Jalon Walker knelt.
The Georgia football linebacker had just taken Alabama running back Jam Miller’s best block, and Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe was sprinting away. Walker’s helmet flew off his head, so he knelt, on the Tide’s 38-yard line, just watching.
Milroe never stopped. Realistically, only safety Malaki Starks had a chance to stop him, and after the junior’s dive missed, Alabama’s signal caller just had to keep running up the sideline.
36 yards later, and Milroe was dancing in the end zone.
“He was, I think, exceptional,” Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer said after the game. “I really– I didn’t want to jump the gun, but I just really felt like the last couple weeks– it starts with the Wisconsin game, where he got into a little bit of a rhythm. Made those plays. We still didn’t have enough opportunities, really.”
Through four games, Milroe’s assimilation into DeBoer’s offense has been nearly flawless. Georgia was his best performance yet, and against one of the top teams in the nation, will likely earn him a spot in the Heisman Trophy race.
He finished with 27 completions on 33 throws, for 374 yards, two touchdowns and an interception that popped off CJ Dippre’s hands. He led the Crimson Tide in rushing as well, going for 117 yards and two more scores.
“If you could just stop him and not worry about him throwing, I think you could do it,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “But when he’s throwing it well and they’re catching it more, really hard to stop.”
Milroe has come a long way from getting benched last season against USF. He’s the centerpiece of DeBoer’s attack, and seems to have a sidekick worthy of the Alabama wide receiver linenage, in true freshman Ryan Williams.
Alabama nearly gave away the win on Saturday. The Bulldogs scored three unanswered touchdowns late to turn a 30-7 halftime deficit into a UGA lead with just 2:31 left.
On the sideline, Milroe said he discussed the team’s core values, imploring the Tide to finish. Then he went out and did it.
Milroe went deep on the first play of the drive. He had Williams in one-on-one coverage down the sideline, not wide open, but enough to have a chance.
The redshirt junior from Texas somehow got his feet down, then twisted around and started running. The 75-yard touchdown pass, coupled with a Zabien Brown interception, ended the game.
“Ryan to the field, that’s a one-on-one advantage on our end,” Milroe said. “It’s all about having eye discipline, reading the play properly and just giving our guy a chance.”
Thanks to Milroe, Alabama has a chance. The Crimson Tide is 4-0 and travels to Vanderbilt next week.
UA didn’t sink when Nick Saban retired, at least not yet. For Milroe, change seemingly helped his game, with DeBoer and offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan purpose-building the offense around his skillset.
“I have a great coaching staff that believes in me,” Milroe said. “I have teammates that believe in me. That’s all that matters. I try to do my best, every play call that’s asked of me, to maximize that play call as much as possible, and be the best version of myself every day I have the opportunity to snap a ball at the University of Alabama.”
