No. 10 Alabama hits road against USF, eager to rebound from 1st loss of season

2023-09-15 01:46

Coach Nick Saban expects 10th-ranked Alabama to rebound from a loss to Texas with a strong road performance against heavy underdog South Florida

No. 10 Alabama (1-1) at South Florida (1-1), 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC)

Line: Alabama by 31 ½, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Series record: Alabama leads 1-0.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Alabama looks to rebound after faltering late in a 34-24 loss at home to Texas last week. The Crimson Tide are 13-1 following a regular-season loss since 2008. Although they haven’t dropped consecutive regular season games during that stretch, the Crimson Tide did follow a defeat to rival Auburn with a loss to Oklahoma in the 2014 Sugar Bowl. The Crimson Tide has outscored opponents 460 to 160 in those 14 games following a regular season loss. South Florida is two games into a rebuild under first-year coach Alex Golesh, who was offensive coordinator at Tennessee when the Volunteers beat Alabama 52-49 last season.

KEY MATCHUP

Porous USF defense that's shown signs of improvement vs. Jalen Milroe-led Alabama offense eager to rebound from last week's home loss to Texas. The Bulls forced five turnovers en route to giving Golesh his first win as a head coach. Replicating that success against the bigger, stronger, faster Crimson Tide will be difficult.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Alabama: Milroe has thrown for 449 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions while also rushing for 92 yards and a pair of TDs through two games. WR Jermaine Burton has five receptions for 120 yards and two TDs.

South Florida: Through the Bulls’ 1-1 start, QB Byrum Brown has thrown for 363 yards and four TDs. He’s also rushed for a team-best 183 yards and four TDs. RB Nay’Quan Wright, a transfer from Florida, ran for 111 yards in a season-opening loss at Western Kentucky.

FACTS & FIGURES

Alabama won the only previous meeting between the teams 40-17 in 2003. South Florida led 17-7 late in the second quarter before the Crimson Tide scored the final 33 points. The Bulls visit Tuscaloosa in 2024 and 2026, completing a three-game contract. ... USF stopped an 11-game losing streak with a 38-24 victory over FCS foe Florida A&M last week. The Bulls have lost 14 straight vs. ranked opponents. ... Alabama has only lost three regular-season games against nonconference teams in coach Nick Saban’s 16-plus seasons. Two of those — Florida State and Louisiana-Monroe — came in 2007. The third was last week’s loss to Texas.

___

AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll