Alabama not using rain as an excuse for early struggles vs. Michigan
TAMPA, Fla. – In its second straight game played in Tampa, Alabama’s first half was impacted by the weather. More specifically rain, which drenched the field at Raymond James Stadium in the first quarter of the Crimson Tide’s loss to Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
Reminiscent of Alabama’s road game at South Florida last year, the heavens opened and made life difficult for the Tide in its season finale. Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe turned the ball over three times (2 fumbles, 1 interception) in a four-plan span and gave the Wolverines an early 16-0 lead. It proved to be a deficit too large for UA to overcome.
Early on in the bowl game, multiple Alabama players slipped on the wet grass in the home of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Milroe said he changed cleats in the first quarter.
“It was a slippery grass, a different surface than we’ve been on before,” Milroe said. “So we just tried to get the right traction so we can perform better.”
The last time Alabama played in Tampa, it also rained, but there was a lightning delay, as well, in the Tide’s eventual win over USF in 2023. There was no delay on New Year’s Eve, however, and the rain didn’t last long. But it clearly affected UA, especially on offense.
But veteran offensive lineman Tyler Booker, who ended his high school career playing at IMG Academy in nearby Bradenton, refused to use the weather as a crutch in postgame.
“Playing football, especially being in Florida, you’ve gotta be ready for the elements,” Booker said. “But you can’t let the elements be an excuse.
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“… I’m not too keen on the coaches’ play-calling, if they were scared to call certain plays because of the rain. But we can’t let the rain be a reason why we can’t execute. It’s football. We were coming to Florida. It rains every day here, so just got to be ready for the elements.”
Defensive players like Jihaad Campbell – who left the game with an upper-extremity injury – Bray Hubbard and others’ uniforms were almost unrecognizable at the end of the game due to the mud they had accumulated. Some of the Tide players just toughed it out.
“I was just trying to go on and win,” said Alabama defensive lineman Tim Smith. “I stayed in mine. I was already wet and was not going to put on dry clothes just to get wet again. I was just trying to dominate.”
Neither Booker nor Milroe played in Alabama’s last Tampa game. Milroe’s miscues were costly in this year’s bowl matchup, including a fumbled snap in the middle of the downpour. But like his teammates, he didn’t use the weather as an excuse when speaking to reporters.
“External factors that pour into the game, that we just have to limit,” Milroe said. “No matter goes on in the game, we have to limit turnovers despite anything. That was something that was a bump along the road during the game and something we had to regroup once we got to the sideline.”
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