ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low

For an offensive line opening the season with three first-time starters, Alabama looked like it had been there and done that when it counted Saturday night.

Don’t think it went unnoticed by the head coach, either.

Given some of the big plays Alabama’s defense gave up thanks to mistakes and the problems the Crimson Tide were having on special teams, Nick Saban was looking for some stability anywhere he could find it in the fourth quarter.

He got it from an offensive line (and an offense in general) that took matters into its own hands.

“It was critical that our offense sort of took the game over a little bit in the fourth quarter,” Saban said.

The Crimson Tide churned out 498 yards of total offense in their 34-24 win over Virginia Tech, the fourth-highest total under Saban. And they did it against a Hokies defense that’s one of the best in the country and a defensive coordinator, Bud Foster, who’s one of the most respected defensive minds in the country.

Those growing pains this offensive line was supposed to experience after losing the likes of Andre Smith and Antoine Caldwell seemed to dissipate as the fourth quarter began last Saturday in the Georgia Dome.

The Crimson Tide gained 182 yards in the fourth quarter alone, and no drive was more important than the five-play, 74-yard answer to Virginia Tech’s touchdown minutes earlier that had pulled the Hokies within 27-24.

“We had some opening-game jitters in the first half, and we were making stupid mistakes,” Alabama senior left guard Mike Johnson said. “But we knew we could execute. Virginia Tech is athletic, and they were bringing the pressure on defense. We refocused in the second half and we knew we could run on them. Greg [McElroy] was a leader for us. He stepped in and did a phenomenal job of making plays.

“We just did whatever it took to get it close, and we played a great fourth quarter.”

The best news for the Tide is that they should only get better up front. Center William Vlachos, right guard Barrett Jones and left tackle James Carpenter were all making their first collegiate starts.

“They sort of got in the rhythm of the game and understood the speed of the game, because Virginia Tech does have a very aggressive front,” Saban said. “They’re very quick, and I think early in the game, that overwhelmed us a little bit. But as the game wore on, we made some adjustments and they made some adjustments individually in what they had to do to get their job done.

“I think we played better, and hopefully, we’ll be able to continue to improve on that.