Let’s forget the sixth week even existed. Kalen DeBoer was on cloud nine, beating Georgia in the fifth week. The Crimson Tide was standing at the top of the AP poll. Oh, what fine days, and then another Saturday hit, and it’s a completely opposition feeling. A 35-40 loss to Vanderbilt? Seriously? Yes, that happened! An unranked team just beat a No. 1 ranked team! College football is full of surprises, and yesterday, we had our fair share. For Bama, nothing went right, and everyone identified a common reason for the loss even though DeBoer went with “We’ve got to do a better job of being disciplined.”

The former NFL legends Shannon Sharpe and Chad ‘Ochocinco” Johnson discussed  about Alabama’s 35-40 loss to Vanderbilt. “You know why it’s happened? I’m trying to figure out, Where’s Alabama’s defense? They continue to disappear.” We get that because in the four games before Vanderbilt, every Crimson Tide opponent struggled on the crucial down. However, on Saturday, Alabama allowed 11 third downs. It seemed like the Bama were going against a Heisman contender in Deigo Pavia. Instead, the truth is that the defense had no answers.

Look at their game against Georgia; Alabama’s defense was top-notch. They stopped when they needed to and then went back into action. Ocho stated out the issue for the Crimson Tide. “Offensively, they play well; they play well in spurts, and then they disappear for a little bit and allow teams to get back in. When they played Georgia, they had a significant lead, and the defense allowed them to come back and get in the game today. When Alabama’s defense needed to stop, they couldn’t get a stop, huh? I was hoping I would hope. I was hoping they would get a stop, just so they can get the ball back again and see if Brother Minroe can take the way to score so they can pull this one off the day if you think about it.”

Moreover, even the Georgia game can be put into a new perspective after this loss. Alabama’s defense gave away 27 points in the second half (two quarters). That means they have leaked 67 points in six quarters. Just imagine that. The issues are similar. Even against the Bulldogs, the Bama defense failed to stop Carson Beck from converting 4th downs. Against Vanderbilt, it seemed like the opponent converted every 3rd down situation. 3rd and short, 3rd and long! Nothing mattered. In the end, when DeBoer was praying to the almighty that his defense gave Milroe one last drive, what did the defense do? They failed miserably.

Nick Saban’s daughter on Alabama’s defense

All of you wondered what happened to Bama’s defense from what we saw in the game against Georgia. Kristine Saban shared the exact thing in her Instagram story. “Hey defense, WHATCHA DOING????” She shared the story even before the news broke out that Alabama lost to Vanderbilt. She could not believe her eyes when Kalen DeBoer and the Bama boys were trailing by 7-20 score run.

But that’s true because Vanderbilt’s offensive line pushed them to the edge like what happened in the SF game. Believe it or not, Vanderbilt just ate Alabama’s defense and left no crumbs. The Dores went 12-for-18 on third downs. You know what the number of times Alabama gave up third downs was more than combined in the games against Western Kentucky, South Florida, Wisconsin, and Georgia.

Linebacker Deontae Lawson had problems with man coverage. On top of that, penalties were also cited as an issue when Alabama was trying to get off the field. Apart from that, Dores’ quarterback, Diego Pavia, showcased his abilities, throwing for 252 yards and scoring two touchdowns, showcasing the strength of his arm. He also rushed 20 times for 56 yards. In total, they had 54 carries and succeeded in what it looked like impossible before it actually happened. How do you recover from such a defeat? Well, let’s see. That’s why DeBoer is being paid the big bucks.