Kalen DeBoer was frustrated.
The Alabama football coach knew what the numbers said: 406 yards of offense compared to Oklahoma 's 212, nearly a nine-minute advantage in time of possession for a unit that was averaging more than 5 yards per play.
That was the Crimson Tide offense against the Sooners ' defense, statistically the best defense in the SEC and one of the better defenses nationally. Alabama didn't feel like it could not move the ball, DeBoer said. But Alabama didn't feel like it could score touchdowns, especially with three turnovers; turnovers that proved deadly in a 23-21 home loss to the Sooners .
"Yeah, it wasn't perfect, but we were facing a very good defense, and we understood that," DeBoer said. "I felt like we were executing better ... than we have, probably, the previous couple weeks against a very, again, against a very good defense. And so, just the big mistakes are the ones that hurt us."
Ten plays, Ty Simpson repeated. That was the difference between Alabama and Oklahoma.
"I got to do a better job at taking care of the ball," Simpson said. "Need to do a better job at taking care of the ball on offense, because that's what killed us."
As Alabama looks ahead to its final two regular-season games against Eastern Illinois and Auburn, it's not with an offense that feels it is at its lowest. It's an offense that, coming off a 20-point performance against LSU where it mustered 344 yards the previous week, that is actually confident.
DeBoer feels the run game is in much better shape than in weeks past.
Leaving with 80 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 33 carries − a 2.4 yards-per-carry average − DeBoer said there were "opportunities where we had seams to run the football moreso than we have" against one of the better run defenses in the country.
"I thought our effort, I thought our belief in doing it, is continuing to head in the right direction," DeBoer said.
Alabama center Parker Brailsford even called the run game a "positive."
"It's starting to come together a little bit, and we're starting to see more longer runs," Brailsford said of a unit that had one run of more than 10 yards: a 28-yard carry by Daniel Hill .
Outside of the run game, DeBoer felt Alabama had "enough of a quick (passing) game" from Simpson. It was a passing game that continued to be efficient. Simpson managed the offense "well," the coach said.
"One play got him with the pressure and the interception for a touchdown, and the strip-sack that we're talking about," DeBoer said. "So I thought he, again, it goes back to most of the snaps, we played pretty good football. But it's the ones that were big that really hurt us."
But the reality remains, one Alabama saw firsthand in the waning moments of the loss to Oklahoma.
The Crimson Tide took possession backed up against its own 6 yard line with 7:14 to go. A 13-play drive commenced, one that only got the Crimson Tide to its own 48-yard line, one that ticked the play clock down to 53 seconds. Alabama averaged just over 3 yards per play on eight run plays and five pass plays.
Alabama is confident in what it was able to do against one of the better defenses in the SEC. But it wasn't enough. Alabama may have had more yards than Oklahoma. But Oklahoma handed the Crimson Tide its first loss in Bryant-Denny Stadium in more than two years.
Alabama's chances to showcase its confident offense are waning as November ticks away. And as Eastern Illinois and Auburn approach, the urgency for offensive production is all the more apparent.
"Every day, we're trying to go in there and get better. I mean, that's what our mindset has been," Brailsford said. "It's what our mindset is going to continue to be. Eventually, we'll click."
Alabama will finish its home schedule against Eastern Illinois on Saturday, Nov. 22, at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Where does Alabama football offense stand after Oklahoma loss?
