I said a few times before that just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. Another way to look at it is like this. Success is not determined entirely by if you make a first down, by if you score. Certainly not at Alabama. Success is if you achieve your goal of winning a championship. So you can draw up a play, and go hey look we got a first down, I did my job. Alright fine, but how much exactly is that first down worth? What's the cost of being predictable?
Specifically, how much would a first down against Miss. State have been worth on Tua's final possession? You don't run because you aren't as likely to get a first down. I understand why you do it, but Miss. State also understood to. That's why they sent guys to come after Tua. By relying so consistently on Tua, he was made him more vulnerable than was necessary..
Now, it is easy to say well you're second guessing things now, after the fact. I suspect B1G recalls my expressing general concerns about this sort of thing prior to Tua ever starting. I know I went over it a few times, you run a pass, X number of bad things can happen, one of those being injury. I said more than once that's what people aren't taking into account. It isn't even a matter of something good happening 90% of the time, because something really bad can happen the other 10% of the time. I saw the counter argument being explained, that all those yards are worth it, that they override the bad, but it sure doesn't look like that from where I'm sitting.
That's something that needs to be taken into consideration. How many times did Tua get hurt when he handed the ball off? In light of that, I think Alabama could have done with a few less first downs.