Alabama football has its traditional non-conference game before closing out the SEC schedule this week. The Crimson Tide faces Mercer Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium, in a game it will be expected to win handily.

The last time a Kalen DeBoer-coached team lost two games by mid-October, his Washington Huskies suddenly went on a tear. DeBoer and No. 9 Alabama would love a similar run of sustained success after a dominant road win over then-No.

After a pair of road losses in October, many fans began calling for first-year head coach Kalen DeBoer's job after his replacement of legendary coach Nick Saban seemed to be going sideways. Two victories followed that latest loss,