It's a beautiful football Saturday here in Alabama and in a few hours FAU will face the Crimson Tide, the No. 1 team in the nation. It's another great atmosphere for the Owls to play in and something the players will remember for the rest of their lives. I've got a prediction and a few things worth watching for FAU fans.

• How will Henry do: It's a safe bet many binoculars will be trained on FAU defensive end Cory Henry to see how he plays after a comment he made earlier this week was considered by many to be a shot at Alabama. However, it's unclear how much Henry will actually play after being limited in practice due to illness. I'm sure he'd like to get in there to try and show he can hold his own, but his chances to do that could be limited.
• Bulk at defense: Last week against Georgia, the Owls started a true freshman (Trevon Coley) and a redshirt freshman (Brandin Bryant) at defensive tackles while Jimmy Jean was home sick. Jean and Karl James, both seniors, have been taking extended snaps with the first team and it will be interesting to see of the Owls try and beef up in the middle vs. the Crimson Tide.
• Big test for William Dukes: Wide receiver William Dukes had 98 yards receiving last week vs. the Bulldogs and that's the kind of game we've been waiting to see from the sophomore. He'll be the No. 1 option for Grahanm Wilbert and if he can come close to last week's performance, the Owls will likely have found their next game-breaking receiver.

Now it's time for our prediction.

Like the game itself, there isn't much drama here as I need to stick by what I wrote for al.com, the website for The Birmingham News, Mobile Press-Register and Huntsville Times.

While FAU is improving from game-to-game (Pelini's goal) it will find the going tougher than it did last week in Athens. With Alabama players wanting to get that third consecutive shutout, there could be some motivation to completely shut down the Owls.

It could be close early, but it won't take long for Alabama's talent to take over.

I think FAU will score, but it could be late in the game after Alabama's offense has worn down the Owls defense.

Alabama 49, FAU 7

Email this | | Add to del.icio.us |

September 22, 2012