Texas football game preview: Longhorns hope to make statement against Alabama Crimson Tide

Texas makes one last trip to the SEC for a nonconference game before joining the conference next season. With a win over one of college football's true juggernauts, the Longhorns will muscle their way toward the top of the national polls and into the College Football Playoff conversation

No. 11 Texas (1-0) vs. No. 3 Alabama (1-0)

6 p.m., Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

TV/radio: ESPN, 1300, 98.1, 105.3 (Spanish)

Line: Alabama is favored by 7

Weather: Sunny and humid, mid-80s at kickoff

Texas history: Alabama

The Longhorns lead the all-time series, 7-2-1. They last played in 2022, a 20-19 Alabama win.

Their most memorable meeting: 2010 — Alabama 37, Texas 21. Longhorns fans love to ponder the possibilities about the 2009 NCAA championship game, when All-American quarterback Colt McCoy suffered a game-ending shoulder injury early trying to push through the Tide defense for a touchdown. Would Texas have won a second championship in four years and remained a title contender for another decade or so if McCoy had stayed in the game? Would the Tide still have had their dynastic run of the 2010s? Would Mack Brown still be coaching Texas in his twilight years? Who knows, but the game seemed to signal a shift on college football's power dynamic.

Know the foe: Alabama

Last week: The Crimson Tide rolled past Middle Tennessee 56-7 behind a stifling defense that gave up just 211 yards and forced two turnovers.

Players to watch: QB Jalen Milroe, a third-year sophomore from Katy, spearheads the Tide attack and showed off his dual-threat ability with 242 yards of offense and five TDs last week against Middle Tennessee. … CB Kool-Aid McKinstry, a 6-foot-1, 195-pounder who’s projected as a first-round pick next spring, gives the Tide an elite cover man who may move around from his usual spot at right corner in order to match up with Texas star wideout Xavier Worthy, who had seven catches for 90 yards against Rice. … RT JC Latham, the only returner on the offensive line, gives the Tide a 6-foot-6, 360-pound brute who can manhandle edge defenders.

Central Texas connections: None

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When Texas has the ball

The running game flashed against Rice but lacked consistency, especially in short-yardage situations. Freshman CJ Baxter is apparently healthy after a slight rib injury, and the Longhorns would love for C Jake Majors and guards Hayden Conner, DJ Campbell and possibly Cole Hutson to find some traction inside against an Alabama front three that averages more than 300 pounds. … Take away a three-interception game against Oklahoma State last season, and Texas QB Quinn Ewers has thrown just three interceptions in 10 other starts. That bodes well against a Tide defense that had just 15 forced turnovers a year ago. … While top billing may go to a showdown between McKinstry and Worthy, the other matchups between Texas’ loaded set of receivers and one of the top secondaries in the nation are just as intriguing. Sophomore CB Terrion Arnold could get tested early and often if matched up with Texas’ Adonai Mitchell, a Georgia transfer who had a 40-yard touchdown catch against the Tide in the 2021 national title game.

More: Bohls: Keys to Texas victory include containment of Alabama's Jalen Milroe, new wrinkles

When Alabama has the ball

Will Texas lock a “spy” on Milroe, a physical, mobile QB who looks more dangerous with his legs than his arm at this point in his career? He ran for 48 yards on seven carries last week but expect him to factor much more into the designed run game this week. ... Although Alabama may lack that physical hammer of a running back from years past, T’Vondre Sweat, Byron Murphy II and the other Texas interior linemen will face a stern test since the Tide, who still want to run the ball between the tackles behind a massive offensive line that averages 6-feet, 5 inches and almost 330 pounds. … Texas’ biggest position advantage may be its deep and veteran secondary against a receiving corps lacking star power. Jermaine Burton led the Tide with 677 yards receiving a year ago, the lowest total for Alabama’s team leader since 2011.

More: Texas football's defense seeks redemption in rematch with Alabama

The key matchup

Texas OTs Kelvin Banks Jr. and Christian Jones vs. Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner: A week after Rice’s undersized front created surprisingly consistent pressure on Ewers, Banks and Jones will have their hands full against the 6-4, 240-pound Turner.

How we're calling the game

Kirk Bohls: Texas, 27-24. The Longhorns haven't won a high-profile nonconference road game since they upset Ohio State in Columbus in the 2005 championship season, but this will be a repeat of that milestone victory as Texas contains QB Jalen Milroe and edges Alabama.

Danny Davis: Alabama. The Longhorns are 3-6 in true road games during the Steve Sarkisian era, and I don't think that breakthrough will come in front of 100,000 at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Cedric Golden: Alabama, 33-24. I believe Quinn Ewers will play well, but Alabama's home-field advantage and Nick Saban being, well, Nick Saban, will add up to a Horns loss.

Thomas Jones: Alabama, 26-24. Home-field advantage and All-American K Will Reichard prove just enough for the Tide to escape with a win.

— Thomas Jones

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Longhorns football preview: Matchups, key players vs. Alabama