What Clark Lea said about Alabama after loss to the Crimson Tide
By David Wasson
Published:
Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea had plenty to say Saturday night after his 16th-ranked Commodores absorbed their first loss of the season at No. 10 Alabama – falling to the Crimson Tide 30-14 in a rematch of last season’s scintillating 40-35 victory over the then-No. 1 Tide.
Here is some of what Lea had to say to reporters in his postgame press conference:
Opening statement
“I think the first thing you have to do is credit the coach for Alabama for the way they played. I mean, they took it to us, and they left no downs in that second half. So hats off to them. We knew coming in that this would be a game won on third downs and won in the red zone, and those are two areas we’ve been really good at keeping on offense, and I think on both sides of the ball, we struggled on third down tonight. I think you got to give Simpson a lot of credit for extended plays and conversion downs. Obviously, the first fourth and seven conversion was huge in the first half that led to a touchdown. But he’s a good player, and they made more plays than we made tonight on third down.
“Offensively, we just seemed to never get rhythm, especially in the second half. Too many three-and-outs, and that allowed them to take the time of possession. I’m not sure where that ended, but that was not close. We felt the effect of that late, they were able to establish a run game and ultimately wore us out and came away with the win.”
Felt like you guys were kind of owning the line of scrimmage effectively in the first half. How do you feel like that changed?
“Space was hard. The play was made from the backside, and it was someone who won their point of attack, and they were able to get the backfield. So I think you have to credit Alabama for the way they played up front. I think that’s the first thing. Those guys beat us on both sides of the line of scrimmage, particularly in the second half.”
Lea and his Vanderbilt squad will look to get back on track in Week 8 against LSU after a Week 7 bye.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. He also hosts Gulfshore Sports with David Wasson, weekdays from 3-5 pm across Southwest Florida and on FoxSportsFM.com. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
