Ole Miss scored on the drive immediately following Allen’s interception and got the ensuing onside kick. The Rebels then scored on the next play to cut Alabama’s lead to five points with 2:51 left.
The two-point conversion could have gone a lot better. The play was an obvious miscommunication as Kelly pitched the ball to no one in the backfield and the lead wasn’t cut to a field goal.
Even if the conversion worked, it wouldn’t have mattered. Alabama was able to run out the clock over the final three minutes to ice away the game with a bit of drama. Running back Bo Scarbrough fumbled as Alabama was bleeding the clock, but center Bradley Bozeman recovered the ball.
The Alabama win means coach Nick Saban has never lost to the same SEC team in three consecutive seasons. He last lost three straight times to Purdue in 1996-1998 as Michigan State’s head coach.
The Tide’s comeback brought back horrible memories for Ole Miss fans. The Rebels stormed out to a big lead over Florida State in the first half in Week 1 and lost the lead over the second half in what ended up being a 45-34 loss. Judgments after three games tend to be premature, but it’s a troubling trend for an Ole Miss team that can still contend in a wide-open SEC West.
While the defensive scores were huge, Alabama’s comeback was keyed by the emergence of its running game. At the beginning of the third quarter, Alabama running backs had just 10 of the team’s 23 rushing attempts. Following that moment, Damien Harris and Scarbrough became key players.
A 67-yard carry by Harris set up a 1-yard score for Scarbrough in the third quarter. The touchdown gave Alabama a 34-27 lead that it would ultimately never relinquish.
Harris finished the game with 144 yards on 16 carries. Quarterback Jalen Hurts led the Tide with 146 yards rushing.
The Rebels’ early lead was fueled by a defensive touchdown too. Ole Miss, who forced five Alabama turnovers in its win in Tuscaloosa in 2015, got a 44-yard fumble return for a score by John Youngblood after Breeland Speaks sacked Hurts.
Kelly was 26 of 41 in passing for 421 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
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