For today’s younger generation, it would be hard to imagine @AlabamaFTBL having a stretch of five years without beating a ranked opponent, but that’s how far the program had fallen before Paul “Bear” Bryant returned to restore the honor of his alma mater. Led by Gary O’Steen’s kicking and running, Alabama upset No. 19-ranked Mississippi State, 9-7, and ruined the homecoming festivities in Starkville 68 years ago today on Oct. 25, 1958. The Bulldogs entered the game favored by two touchdowns, but O’Steen rushed for 66 yards and his five quick-kicks kept Mississippi State off balance. Alabama scored its nine points on a 21-yard field goal by Fred Sington and a 21-yard pass from Bobby Jackson to Norbie Ronsonet. The Crimson Tide finished the 1958 season with a 5-4-1 record, but Bryant had poured the foundation for a championship program. Alabama also stunned No. 20 Georgia Tech, 17-8, later in the season. Prior to Bryant’s arrival, the last time Alabama had beaten a ranked opponent occurred when the Crimson Tide beat No. 16 Auburn, 10-7, in 1953.

Homecoming usually brings warm memories to Tuscaloosa, but today it brings uncomfortable questions. No. 13 @AlabamaFTBL hosts @AggieFootball at 2:30 p.m. with Kalen DeBoer facing an upset fan base whose goodwill took a beating in Tennessee’s 26–10 victory last week. Can the coaching staff give returning alumni something to believe in again? A convincing performance would be a start in soothing the current emotional wounds. Re-establishing the dominance the Crimson Tide displayed in wins over South Carolina and Mississippi State may not erase all questions, but it most certainly wouldn’t add more. Injuries complicate today’s task. Ryan Coleman-Williams and Terrance Green remain out, while center Racin Delgatty, cornerback Zabien Brown and running back EJ Crowell are doubtful. Texas A&M enters with its own disgruntled fanbase, a disappointing 4-3 record and shattered preseason playoff expectations. The Aggies have failed to score a touchdown in their two previous road games, and a Crimson Tide defense extending their offensive woes would be a nice homecoming surprise. And if Alabama loses a third consecutive game for the first time in 19 years would it be the worst homecoming loss since 1988? A loss engrained in Crimson Tide lore for involving a brick tossed through the window of Bill Curry’s office over the weekend.

Perhaps today’s flashback from 16 years ago will help erase the most recent Third Saturday in October as we remember when No. 8-ranked @AlabamaFTBL rolled into Knoxville and left with a 41-10 victory on Oct. 23, 2010. Alabama blew open a 13-10 halftime lead with four second-half touchdowns to trounce the Volunteers and enjoy the cigar-lighting tradition in Neyland Stadium. Despite a fractured his left hand, Julio Jones had 221 yards receiving after having a metal plate and screws inserted, while Trent Richardson rushed for 119 yards and a touchdown and also scored on a 5-yard pass. Mark Ingram rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns. Dont’a Hightower led the defense with six tackles and two quarterback pressures.

For those that had the privilege to see the greatness of linebacker Derrick Thomas in person, they will remember the significance of what happened 38 years ago today when the @AlabamaFTBL legend ensured the Crimson Tide would not lose in an 8-3 victory over Penn State on Oct. 22, 1988, inside Legion Field. Thomas terrorized Penn State’s Tony Sacca all afternoon and finished with three sacks, nine quarterback hurries, eight tackles and almost outscored the Nittany Lions by himself with a fourth-quarter safety. Led by the heroic performance, the Crimson Tide defense allowed just 21 yards in the second half. In the 1988 season, Thomas won the Butkas Award as the nation’s top linebacker and finished with a staggering 27 sacks. To put that in perspective, Alabama as a team had 25 sacks last season with one extra game. “We made some changes at halftime to free Derrick Thomas,” Alabama head coach Bill Curry said. “Once Derrick Thomas is flying around, all kinds of things happen. They start looking for him. It’s a real nightmare when there’s a player like that on the other team.” CBS televised the defensive slugfest and announcer Brent Musburger described Thomas’s afternoon as, “the most dominating performance I’ve ever seen by a college player.” Philip Doyle scored the only offensive points for Alabama with a 39-yard field goal in the second quarter, before giving the Crimson Tide a 6-3 lead with a 35-yard field goal in the third quarter. Thomas added his safety early in the fourth quarter and a late quarterback hurry ended Penn State’s final offensive series when Lee Ozmint intercepted Sacca. Penn State finished with just 169 yards of total offense (98 passing, 71 rushing) and eight first downs.

