Alabama Defense Preparing for Elite Mismatch in Georgia TE Brock Bowers
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Nick Saban always refers to good tight ends as mismatches because of the way they challenge a defense. Cornerbacks are often undersized against a tight end, but linebackers are often too slow. And there might be no bigger mismatch in college football than Georgia tight end Brock Bowers. “He’s elite,” Alabama linebacker Deontae Lawson said. “It’s definitely a challenge. He moves like a receiver. He’s not a typical tight end that you’d see. It’ll be something we have to work (on) throughout the week and we look forward to it.” Bowers was a popular topic among Crimson Tide players and Saban during Monday’s media availabilities as No. 8 Alabama (11-1, 8-0 SEC) prepares to face No. 1 Georgia (12-0, 8-0 SEC) in the SEC championship game this Saturday. Despite missing three games this season with an ankle injury, Bowers is still the Bulldogs’ leading receiver with 661 yards and six touchdowns.
Two years ago, when the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs met twice within the span of three games, Bowers was a major problem for the Alabama defense. In the 2021 SEC championship game, he was the highlight for Georgia in a 41-24 loss. Bowers picked apart the Alabama defense, finishing with 10 catches for 139 yards and a touchdown. A few weeks later in the national title, Alabama held him to four catches for 36 yards, but he did have a crucial touchdown to build the Bulldog lead in the fourth quarter. The junior tight end did not play last week in Georgia’s win over Georgia Tech, but Kirby Smart said Bowers was close to being ready to play, just a little sore. He initially went down with an ankle injury on Oct. 14 against Vanderbilt and had the tightrope surgery performed on his ankle. Bowers made his return Nov. 11 against Ole Miss and also played against Tennessee before sitting out last Saturday at Georgia Tech. On Monday, Saban said they are preparing as if Bowers will play. “Brock Bowers is a really, really good player,” Saban said. “Probably the best player at his position in the country. I’m assuming that he will play in the game. I don’t know any different than that. He’s a mismatch issue, but he’s also a good blocker and a really good competitor so it’s not only his pass-catching ability, it’s his ability to do all the things that really good football players do. And he does them all at a high level.”
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