When Alabama has the ball


What the metrics say ...

Alabama’s bread and butter on offense is the run-pass option (RPO). QB Jalen Hurts has masked his inability to throw downfield for two seasons thanks to great decision making when running RPOs. But Georgia’s front seven, led by freakish LB Roquan Smith, has shut down similar RPO-reliant QBs this season.


The average Passing Success Rate for a QB is 40%. Here’s what a few RPO QBs did vs. the Dawgs this season:


•Brandon Wimbush, Notre Dame: 21% Passing Success Rate

•Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State: 27%

•Jarrett Stidham, Auburn: 31%

•Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma: 37%



DFS prospect to watch ...

WR Calvin Ridley. Ridley is widely expected to be a first-round pick, but he looks unlike a lot of successful Day 1 selections from previous seasons. Often compared to Amari Cooper, Ridley turned 21 as a true freshman: When Cooper was 21, he was in the NFL. When his advanced age is taken into account, Ridley’s 1,045-yard freshman season isn’t impressive and he’s regressed since then. Last year he had just 769 yards and this year he has just 16 percent of Alabama’s receiving touchdowns. With his smallish size (6’1″ and 190 pounds), Ridley will need to display good athleticism in his pre-draft workouts to justify his draft hype.