Snap Counts and Observations: Game 4 vs. Georgia

Alabama's offense was its usual explosive self against Georgia, and the defense turned it around after a shaky first half with perhaps its best 30 minutes of the season in the 41-24 win. Two Alabama players made their college debuts.

Below is a breakdown of snap counts for every player, first by offense and defense and then with additional observations by position:

Offense (76 snaps)
Mac Jones 76
Alex Leatherwood 76
Deonte Brown 76
Landon Dickerson 76
Emil Ekiyor Jr. 76
Evan Neal 76
DeVonta Smith 68
Najee Harris 64
John Metchie III 60
Miller Forristall 54
Jaylen Waddle 53
Kendall Randolph 28
Brian Robinson Jr. 15
Major Tennison 15
Slade Bolden 8
Cameron Latu 6
Jahleel Billingsley 5
Xavier Williams 2
Joshua McMillon 2

For the fourth straight game, the offense's most common personnel was three wide receivers, also known as 11 or Blue personnel. It used that group on 55% of its snaps (42 of 70 plays). It continued to use plenty of two-tight end sets too, lining up in Silver personnel on 37% of its snaps (28 of 76 plays). It sprinkled in three other personnel groups: four tight ends (Tan) on 2 snaps, two running backs (Pony Gold) on 3 snaps and victory formation on the final snap. The second snap with Tan personnel was the first time this season the team didn't score with four tight ends in the game. It did not use Pony Gold at all before this game.

Defense (70 snaps)
Dylan Moses 70
Christian Harris 70
Josh Jobe 70
Patrick Surtain II 70
Demarcco Hellams 70
Malachi Moore 53
Will Anderson 51
D.J. Dale 50
Chris Allen 50
Christian Barmore 49
Justin Eboigbe 47
Daniel Wright 45
Jordan Battle 28
Byron Young 20
Jamil Burroughs 11
Brian Branch 6
Phidarian Mathis 5
Tim Smith 4
Ben Davis 1

As always, the team lined up in nickel personnel (5 defensive backs) the majority of the time, using it on 44 of 70 snaps against the Bulldogs. There was one outside linebacker for 38 of those 44 snaps. The defense lined up in base personnel (4 DBs) on 17 snaps after only doing so for 1 snap over the previous two weeks. The remaining 9 snaps were in dime personnel (6 DBs).

QUARTERBACKS
Mac Jones 76

For the second straight game, it was Mac Jones the whole way. He became the first quarterback in Alabama history to throw for 400-plus yards in back-to-back games against Ole Miss, and he made it three straight against Georgia, widely regarded as the best defense in college football. He recovered extremely well from his interception on the opening play, completing 24 of 31 passes for 417 yards the rest of the way. He was visibly frustrated after missing a throw on third down in the first quarter, but continued to "play the next play," as coach Nick Saban so often says. Jones ranks No. 1 in the FBS in yards per completion and passing efficiency and No. 2 in the FBS in completion percentage.

RUNNING BACKS
Najee Harris 64
Brian Robinson Jr. 15

For the first time this season, the running back snaps don't equal the number of plays. There were three plays on which both Harris and Robinson were in the backfield with Jones. Those three plays gained 3, 5 and 10 yards, and Harris got the carry on two of the three. Against the top run defense in college football, Harris ran for 152 yards, the second-most of his career. His top two rushing outputs in a single game have come in the team's most recent two games.

WIDE RECEIVERS
DeVonta Smith 68
John Metchie III 60
Jaylen Waddle 53
Slade Bolden 8
Xavier Williams 2

The top three receivers combined for 20 of the team's 24 completions, 378 yards and 4 touchdowns. According to the CBS broadcast, it was the first time in school history that two receivers had 160-plus yards in the same game: Smith had 167 and Waddle had 161. Waddle's 90-yard touchdown in the third quarter is the second-longest play allowed by any FBS team this season.

TIGHT ENDS
Miller Forristall 54
Kendall Randolph 28
Major Tennison 15
Cameron Latu 6
Jahleel Billingsley 5
Joshua McMillon 2

Despite an early injury, Forristall continued to lead the pack. The team still used six tight ends even in the absence of Carl Tucker. Randolph's 28 snaps were a season high, as were Tennison's 15. Alabama was 6 for 6 on scoring touchdowns out of its four-tight-end formation entering the game and improved to 7 for 7 in the third quarter, but it randomly used it near midfield in the fourth quarter to end the streak. Still, 7 for 8 isn't too shabby.

OFFENSIVE LINE
Alex Leatherwood 76
Deonte Brown 76
Landon Dickerson 76
Emil Ekiyor Jr. 76
Evan Neal 76

Two weeks in a row that all five starters play every snap. Saban said this week that the line has improved every week; its run blocking against Georgia's strong rush defense was especially good. The Bulldogs hadn't allowed a run longer than 11 yards since their season opener, but Alabama's second run of the game was a 17-yarder by Harris. The pass protection was mostly fine, but with a few lapses that led to three sacks of Jones.

You read above about the third-quarter touchdown with four tight ends. But it had a twist: the line was unbalanced, with both guards to the left of center Landon Dickerson.

DEFENSIVE LINE
D.J. Dale 50
Christian Barmore 49
Justin Eboigbe 47
Byron Young 20
Jamil Burroughs 11
Phidarian Mathis 5
Tim Smith 4

Two true freshmen, Burroughs and Smith, made their debuts — Burroughs in the middle of the second quarter and Smith late in the third. Neither player recorded any stats. Veteran LaBryan Ray, who led the D-line in snaps against Ole Miss, didn't play due to an elbow injury, and Phidarian Mathis played only 5 snaps due to an injury of his own. Saban said little about their status for Saturday's game at Tennessee, saying only that they are questionable. Dale, the nose tackle, played by far his most snaps of the season; his season high before Georgia was 31 against Texas A&M.

OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS
Will Anderson 51
Chris Allen 50
Ben Davis 1

Another fairly even split for Allen and Anderson, who have each played about 70% of the defensive snaps so far this year. Allen earned defensive player of the week recognition from the Alabama coaches for the third straight game. Over that span he has recorded 14 total tackles, four tackles for loss and two additional quarterback hurries.

INSIDE LINEBACKERS
Dylan Moses 70
Christian Harris 70

Moses still had a few mistakes, but this was his best game of the year. Saban said as much in one of his press conferences this week, and Moses also earned defensive player of the week honors after his 10-tackle performance. He had a career-high 13 tackles against Ole Miss the week before, and he leads the team with 4.0 tackles for loss.

DEFENSIVE BACKS
Josh Jobe 70
Patrick Surtain II 70
Demarcco Hellams 70
Malachi Moore 53
Daniel Wright 45
Jordan Battle 28
Brian Branch 6

Battle's snap count was low because he was suspended for the first half due to a targeting foul he received against Ole Miss. Wright played safety alongside Hellams in his absence, and Branch, the true freshman, took his spot in the dime defense. With Battle back in the second half, he and Hellams played every snap, Wright played only in dime and Branch didn't play at all. Hellams played every snap for the first time in his career.