Communication key for Alabama as it prepares for 'annoying' cowbells

TUSCALOOSA, Ala – Alabama defensive lineman Jaheim Oatis is from Columbia, Miss., and attended several games at Davis Wade Stadium as a highly-touted recruit. While Saturday will be his first as a Crimson Tide player, Oatis knows what to expect in Starkville.

“Those cowbells are annoying, man,” Oatis said Tuesday. “Those cowbells are loud.”

Cowbells are a tradition at Mississippi State, the next opponent on Alabama’s 2023 schedule. Fans clang the idiophone instrument throughout games at Davis Wade Stadium, which has a capacity of 61,337, to create a hostile road environment for the opposing team.

The Crimson Tide offense will have to deal with that noise on Saturday, Sept. 30, when it makes the roughly 80-mile trip to the MSU campus. That side of the ball for Alabama, especially the offensive line, has stressed the importance of being on the same page this week.

“We just have to be even more obsessive about communication,” said left guard Tyler Booker on Tuesday. “Probably more eye contact with the running backs, actually looking back at the running back, making sure he has the call. Just being more obsessive about it.”

Booker was back in the lineup this past week after missing the South Florida game due to back spasms. Alabama head coach Nick Saban called the sophomore the leader of the offensive line and said the decision to move him from right guard to left guard was to help the inexperienced players at left tackle, like Kadyn Proctor and Elijah Pritchett, with the calls.

“I came in as a tackle way back when – feels like years ago – so I know all the tackle calls,” Booker said. “Just reassuring them on that. And just little tips before the play, like, ‘Hey, stay inside out,’ or ‘Hey, this stunt is coming,’ just little things like that I help them with. But it’s all them. It’s just me relaying the call, and I’m very proud of both of those guys.”

Booker compared relaying the calls to the left tackle to a game of telephone.

“I hear it from Seth (McLaughlin), then I tell Pritch or Proc, and we just go from there,” Booker said. “And then I give them little tips or reminders right before we go in for a play, like, ‘Hey, eyes up for this. Look for this. Be mindful of this. And then just go play ball.’ 

“But you don’t want to tell them too much because you don’t want them to be thinking too much going into a play. So it’ll probably be a one-word thing, like ‘Hey, keep your heads up. Hey, you see this?’ Little things like that.”

Communication has been a point of emphasis for the offensive line early in the season, but it will also be important for quarterback Jalen Milroe, who will be making his first career road start on Saturday. Milroe does have some experience on the road, however, stepping in for Bryce Young at Arkansas last season, and he knows the crowd noise will be a challenge.

“I think the key fact to that is acknowledging that it takes all 11 guys to win,” Milroe said Monday. “The only dudes that we need are the people that are wearing crimson and white. No matter who’s on the field, whether it’s offense, defense, special teams, those are the guys that we’re gonna trust and build on. 

“I think that’s going to allow us to grow throughout the season when we have these road games. Just knowing that it takes all 11 guys, whoever is on the field, to allow us to win. The biggest thing is preparing, and it’ll factor into our success on Saturday.”

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