How Texas, Quinn Ewers defeated Alabama in top-25 showdown
David Craig Texas’ second game ever played in Tuscaloosa, more than 100 years since the first, produced an eerily similar result. The first, in 1902, saw Texas defeat Alabama 10-0. The story in the Austin-American Statesman read, “The Alabama boys are by no means dissatisfied with the result, as everyone expected Texas to win by a larger score.”
The 2023 edition of Alabama-Texas ended with the Longhorns winning by a 10-point margin yet again, but the reaction is starkly different. There’s plenty of dissatisfaction from Alabama, and nationally, a larger conversation will take place about who the 2023 Crimson Tide are and what that means for the sport.
Alabama’s 34-24 loss to Texas on Saturday has some historical significance. It marks the first home, nonconference loss since Nick Saban’s first season in 2007 (21-14 to UL Monroe) and its first double-digit home loss since 2004 (20-3 to South Carolina). One loss isn’t uncommon as only two national title teams under Saban were undefeated, but it’s how Alabama lost that’s alarming: undisciplined play, turnovers and losing at the line of scrimmage.