1995 Alabama Crimson Tide football team

1995 Alabama Crimson Tide football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Division	Western Division
Ranking
AP	No. 21
Record	8–3 (5–3 SEC)
Head coach	Gene Stallings (6th season)
Offensive coordinator	Homer Smith
Defensive coordinator	Bill Oliver (3rd season)
Captains	Shannon Brown Brian Burgdorf Tony Johnson John Walters
Home stadium	Bryant–Denny Stadium (Capacity: 70,123) Legion Field (Capacity: 83,091)

1995 Southeastern Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Eastern Division
No. 2 Florida x$	8	–	0	–	0			12	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Tennessee	7	–	1	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
Georgia	3	–	5	–	0			6	–	6	–	0
South Carolina	2	–	5	–	1			4	–	6	–	1
Kentucky	2	–	6	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Vanderbilt	1	–	7	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
Western Division
Arkansas x	6	–	2	–	0			8	–	5	–	0
No. 21 Alabama	5	–	3	–	0			8	–	3	–	0
No. 22 Auburn	5	–	3	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
LSU	4	–	3	–	1			7	–	4	–	1
Ole Miss	3	–	5	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Mississippi State	1	–	7	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Championship: Florida 34, Arkansas 3
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 1995 Alabama Crimson Tide football team represented the University of Alabama for the 1995–96 college football season, competing in the Western Division in the Southeastern Conference. The team played their home games at Bryant–Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama. Gene Stallings led the Crimson Tide to an 8–3 record. Due to NCAA sanctions, no bowl appearance was made.

The early-season victory over Southern Miss came in dramatic fashion, as Alabama completed a 36-yard pass on 4th down for a go-ahead touchdown with under 30 seconds left in the game. The three games Alabama lost were also particularly noteworthy. The game against Arkansas featured a last-minute 4th-and-goal touchdown pass by Arkansas, giving them the win; however, replays later showed the ball was clearly not caught. This call, along with a missed twelve-men-on-the-field penalty on Arkansas' final drive led to the suspension of the officiating crew the following week. The 41–14 blowout loss to Tennessee marked the Vols first win over the Tide since 1985, ending Alabama's 9-game unbeaten streak. The season-ending loss at Auburn also featured a questionable last-minute call regarding a pass. Alabama QB Freddie Kitchens had apparently hit Curtis Brown for a late go-ahead touchdown, but officials ruled Brown out of bounds.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 2	7:00 p.m.	at Vanderbilt	No. 11	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN	PPV	W 33–25	40,880
September 9	2:00 p.m.	Southern Miss*	No. 13	Legion Field Birmingham, AL	PPV	W 24–20	83,091
September 16	11:30 a.m.	Arkansas	No. 13	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL	JPS	L 19–20	70,123
September 30	11:00 a.m.	at Georgia	No. 20	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA (rivalry)	ABC	W 31–0	86,117
October 7	2:30 p.m.	NC State*	No. 16	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL	PPV	W 27–11	70,123
October 14	6:30 p.m.	No. 6 Tennessee	No. 11	Legion Field Birmingham, AL (Third Saturday in October, College GameDay)	ESPN	L 14–41	83,091
October 21	2:00 p.m.	at Ole Miss	No. 21	Vaught–Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS (rivalry)		W 23–9	44,312
October 28	2:30 p.m.	North Texas*	No. 18	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL	PPV	W 38–19	70,123
November 4	2:30 p.m.	LSU	No. 16	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL (rivalry)	ABC	W 10–3	70,123
November 11	11:30 a.m.	Mississippi State	No. 16	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL (rivalry)	JPS	W 14–9	70,123
November 18	4:30 p.m.	at No. 21 Auburn	No. 17	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL (Iron Bowl, College GameDay)	ESPN	L 27–31	85,214
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Roster

1995 Alabama Crimson Tide football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 9 Freddie Kitchens So	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 87 Dwayne Rudd Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Gene Stallings Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Coaching staff

Name	Position	Consecutive seasons at Alabama
Gene Stallings	Head coach	6th
Homer Smith	Offensive coordinator	2nd
Woody McCorvey	Wide receivers Coach	6th
Danny Pearman	Offensive tackles coach/Special teams coordinator	5th
Jim Fuller	Offensive line coach	12th
Randy Ross	Quarterbacks coach/Recruiting Coordinator	6th
Ivy Williams	Running backs coach	2nd
Bill Oliver	Defensive coordinator/Secondary coach	6th
Mike Dubose	Defensive line coach	6th
Jeff Rouzie	Linebackers coach	5th
Reference:

Game summaries

Vanderbilt

See also: 1995 Vanderbilt Commodores football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
#11 Crimson Tide	7	3	0	23	33
Commodores	7	3	9	6	25

Despite five turnovers, Alabama was able to use a 23 point 4th quarter to survive a scare against Vanderbilt.

