The adage of college football being a 60-minute game didn’t really apply to Derrick Henry against Charleston Southern.
In Alabama’s 56-6 thrashing of the Football Championship Subdivision program Saturday inside Bryant-Denny Stadium, the Crimson Tide junior tailback and Heisman Trophy front-runner rushed just nine times for 68 yards and scored touchdowns of 17 and 2 yards. He was pulled midway through the second quarter with Alabama leading 35-0.
Henry had one fewer yard than Bo Scarbrough and one fewer carry than both Scarbrough and Damien Harris, with those two freshmen getting their most extensive action of the season.
“We were just kind of going by the scoreboard,” Tide coach Nick Saban said Saturday night in a news conference. “We were going to play Damien early and sort of roll him in, so he played early some. When we got ahead by 21 or 28 points, we were going to shut some of the guys down and make sure we started giving other guys ample opportunities to develop.”
There was no shortage of participants in the victory that improved Alabama’s record to 10-1 entering this weekend’s Iron Bowl at Auburn. A whopping 24 defenders recorded tackles against the Buccaneers, with senior defensive back Bradley Sylve and junior defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson sharing team-high honors with four tackles apiece.
In his final home game, senior cornerback Cyrus Jones recorded three tackles for loss, forced and recovered a fumble, and had punt returns for touchdowns covering 43 and 72 yards.
“Cyrus has got really good running skills and was a receiver when he first came here, and he did a really good job at that,” Saban said. “These last two weeks, we’ve made some big plays in the punt-return game, and I think that’s something that we want to continue to build on.”
Said Jones: “It was a bittersweet moment with it being my last game here with the guys I came in with. It’s been a special year, and it felt good making plays and doing what I had to do.”
Last Wednesday, Saban once again used a news conference to vent about the importance of taking every game seriously, and his Tide responded by taking a 49-0 halftime lead and racking up 254 first-half yards while holding the Bucs to 31. The 49 points are the most Alabama has scored in a half under Saban.
There is no need to stress the importance of this week’s opponent, with Alabama and Auburn having played two memorable games in a row. The Tigers upset the top-ranked Tide 34-28 two years ago inside Jordan-Hare Stadium, catapulting Auburn to the Southeastern Conference title and a berth in the national championship game.
Alabama won the highest-scoring Iron Bowl last November, rallying for a 55-44 triumph despite yielding 456 passing yards and 630 total yards.
“We’ve obviously got a big challenge on the road in a rivalry game,” Saban said. “It’s one of the best rivalries in the country, but we’ve just got to keep focusing on trying to improve.”
Auburn is 6-5 this season, with the Tigers winning two of their past three games. The Tide opened Sunday as 13-point favorites against their rivals.
Tide tidbits
Alabama now has 35 seasons with double-digit win totals in its history, as well as eight in a row. Henry has 21 rushing touchdowns this season, tying the school mark set by Trent Richardson in 2011. Of Calvin Ridley’s five touchdown receptions this season, four have been 30 yards or longer. Senior quarterback Jake Coker has completed 73 percent of his passes in the past six games. With Dominick Jackson nursing an ankle injury, Korren Kirven got his first career start at right tackle.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.