2010 Alabama Crimson Tide football team The 2010 Alabama Crimson Tide football team ( variously " Alabama " , " UA " , " Bama " or " The Tide " ) represented the University of Alabama in the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season . It was the Crimson Tide ' s 116th overall season , 77th as a member of the Southeastern Conference ( SEC ) and its 19th within the SEC Western Division . The team was led by head coach Nick Saban , in his fourth year , and played their home games at Bryant – Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa , Alabama . They finished the season with a record of ten wins and three losses ( 10 – 3 , 5 – 3 in the SEC ) and defeated Michigan State 49 – 7 in the Capital One Bowl . Alabama entered the season as defending national champions , and began the 2010 season as the preseason number one team in both the AP and Coaches ' Poll s . Favored to win a second consecutive SEC championship and be in contention for the national championship , the Crimson Tide opened the season with five consecutive victories over San Jose State , Penn State , Duke , Arkansas and Florida . However , Alabama completed the regular season with only four victories and losses to South Carolina , LSU and Auburn and finished fourth in the Western Division . After the regular season , the Crimson Tide accepted an invitation to compete in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando . Against Big Ten co - champions Michigan State , Alabama won by a final score of 49 – 7 and captured both a third straight ten win season and top ten finish . Before the season . During the 2009 – 2010 campaign , the Crimson Tide finished the season undefeated , 14 – 0 , with wins over several ranked opponents that included No . 7 Virginia Tech , No . 20 Ole Miss , No . 22 South Carolina , No . 9 LSU , No . 1 Florida in the SEC Championship , and No . 2 Texas in the BCS National Championship Game . They finished the season as the consensus National Champions , being voted No . 1 in the AP and Coaches ' Polls in securing Alabama ' s first national title since 1992 . In addition to the national title , sophomore running back Mark Ingram became the first Alabama player to win the Heisman Trophy . In February 2010 , eighteen players each signed an individual National Letter of Intent to play college football at Alabama . The 2010 recruiting class was ranked nationally in the top five by several recruiting services including Rivals , Scout , ESPNU and CBS College Sports . Spring practice began on March 12 and concluded with the annual A - Day spring game on April 17 . Televised live by ESPN , the Crimson team of offensive starters defeated the White team of defensive starters by a final score of 23 – 17 before 91 , 312 fans in Bryant – Denny Stadium . The game was decided after the end of regulation when Brandon Gibson caught a 39 - yard touchdown pass from A . J . McCarron in sudden death . For their performances , Marcell Dareus earned the Dwight Stephenson Lineman of the A - Day Game Award and Mark Ingram earned the Dixie Howell Memorial Most Valuable Player of the A - Day Game Award . By August , Alabama had a combined 21 players on 12 different preseason award watch lists . These included both Mark Barron , Marcell Dareus and Dont ’ a Hightower for the Chuck Bednarik Award ; Julio Jones for the Fred Biletnikoff Award ; Hightower and Nico Johnson for the Butkus Award ; Ingram for the Walter Camp Award ; James Carpenter , Dareus and Hightower for the Lombardi Award ; Ingram and Greg McElroy for the Maxwell Award ; Barron , Dareus and Hightower for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy ; McElroy for the Davey O ' Brien Award ; Carpenter and Barrett Jones for the Outland Trophy ; William Vlachos for the Rimington Trophy ; Barron for the Jim Thorpe Award ; and Ingram for the Doak Walker Award . Returning starters . Alabama had 10 returning starters from the previous season , including eight on offense and two on defense . The most notable departures from the previous year were linebacker s Eryk Anders , Rolando McClain and Cory Reamer ; cornerback s Javier Arenas , Kareem Jackson and Marquis Johnson ; defensive end s Brandon Deaderick and Lorenzo Washington ; nose tackle Terrence Cody ; safety Justin Woodall ; offensive linemen Drew Davis and Mike Johnson ; and tight end Colin Peek . Additionally , all of special teams players were replaced following the departures of punter P . J . Fitzgerald , placekicker Leigh Tiffin , long snapper Brian Selman and Arenas as the return specialist . Recruiting class . Alabama ' s recruiting class was highlighted by eight players from the " ESPN 150 " : No . 16 DeMarcus Milliner ( CB ) ; No . 32 Phillip Sims ( QB ) ; No . 36 John Fulton ( CB ) ; No . 54 Adrian Hubbard ( DE ) ; No . 74 Chad Lindsay ( OG ) ; No . 89 Keiwone Malone ( WR ) ; No . 99 C . J . Mosley ( OLB ) ; and No . 132 Brian Vogler ( TE ) . Alabama signed the No . 5 recruiting class according to Rivals and the No . 4 recruiting class according to Scout . The football program received 18 letters of intent on National Signing Day , February 3 , 2010 . Schedule . The 2010 schedule was officially released on September 2 , 2009 . In accordance with conference rules , Alabama faced all five Western Division opponents : Arkansas , Auburn , LSU , Mississippi State , and Ole Miss . They also faced three Eastern Division opponents : official SEC rival Tennessee , Florida , and South Carolina . Alabama did not play SEC opponents Georgia , Kentucky and Vanderbilt . The contest against Ole Miss served as the 2010 homecoming game . Alabama also played four non - conference games . The game against Penn State was originally scheduled as part of the 2004 season , however the series was moved back at the request of Alabama due to fallout from NCAA sanctions being levied on the program . The non - conference schedule also included games against