Statistics	Alabama	Vanderbilt
First downs	19	10
Total yards	372	208
Rushing yards	125	112
Passing yards	247	96
Turnovers	5	6
Time of possession	35:35	24:25

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Alabama	Passing	Brian Burgdorf	17–30, 198 yards, 1 TD, 4 INT's
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	29 carries, 69 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Toderick Malone	4 receptions, 66 yards, 1 TD
Vanderbilt	Passing	Damian Allen	8–23, 87 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT's
	Rushing	Jermaine Johnson	16 carries, 114 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Sanford Ware	3 receptions, 50 yards

Southern Miss

See also: Southern Miss Golden Eagles football

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Eagles	10	7	0	3	20
#13 Crimson Tide	0	3	14	7	24

For the second week in a row, Alabama would have to use a 4th quarter comeback to prevent an upset. Down 20–17 and facing a 4th and 16, Brian Burgdorf threw a 35 yard touchdown pass to Toderick Malone to give Alabama their first lead and the eventual win.

Statistics	Southern Miss	Alabama
First downs	14	18
Total yards	259	349
Rushing yards	101	84
Passing yards	158	265
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	30:09	29:51

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern Miss	Passing	Heath Graham	15–28, 158 yards 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Eric Booth	9 carries, 52 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Ryan Pearson	4 receptions, 52 yards
Alabama	Passing	Brian Burgdorf	19–27, 265 yards, 3 TD's
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	14 carries, 44 yards
	Receiving	Toderick Malone	5 receptions, 131 yards, 1 TD

Arkansas

See also: 1995 Arkansas Razorbacks football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Razorbacks	10	0	3	7	20
#13 Crimson Tide	3	14	2	0	19

Despite holding a 9 point lead in the third quarter, Alabama could not hold on and would lose to Arkansas for the first time ever in school history.

Statistics	Arkansas	Alabama
First downs	13	11
Total yards	270	213
Rushing yards	89	123
Passing yards	181	90
Turnovers	0	1
Time of possession	32:39	27:21

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arkansas	Passing	Barry Lunney Jr.	15–26, 181 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Madre Hill	26 carries, 105 yards
	Receiving	Anthony Eubanks	3 receptions, 59 yards
Alabama	Passing	Brian Burgdorf	6–17, 90 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	22 carries, 57 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Curtis Brown	2 receptions, 55 yards, 1 TD

Georgia

See also: 1995 Georgia Bulldogs football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
#20 Crimson Tide	3	14	0	14	31
Bulldogs	0	0	0	0	0

Bama defensive lineman Shannon Brown blocked a Georgia 27-yard field goal attempt. Deshea Townsend caught the ball and ran 90 yards for a touchdown. Defensive back Cedric Samuel returned a fumble 25 yards for a touchdown. DB Kevin Jackson took an interception back 36 yards for another score. UGA quarterback Hines Ward completed one pass and threw an interception before being replaced.

Statistics	Alabama	Georgia
First downs	11	15
Total yards	227	213
Rushing yards	110	142
Passing yards	117	71
Turnovers	0	6
Time of possession	28:18	31:42

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Alabama	Passing	Brian Burgdorf	7–13, 100 yards
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	17 carries, 80 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Tony Johnson	2 receptions, 51 yards
Georgia	Passing	Brian Smith	9–20, 60 yards, 2 INT's
	Rushing	Larry Bowie (running back)	24 carries, 94 yards
	Receiving	Juan Daniels	1 reception, 18 yards

North Carolina State

See also: 1995 NC State Wolfpack football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wolfpack	0	0	3	8	11
#16 Crimson Tide	10	3	7	7	27

Alabama would extend their non-conference winning streak to 19 as they would beat the Wolfpack on Homecoming.

Statistics	NC State	Alabama
First downs	22	21
Total yards	380	356
Rushing yards	159	150
Passing yards	221	206
Turnovers	2	2
Time of possession	32:24	27:36

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
NC State	Passing	Terry Harvey	10–23, 142 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Tremayne Stephens	15 carries, 77 yards
	Receiving	Mike Guffie	3 receptions, 51 yards, 1 TD
Alabama	Passing	Brian Burgdorf	17–25, 196 yards, 2 TD's, 1 INT
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	18 carries, 85 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Toderick Malone	5 receptions, 61 yards

Tennessee

See also: 1995 Tennessee Volunteers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
#6 Volunteers	21	7	7	6	41
#11 Crimson Tide	0	7	7	0	14

For the first time since 1985, Tennessee would beat Alabama. The lose of 27 points was the largest margin of defeat at Legion Field since Tennessee replicated that score in 1969.

