Alabama was all set to tie Saturday’s game with Oklahoma and head to the locker room at halftime with a total reset after playing from behind the entire first half.
Conor Talty set up for a 36-yard field goal that would’ve tied the game at 17-17 after Alabama trailed 10-0 and 17-7. It was a great opportunity that ultimately went really badly, because the snap was high, the kick was shanked and there was no tie game. Instead, it was 17-14 Oklahoma at halftime, and Talty was incensed.
He yelled at his long snapper, who started the whole process gone wrong, but it was a telling moment in a frustrating first half for the home team. Kickers don’t often scream at their long snappers or holders, at least not on the field, so Talty’s outburst in the national TV spotlight on ABC was something to see.
Here’s the bad snap, the bad kick and 1 frustrated kicker who couldn’t contain his emotions as the Tide jogged to the locker room:
It was Talty’s only field goal attempt of the first half. He did make both of his extra point attempts after Alabama’s 2 touchdowns, but it was the kick gone awry and reaction to it that had fans talking at halftime as the Crimson Tide’s 8-game winning streak was on the line.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
