Well, this week was supposed to be the highlight of the season; The Big Showdown; The changing of the guard, if you will. This was supposed to be the first time a Nick Saban assistant came back to best the master at his own game. This was supposed to be the time for Texas A&M to shine the brightest under head coach Jimbo Fisher.

But a not-so-funny thing happened on the way to the big game. You can blame it on injuries, blame it on the disparity in talent level. Take your pick, each has contributed to the fact that this Saturday in Kyle Field is not the marquee matchup once anticipated when the schedule makers mapped out the season.

Quite the opposite, in fact. A second-string quarterback, freshmen along the offensive line, and now more injuries, this time on defense have Aggieland hoping to somehow avoid a cringeworthy Saturday evening.

Nick Calzada was placed in a precarious situation when starting quarterback Haynes King went down with a fractured ankle that has him sidelined until at least the next few weeks.

In his place, the sophomore was thrust into the most significant role on the team behind an offensive line that because of injuries has played the game of musical chairs. A couple of freshmen are playing and All-American Kenyon Green moved to a different position (although he moved back to left guard last Saturday). As a result, the group has struggled with chemistry as we reach the halfway point in the season.

However, moving Green back to the spot in which he earned All-American status did seem to spark the running game somewhat. The Aggies ran for 162 yards on Saturday against Mississippi State, the most since a 303-yard performance against Kent State in the opener.

So, if there is a glimmer of hope to compete with Alabama on Saturday, that seems to be the area in which to focus on. However, it won’t be helped by veteran offensive lineman Luke Matthews, who had shoulder surgery Monday and will be out for the year.

And now Fisher and defensive coordinator Mike Elko are dealt additional setbacks with CB Myles Jones (foot surgery) and DB Brian George gone for an extended time as well.

Defeating Alabama at full strength is a monumental task in itself. (Texas A&M hasn’t done that since 2012.) But to go in with one hand tied behind your back is something else again. That’s sort of the feeling this game is giving off as we get closer and closer to Saturday.

It will be very interesting to see what kind of game plan Fisher comes up with for the offense. Obviously, you play to your strengths, so does that mean we can expect a heavy dose of Isaiah Spiller and Devon Achane ramming the Alabama run defense? Will the strategy be to bleed the clock as much as possible to keep the Tide possessions at a minimum?

What role will Calzada play? He attempted only 20 passes against the Bulldogs last week, the fewest in a game this season. Should we expect that trend to continue as Fisher puts the ball more and more in the hands of Spiller and Achane?

It was Spiller who carried 16 times last Saturday, the most since his 17 totes in the season opener with Kent State. He reached the 100-yard mark for the 3rd time this season and 13th time in his career.

Achane added 69 yards on the ground, also the most since rushing for 124 in the opener.

On the other side of the football, how will a depleted secondary match up with Alabama’s wideouts? Avoiding the big play just might be the Aggies’ biggest challenge on Saturday. The Tide lead the conference with 22 plays this season of 20-or-more yards.

No, it’s not the matchup that was anticipated, but Fisher and the Aggies can pull out all the stops Saturday because they really have nothing to lose. In that respect, the game on Saturday at Kyle Field should be interesting to dissect from the standpoint of strategy and where it might lead the Aggies into the second half of the season.