ranked Tennessee lost to unranked Arkansas in Fayetteville 19-14 in Week 6 or when South Carolina dominated the then-No. 10 Texas A&M Aggies 44-20 in Week 10.
The Crimson Tide will hope not to be the next victim on that list during its road trip to Norman on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CT. The game can be watched on ABC.
