Hound Dogs Hammered By Alabama

 [This is a fictional sports article]

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - It was a rough outing for the Tennessee Hound Dogs on Monday as the Alabama defense battered the Tennessee for a 29-16 win and claimed sole possession of first place in the Southeast Division.

Tennessee quarterback Richard Lewis was sacked eight times for 48 yards as well as hurried and knocked around by the Alabama defense which limited his effectiveness for the first time in five games.  Lewis was 11 out of 20 for only 77 yards.    

"It was a rough day for Rich.  Our line couldn't keep them off of him," admitted Tennessee Head Coach Colton Preston.  "In Southern terms, they kicked our butts out there today."

Alabama outgained Tennessee 373-121 in the game as Hammers' received Michael Kerridge how 131 yards receiving and two touchdowns.

On their first possession of the game, Kerridge hauled in a slant pass from quarterback Landry Sullivan for a 49-yard touchdown.

David Coutee closed the gap to one with two field goals in the second quarter to make it 7-6.  The Hammers struck again on their first play of the third quarter Sullivan again connected with Kerridge.  This time it was a 75-yard bomb to extend the Hammers' lead to 14-6.  Later in the quarter another Coutee field goal pulled the Hound Dogs within 14-9.  On their next possession, the Hammers drove 79 yards in nine plays which was capped with a pass from Sullivan to Darien Eifert from seven yards out to give Alabama a 21-9 lead.  

The Hound Dogs' offense was a woeful 1-for-12 on third down conversions in the game.  The only offense they could get came on a special teams play in the fourth quarter when Mario Santos blocked a field goal and returned it 80 yards for a touchdown.

"Our offense was crap today," Preston added.  "We can't play like we did today and expect to win this division.  We can't play this way against anybody here on out.  Every week we are playing teams in our division.  This kind of performance won't help us."

Alabama improved to 5-0 while dropping Tennessee to second place in the division at 4-1.  Next week the Hound Dogs will play the winless Georgia Thrashers (0-5) in Nashville.

Scoring Summary:

First Quarter
AL - Michael Kerridge 49-yard pass from Landry Sullivan (Tariq Duvernay-Tardif kick good)
Alabama 7, Tennessee 0

Second Quarter
TN - David Coutee 20-yard FG
Alabama 7, Tennessee 3

TN - Coutee 19-yard FG
Alabama 7, Tennessee 6

Third Quarter
AL - Kerridge 75-yard pass from Sullivan (Duvernay-Tardif kick good)
Alabama 14, Tennessee 6

TN - Coutee 26-yard FG
Alabama 14, Tennessee 9

AL - Darien Eifert 7-yard pass from Sullivan (Duvernay-Tardif kick good)
Alabama 21, Tennessee 9

Fourth Quarter
AL - Durvernay-Tardif 31-yard FG
Alabama 24, Tennessee 9

AL - Al Thomas tackled Rich Lewis in the end zone for safety
Alabama 26, Tennessee 9

TN - Mario Santos returned blocked FG 80 yards (Coutee kick)
Alabama 26, Tennessee 16

AL - Duvernay-Tardif 54-yard FG
Alabama 29, Tennessee 16

Southeast Division standings:

1. Alabama Hammers (5-0)
2. Tennessee Hound Dogs (4-1)
3. North Carolina Copperheads (4-1)
4. Florida Tarpons (3-2)
5. South Carolina Skyhawks (1-2-1)
6. Georgia Thrashers (0-5)