The difference was that the touted stars of the 2013 class had another year under their belt, and the defense came into the game with a well-developed two-deep. After surprising many as a productive JUCO transfer early in his career, Bo Wallace was now a seasoned SEC quarterback. Even then, the chances of an upset were slim.
When you line up against Alabama, it’s almost always implied that they’re going to win the efficiency battle and you have to win through other factors. That’s exactly what happened here, as the Tide were better at staying on schedule and moving the ball consistently, with a 45 percent success rate compared to the Rebels’ 35.