Mark Ingram on Nick Saban's halftime message vs. Tennessee: 'It worked'

During the first half of Alabama’s game vs. Tennessee last week, the Crimson Tide came out flat as they took a 20-7 deficit into the locker room. Out of the break, though, it was a different story as Alabama outscored Tennessee 27-0 in the second half en route to the 34-20 victory at Bryant Denny Stadium.

That begged the question: What did Nick Saban say to turn things around? Former Alabama star and current FOX Big Noon Kickoff analyst Mark Ingram had an idea.

“I know he said that, ‘We’re not playing worth a crap and we need to go out there, we need to execute better,'” Ingram told On3 via Zoom interview. “‘We need to take care of the football. We had some turnovers, we need to stop the big plays.'”

His message certainly got across. Alabama started the second half with a bang as Jalen Milroe found Isaiah Bond for a 46-yard touchdown on the second play of the drive. After a Will Reichard field goal cut the Tennessee lead to 20-17, the Crimson Tide jumped out in front on a 5-yard touchdown run from Jase McClellan to grab a 24-20 lead.

Beyond just cleaning things up, Ingram said Saban had another message for the Alabama players.

“He told them to just go out there [and] play Bama football, which is dominate the opponent,” Ingram said. “You’ve got to play with an intensity and a physicality that the other team’s either unable to or unwilling to match. Go out there and play the way we play, and they came out and they did that.

“They made plays, they scored touchdowns, they got turnovers. We ended up turning the second half around and winning the game. Whatever he told them, it worked.”

Mark Ingram: Tennessee game was ‘the story of the season for Alabama’

Alabama started the year up and down. The Crimson Tide defeated Middle Tennessee State in the opener, then lost to Texas at home to drop to 1-1. Then, against USF, Saban benched Milroe in place of Tyler Buchner and Ty Simpson. After that close victory, he declared Milroe the starting quarterback going forward, and Alabama is now 6-0 after that loss to Texas.

To Ingram, the game against Tennessee showed how things have gone for the Crimson Tide this year. It hasn’t been an easy road to 7-1, but they’ve found a way to get some big wins. Add in some adjustments to help Milroe succeed, and Ingram said it’s been a true Saban masterclass.

Still, he thinks Alabama hasn’t yet reached its full potential.

“That’s just been the story of the season for Alabama, man,” Ingram said. “When they play well, when they play to what they’re capable of, they’re definitely a Playoff contender. There’s just a lot of inconsistency in the play. When they play bad, man, it’s pretty bad.

“They’ve done a good job of, I think, catering to Jalen Milroe’s strengths. He’s getting comfortable. He’s making some great decisions throwing down the field. We’ve got some great explosive wide receivers. The offensive line’s coming along. They need to keep getting better. But the defense is playing strong. It’s one of the best defenses in the country.”

Alabama is on a bye week this week before wrapping up the final four games of the season. Ingram thinks the Crimson Tide have turned a corner over the last few weeks.

Now squarely atop the SEC West standings, the conversation could be evolving toward something bigger than a conference championship.

“Coach Saban got those guys kind of finally jelling, improving, playing well together,” Ingram said. “Hopefully, they just keep showing that improvement from week to week and win one game at a time. Hopefully, at the end of this thing, we’ll be in the Playoff competition.”

Mark Ingram is partnering with Dos Equis’ College Football Tailgate Throwdown. Voting runs through Oct. 25 as he helps an Alabama fan try to win the ultimate prize.