Nick Saban, Jalen Milroe discuss Alabama clinching the SEC West with win over Kentucky

Alabama locked up the SEC West once again and booked yet another trip to the SEC Championship game here in a couple weeks after beating Kentucky on the road.

The Crimson Tide dominated from start to finish, scoring an opening drive touchdown before a scoop-and-scamper to the one-yard line by the Alabama defense set Jalen Milroe up to score his third touchdown of the day to take a 21-0 lead in the first quarter. Ultimately, Kentucky never really fought back to make things competitive and the Tide rolled to a 49-21 victory in Lexington.

With the win marking the completion of Alabama’s quest for the divisional title, Nick Saban said afterward he was thrilled for his guys to experience the achievement, even if it is a common one in Tuscaloosa.

“Well, you know, no matter how many times you’ve done it before, you’re happy for the group of guys, what they’ve done, how they’ve improved, how they worked hard all year. I’m really proud of this group, man. I love this team. So hopefully, we just keep learning and getting better and we get an opportunity to play for the SEC championship.”

As mentioned, Milroe was superb yet again. He scored the first three touchdowns and also the next three, finishing with three passing scores and three rushing scores before handing the keys to the B-team towards the end of the ball game. Saban had nothing but praise for the continued development of his QB.

“He’s done a great job, you know. He stayed very positive about what he needed to learn to improve and grow and get better and learned how to play the next play, and he’s done a fantastic job for us. I think the team has a lot of confidence in him, he’s become a leader, he’s given us an opportunity where we want to go.”

Milroe was also interviewed after the game, and the young playmaker was all smiles as he discussed the continued improvement from him and the team as SEC play progresses.

“What makes me most proud is how much we had to go through as far as adversity, and grit. I think that’s the biggest thing about this football team, that we have not given up,” said Milroe, also crediting his coaching staff.

“With all that we’ve gone through, I’m just having fun with the guys, that’s pretty much what it’s coming down to. And also, Coach Saban and Coach Rees trusting in me to play the position. So I thank them for allowing me to become the best quarterback I can be.”

During his big day, Jalen Milroe was also banged up a little bit. Early on in the game, one of his scrambles resulted in a stinger of a hit from a Kentucky defender directly to Milroe’s left thigh. He went down and missed a play, then came up wobbly a few other times throughout the game thanks to the thigh. Afterwards, he had this to say of the injury:

“It hurts, but hey, the biggest thing was getting a win, and playing with the guys, doing my job as much as possible. So the thigh will be alright. It’s all about winning,” he added.

Milroe was thanked for his time and hollered one more sentence into the microphone before heading to the locker room to celebrate the win with his teammates:

“ROLLLLLLLL TIDEEEEE!”