Nick Saban had a very good reason for choosing to attempt a few field goals during the second half of Alabama’s 56-14 win over Louisiana Lafayette on Saturday.
The Crimson Tide twice had 4th-and-3 situations inside the red zone and ordinarily might have tried to convert. Instead, Saban sent out his kicking team because he wanted kicker Joseph Bulovas to get some practice. Unfortunately, it didn’t go so well.
Nick Saban: "Wanted to see if the kicker could develop confidence. Obviously he missed two pretty easy field goals. That was not what we had planned for him."
— Ben Jones (@BW_Jones) September 29, 2018
Bulovas missed field goals of 24 and 31 yards, though he did go 8-for-8 on extra points.
Bulovas took over as the team’s kicker during the Arkansas State game after Austin Jones missed two extra points. Jones had already missed a field goal and extra point in the team’s opener and his job status was shaky.
Bulovas has outplayed Jones, entering Saturday’s game 4-for-5 on field goals and perfect on extra points. But the two missed field goals against Louisiana was a setback for the freshman.
