Extra thoughts and notes from Alabama’s ugly win over South Carolina

Ty Simpson walked through the gates then up to his family, standing on the left side of the path outside Williams-Brice Stadium.

His dad, Jason, gave him a hug and a few thoughts. His mom, Julie, kissed him on the cheek and squeezed him too.

Then a fan standing nearby gave her take on the game that had just happened minutes prior.

A win is a win.

That couldn’t have been truer for Alabama, and Simpson against South Carolina. The quarterback and the Crimson Tide had to muster some late-game heroics to avoid the upset, but they got it done. The journey to get to the win wasn’t pretty, but it goes down as a victory anyway.

No. 4 Alabama beat South Carolina 29-22 on Saturday, giving the Crimson Tide (7-1, 5-0 SEC) its first SEC road win over an unranked opponent in the Kalen DeBoer era.

That’s why Alabama emerged jubilant from the win, despite the ugly performance. Simpson, who certainly didn’t play his best game of the season, was no different.

“What a great win,” Simpson said.

The day after every Alabama game this season, AL.com will have extra thoughts and notes. Here’s all of them from the Crimson Tide’s win over South Carolina.

3 game balls

Recipients: Germie Bernard, Deontae Lawson, DaShawn Jones

On receiver Germie Bernard: It’s clear the high level of trust this coaching staff has in him. He’s like Ghostbusters for big plays in big moments. With the game on the line, who’s Alabama gonna call? Germie Bernard. He scored the last two touchdowns of the game, one catching a pass and the other taking a direct snap for the score.

On linebacker Deontae Lawson: The captain made the play of the game when he jarred the ball loose from LaNorris Sellers late in the fourth quarter. Lawson also made sure nose tackle Tim Keenan III saw the ball was underneath him. Lawson finished the day with seven tackles as well as a pass breakup.

On defensive back DaShawn Jones: His pick six will largely be forgotten because of all that transpired in the fourth quarter, but he gave Alabama points when the Crimson Tide seemed unable to score any for much of the first half.

Stat of the game

Simpson and the receivers were out of sync for a majority of the game, except for when it mattered most.

Simpson completed 8 of his last 9 passes to finish the game. That included the touchdown pass to Bernard with 2:16 left in the game. On the ensuing two-point conversion attempt, Simpson hit tight end Josh Cuevas to tie the game.

When Alabama had no room for error, Simpson and his receivers stepped up.

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Alabama essentially beat South Carolina the same way it did in 2024 — a Bernard touchdown in which he kind of walked into the end zone.

Then Alabama’s defense stepped up each time to close out the game.

The ending to the 2024 game proved more chaotic, though. South Carolina scored a touchdown on the ensuing drive a year ago. Then it went for an onside kick it recovered. But Domani Jackson picked off the ball in the end zone to secure Alabama’s win at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Fast forward to this year, and South Carolina got the ball back with 29 seconds left on its own 9-yard line. That wasn’t going to allow for much, but Alabama’s defense ensured nothing happened. Keon Keeley closed the game out with a sack.

South Carolina coach Shane Beamer said after the 2025 game the Gamecocks defenders were told to let Alabama score if it got the first down. That way, South Carolina could at least give itself a chance with some time left on the clock. So once Bernard took the handoff to convert third-and-10, he tiptoed to the end zone as the defense let up.

It’s unclear if South Carolina did the same with Bernard when he caught the touchdown in 2024. No one was within 10 yards or so of him when he scored a year ago.

Either way, how Alabama closed out the game against South Carolina in back-to-back years rhymed.

2 areas to fix

1. Deep passes
2. Pass protection

Alabama could have broken the game open on multiple occasions if Simpson could have found a way to connect with receivers on deep passes. But for whatever reason, most of them didn’t work out. Alabama needs to better develop this area of its game for the offense to take the next step. The deep ball wasn’t there enough, and it almost cost the Crimson Tide the game.

As for pass protection, it was lacking at times. South Carolina’s speed off the edge often proved problematic for Alabama’s offensive tackles. The Gamecocks finished with only two sacks, but their ability to affect Simpson got in the way of the Alabama offense far too often.

3 parting thoughts

1. The importance of this win can’t be stressed enough. No, it didn’t go well, and South Carolina is not a good football team. But this was the last regular-season hurdle Alabama needed to clear under DeBoer. He proved he can win big games and small games. DeBoer can beat the best and the teams he’s supposed to beat. Alabama has leveled up.
2. Bernard is deserving all the success he’s having. He didn’t let all the praise and attention Ryan Williams received during the offseason affect or discourage him. In fact, Bernard expressed how much he loved it for his teammate. Meanwhile, Bernard kept working. That all has paid off. Williams has a world of talent, but Bernard has the argument for most valuable player on the offense besides Simpson. Bernard is putting himself in the first-round conversation for this springs NFL Draft.
3. The open week couldn’t come at a better time. You can tell DeBoer and the players need a breather after the gauntlet stretch it endured: five consecutive SEC games, and four of those games were against ranked opponents. The one that wasn’t was played in a raucous road environment. The way DeBoer and the players talk, they very much so welcome the chance to rest and re-charge ahead of the stretch run in November.