Alabama reserves answer the bell in Atlanta in place of injured starters

ATLANTA – Alabama was without its starting running back. Its top cornerback exited the game in the third quarter. But others stepped up in their absence to help guide the Crimson Tide to a 27-24 win over Georgia in the SEC Championship Game on Saturday afternoon.

Senior running back Jase McClellan (foot) was in uniform for warmups but didn’t participate in most of them before changing into street clothes and watching the game from the sideline. His fellow senior, Roydell Williams, got the starting nod – the first of his career – and finished the game as Alabama’s leading rusher with 64 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

“Just staying patient, staying calm in the moment,” said Williams of the mindset in his first start. “It’s a big game. We prepared well for it throughout the week. And you never know when your time comes and the opportunity (presents) itself.”

Williams saw the most carries and concluded the 3-point win with the most rushing yards. But with him stepping up into the No. 1 back role, that meant someone had to replace his spot as the Crimson Tide’s second option out of the backfield. That responsibility fell to Jam Miller, who saw nine handoffs for 23 yards, trailing only Williams and Jalen Milroe (14).

While he saw a career-high in carries, one of Miller’s biggest contributions came in the passing game. Miller caught a pass from Milroe and took it 28 yards for a touchdown early in the second quarter and gave Alabama its first lead of the SEC title game at 10-7 at the 12:04 mark.

With McClellan sidelined, the Tide’s other tailbacks took it upon themselves to play well.

“Before the game had started, we had a group talk, and it was just like, ‘Man, we’ve got to eat, man. We’ve got one (player) down. Next man up,’” Williams said. “Jam played an awesome game today with him being a young guy. Any one of us can play, and he did a fantastic job.”

As a team, Alabama rushed for 114 yards with a running back who had the eighth-most yards in the SEC (803) entering their weekend. Their Tide teammates praised Williams and Miller.

“It was really big,” said offensive lineman Tyler Booker. “We’ve got one of the deepest running back rooms in the country, and to be able to have a guy that you can just plug and play like that is very important. Just having those guys be able to come in, it meant a lot. 

“So shoutout to Jam, shoutout to Roydell for carrying the load today.”

Amos fills in for McKinstry

Alabama cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry left the game in the third quarter. He spent time in the medical tent and the locker room at Mercedes-Benz Stadium before watching the remainder of the contest from the sideline without his helmet. Saban gave an update on McKinstry.

“Kool-Aid has a concussion,” Saban said. “He goes in concussion protocol. We’ll figure out how bad it is, how long it takes, when he’ll be clear. All the testing mechanisms that we have right now, I think, are really beneficial to players not getting multiple concussions.

“Our medical staff has always done a really good job of protecting the players when these things occur.”

Once McKinstry went down, he was replaced at right cornerback by Trey Amos, who closed out the game with the first-team defense. Amos didn’t record any tackles, but he led the UA defense with two pass breakups. One of those was a key play in the game – and almost an interception – as it forced the Bulldogs to punt from its own 35, trailing 20-10, with 14:12 to go.

“I tell this to all the players – next man up,” said linebacker Trezmen Marshall. “If you’re ready, you ain’t got to get ready. Trey was already ready. He’s a starter. The thing about this university, man, the ones and the twos, you’re a starter. You never know when your name’s going to be called, and you’ve got to be ready to play ball regardless. And Trey, he’s always going to be ready.”

Saban added, “He’s been playing for us all year, but we have a lot of confidence in him. He did a really good job tonight.”

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