🏈 GET RIGHT GAME? Two straight losses. Frustrated fans. Can @AlabamaFTBL stop the bleeding against @AggieFootball on homecoming? 🎙️ @CBranchIV and @msouthern17 preview Saturday’s must-win situation with a new episode THURSDAY!

While this past Saturday in Knoxville still stings, today we remember what happened 37 years ago when No. 10-ranked @AlabamaFTBL squashed the No. 6-ranked Volunteers, 47-30, inside Legion Field on Oct. 21, 1989. Running back Siran Stacy seized the moment after subbing for the injured Murry Hill with 317 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns. He rushed for 125 yards and three touchdowns on 33 carries, caught nine passes for 158 yards and another score and returned two kicks for 34 yards. Stacy scored on runs of 9, 6 and 15 yards and turned a quick shovel pass into a 75-yard touchdown reception. Quarterback Gary Hollingsworth completed 32 of 46 passes for 379 yards and three touchdowns. Besides the shovel pass to Stacy, Hollingsworth threw a 4-yard touchdown to Kevin Turner and an 11-yard score to Lamonde Russell. The 17-point victory provided a nice birthday present to Alabama head coach Bill Curry. “Coach Curry got the game ball,” linebacker Keith McCants said. “He told us before the game that he wanted another birthday present, so we got it for him.”

Was Tennessee the breaking point for fans? After the embarrassing 26-10 loss in Knoxville, frustration is boiling over. 🎙️ @CBranchIV and @msouthern17 discuss what went wrong and where @AlabamaFTBL goes from here on The Tide Machine. Full recap on YouTube.

As a high-school football legend coming out of Yulee, Fla,, Derrick Henry had the size, the speed and the physicality to make an impact as a running back, but opposing recruiters tried to convince the phenom that he would never get the chance to play his preferred position at Alabama. Henry never wavered in his commitment to @AlabamaFTBL and the Crimson Tide never wavered in its commitment to let him carry the ball, as fans were treated to a preview of things to come 13 years ago today when the freshman exploded for an 80-yard touchdown run against Arkansas on Oct. 19, 2013. With the Crimson Tide already holding an insurmountable 45-0 lead, Henry got the ball with less than 2 minutes remaining and displayed all his physical talents as he cut around left end for his long touchdown gallop. The dynamic run left the television announcers stunned as Brad Nessler said on air, “I didn’t know that cat could move that fast…That is a big dude moving at a high rate of speed.”

After the offense sputtered and misfired in Knoxville yesterday, today's flashback from Oct. 18, 2014, comes with a cruel reminder: There was a time when the Crimson Tide offense purred like a Cadillac instead of a lawn mower with bad gas. Just 12 years ago, No. 7-ranked @AlabamaFTBL delivered one of the most dominant performances of the Nick Saban era, dismantling No. 21 Texas A&M, 59-0, before 101,821 fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The 59-point victory marked Alabama’s largest margin of victory ever against a ranked opponent, surpassing its 61-6 win over No. 14 Syracuse in the 1953 Orange Bowl. It was also the Tide’s largest shutout victory since 1991. Alabama’s offense exploded for 602 total yards, including a school-record 35 points in the second quarter. Blake Sims threw for 268 yards and three touchdowns, while Amari Cooper hauled in eight receptions for 140 yards and two scores. T.J. Yeldon added 114 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The Crimson Tide scored on every possession in the first half as it piled up a 45-0 halftime advantage that left even the partisan crowd in somewhat disbelief. Defensively, Alabama suffocated the Aggies, limiting them to just 172 total yards, 31 rushing yards and eight first downs. The Tide recorded six sacks, forced seven three-and-outs and handed Texas A&M its first shutout loss since 2003.

INSTANT REACTION: @Vol_Football 26, @AlabamaFTBL 10 The Volunteers used a stalwart defense and power running game, something familiar to old-school Alabama fans, for a convincing victory.