Statistics	Tennessee	Alabama
First downs	21	21
Total yards	496	303
Rushing yards	167	75
Passing yards	329	228
Turnovers	1	5
Time of possession	30:25	29:35

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Tennessee	Passing	Peyton Manning	20–29, 301 yards, 3 TD's
	Rushing	Jay Graham	17 carries, 114 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Joey Kent	5 receptions, 117 yards, 1 TD
Alabama	Passing	Freddie Kitchens	20–43, 204 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT's
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	13 carries, 60 yards
	Receiving	Curtis Brown	6 receptions, 61 yards

Ole Miss

See also: 1995 Ole Miss Rebels football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
#21 Crimson Tide	9	7	0	7	23
Rebels	0	0	3	6	9

The Alabama defense scored the first nine points of this game. Dwayne Rudd sacked the Ole Miss quarterback who fumbled the ball out of the back end zone for a safety. Later in the first quarter, linebacker Ralph Staten would return an interception 61 yards for a touchdown.

Statistics	Alabama	Ole Miss
First downs	12	18
Total yards	239	304
Rushing yards	82	83
Passing yards	157	221
Turnovers	0	2
Time of possession	24:33	35:27

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Alabama	Passing	Brian Burgdorf	13–24, 157 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	15 carries, 53 yards
	Receiving	Toderick Malone	4 receptions, 73 yards, 1 TD
Ole Miss	Passing	Josh Nelson	19–38, 163 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Dou Innocent	20 carries, 52 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Dou Innocent	6 receptions, 68 yards

North Texas

See also: North Texas Mean Green football

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	0	7	6	6	19
#18 Crimson Tide	0	10	14	14	38

After sleep walking through the first half, Alabama would use 28 points in the second half to pull away and win their 20th straight non conference game.

Statistics	North Texas	Alabama
First downs	9	20
Total yards	274	465
Rushing yards	14	219
Passing yards	260	246
Turnovers	4	4
Time of possession	24:03	35:57

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Josh Gulley	19–37, 183 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT's
	Rushing	Jason Mills	2 carries, 10 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Troy Redwine	5 receptions, 128 yards, 1 TD
Alabama	Passing	Brian Burgdorf	10–13, 136 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Brian Steger	19 carries, 97 yards
	Receiving	Toderick Malone	4 receptions, 87 yards, 1 TD

LSU

See also: 1995 LSU Tigers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tigers	0	3	0	0	3
#16 Crimson Tide	0	3	0	7	10

Early in the fourth quarter, Deshea Townsend intercepted a Jamie Howard pass and returned it 17 yards to the LSU 21-yard line. A few plays later, Dennis Riddle would convert a 2-yard touchdown run that proved to be the difference in Alabama's 10-3 win.

Statistics	LSU	Alabama
First downs	12	17
Total yards	232	337
Rushing yards	102	210
Passing yards	130	127
Turnovers	3	4
Time of possession	28:09	31:51

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
LSU	Passing	Jamie Howard	10–23, 127 yards, 2 INT's
	Rushing	Kevin Faulk	23 carries, 75 yards
	Receiving	Sheddrick Wilson	6 receptions, 81 yards
Alabama	Passing	Freddie Kitchens	6–16, 93 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	33 carries, 174 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Curtis Brown	4 receptions, 64 yards

Mississippi State

See also: 1995 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	2	7	0	0	9
#16 Crimson Tide	0	7	7	0	14

Freddie Kitchens would make his first start for Alabama at quarterback as the tide would use defense and good clock management to beat Mississippi State.

Statistics	Mississippi State	Alabama
First downs	8	22
Total yards	135	324
Rushing yards	94	249
Passing yards	41	75
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	19:33	40:27

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Mississippi State	Passing	Derrick Taite	8–16, 41 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT's
	Rushing	Keffer McGee	18 carries, 78 yards
	Receiving	Eric Moulds	4 receptions, 25 yards, 1 TD
Alabama	Passing	Freddie Kitchens	8–10, 75 yards
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	38 carries, 181 yards, 2 TD's
	Receiving	Curtis Brown	2 receptions, 25 yards

Auburn

See also: 1995 Auburn Tigers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
#17 Crimson Tide	14	0	10	3	27
#21 Tigers	14	10	0	7	31

Despite gaining a season high 478 yards of offense and a valiant comeback effort in the second half, Alabama could not score enough points to beat Auburn.

Statistics	Alabama	Auburn
First downs	22	18
Total yards	478	354
Rushing yards	176	95
Passing yards	302	259
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	29:26	30:34

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Alabama	Passing	Freddie Kitchens	19–43, 302 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Dennis Riddle	20 carries, 86 yards
	Receiving	Toderick Malone	7 receptions, 106 yards, 1 TD
Auburn	Passing	Patrick Nix	18–36, 259 yards, 2 TD's
	Rushing	Stephen Davis	22 carries, 80 yards
	Receiving	Errick Lowe	3 receptions, 66 yards