TAMPA, Fla: Ty Simpson helped No. 10 Alabama shrug off a slow start and beat South Florida. What wasn’t certain Saturday was whether the third-stringer played well enough to become the Crimson Tide’s starting quarterback.
Simpson came off the bench and led two long touchdown drives, while Roydell Williams paced a productive rushing attack with 129 yards and a TD.
As a result, the Crimson Tide (2-1) rebounded from a 10-point loss to Texas and improved to 14-1 in games following a regular-season loss since 2008.
To do it, though, Alabama had to overcome inconsistent quarterback play and several costly mistakes that kept USF (1-2) in the game. The Bulls led 3-0 when lightning delayed play for 55 minutes in the second quarter, and it was 3-3 at halftime.
Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner started at quarterback for Alabama in place of Milroe, a duel-threat redshirt sophomore who lost his grip on the No. 1 job after the offense sputtered in the previous week’s 34-24 loss.
Buchner wasn’t any more effective, completing just five of 14 passes for 34 yards before Saban turned to Simpson when linebacker Dallas Turner forced a USF fumble to set up Alabama at the Bulls 25 after the weather delay.
Simpson turned the turnover into Will Reichard’s 30-yard field goal that made it 3-3. He finally got the Crimson Tide in the end zone, using a 45-yard completion to C.J. Dippre to fuel a six-play, 84-yard drive that Roydell Williams finished with a 1-yard TD run for a 10-3 lead with 4:35 remaining in the third quarter.
Alabama hurt itself early, with Kool-Aid McKinstry’s losing a fumble on a first-quarter punt return to set up John Cannon’s 44-yard field goal for USF and Jeremiah Alexander’s holding penalty that wiped out what would have been Terrion Arnold’s 100-yard return for a TD on the ensuing kickoff.
Simpson finished 5 of 9 passing for 73 yards without an interception. He capped the victory by ending an an 11-play, 80-yard drive in the closing minutes with a 1-yard TD run. Alabama amassed 203 yards on the ground, with Jase McClellan gaining 70 of his 74 yards in the first half.
Byrum Brown completed 14 of 28 passes for 87 yards and one interception for USF. He also ran for a team-leading 97 yards on 23 attempts as the Bulls gained 177 on the ground.