San Jose State of the Western Athletic Conference , Duke of the Atlantic Coast Conference and Georgia State of the Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) . On December 5 , it was announced Alabama would face Big Ten co - champion Michigan State in the Capital One Bowl . In what was the first meeting between the programs , the Tide defeated the Spartans 49 – 7 and secured their third consecutive ten - win season . Alabama played six of its SEC opponents the week following the opponents ' bye week . These SEC teams who scheduled a bye week before facing the Crimson Tide included South Carolina , Ole Miss , Tennessee , LSU , Mississippi State and Auburn . Georgia State also had a bye week prior to playing Alabama , for a total of seven consecutive opponents playing Alabama the week following their bye . On July 1 , 2010 , the game against Georgia State was moved from Saturday , November 20 to Thursday , November 18 to give Alabama additional time to prepare for its game against Auburn . The Sagarin computer ratings calculated Alabama ' s 2010 strength of schedule to be the fifth most difficult out of the 245 Division I teams . The Cosgrove Computer Rankings calculated it as the 12th most difficult out of the 120 Division I FBS teams in its rankings . Coaching staff . The only change to the coaching staff from the 2009 season was the departure of James Willis , an associate head and outside linebacker s coach , to become the defensive coordinator at Texas Tech . Willis was replaced on the staff with Jeremy Pruitt on January 15 . Other assistants that declined positions at other programs included Jim McElwain declining an offer to become San Jose State ' s head coach and Kirby Smart declining an offer to become Georgia ' s defensive coordinator . Game notes . San Jose State . Sources : The Crimson Tide began their defense of their 2010 BCS championship at home against the San Jose State Spartans , and before a record crowd in a newly expanded Bryant – Denny Stadium , Alabama was victorious 48 – 3 . Alabama scored a touchdown on their first possession on a one - yard Trent Richardson run to complete an eight play , 71 - yard drive . The Spartans responded on the next drive with their only points of the game on a 31 - yard Harrison Waid field goal to make the score 7 – 3 . On the ensuing drive the Alabama extended their lead to 14 – 3 with a 48 - yard Greg McElroy touchdown pass to Marquis Maze . Alabama again reached the endzone early in the second quarter on a 39 - yard Richardson run and a 29 - yard A . J . McCarron pass to Julio Jones to make the score 28 – 3 . Cade Foster scored the final points of the half as time expired on a 31 - yard field goal to bring the halftime score to 31 – 3 . Alabama opened the second half by scoring on their first two possessions . Eddie Lacy scored on a 37 - yard run and Foster hit a 24 - yard field goal to extend the Crimson Tide lead to 41 – 3 . Lacy scored the final points of the game with a 10 - yard run to make the final score 48 – 3 . Both McElroy and McCarron combined to pass for 334 yards on 22 completions and a pair of touchdowns . For the game , the Alabama outgained San Jose in total offense by a margin of 591 – 175 . The 101 , 821 in attendance marked the first crowd of over 100 , 000 to attend a football game in the state of Alabama . Penn State . Sources : With ESPN ' s College GameDay in town , Alabama defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions 24 – 3 in a renewal of their historic rivalry . Alabama scored first on a 36 - yard touchdown pass from Greg McElroy to Kevin Norwood in the first quarter . The Crimson Tide added to their lead in the second quarter with a 14 - yard McElroy touchdown pass to Preston Dial and a 31 yard Jeremy Shelley field goal to take a 17 – 0 lead at the half . After a scoreless third , Trent Richardson scored on a one - yard run and Penn State ' s Collin Wagner hit a 36 - yard field goal to make the final score to 24 – 3 . Richardson led the team in rushing with 144 yards on 22 carries , and was also the first back to gain over 100 yards on the ground against Penn State since their 2008 game against Iowa . The defense also stood out with Mark Barron , Robert Lester and Will Lowery each making an interception and Alabama only allowing 283 yards of total offense . After compiling 207 all - purpose yards and scoring a touchdown , Richardson was named Co - SEC Offensive Player of the Week with South Carolina ' s Marcus Lattimore . The victory improved Alabama ' s all - time record against the Nittany Lions to 9 – 5 . Duke . Sources : In Alabama ' s first - ever trip to Duke , the Crimson Tide defeated the Blue Devils by a final score of 62 – 13 in front of the largest crowd at Wallace Wade Stadium since the 1994 season . Playing in his first game of the 2010 season following knee surgery , Mark Ingram ran for a team high 152 yards on nine carries with two touchdowns . Greg McElroy completed 14 of 20 passes for 258 yards , with three touchdowns and one interception . In the second quarter Trent Richardson scored Alabama ' s first special teams touchdown of the season with a 96 - yard kickoff return . Other offensive highlights included Richardson gaining 66 yards on seven carries and Eddie Lacy gaining 53 yards on seven carries with each scoring a touchdown on the ground . Through the air , Julio Jones led the team with 106 receiving yards on six catches with he , Darius Hanks and Preston Dial each making a touchdown reception . The game also marked the return of Marcell Dareus following a two - game suspension from the NCAA for receiving improper benefits . After allowing 13 points in the first half , the Alabama defense shut out the Duke offense in the second half . The 62 points scored by the Tide were the most since a 62 – 0 victory over Tulane during the 1991 season , and the 45 points scored in the first half were the most scored in one half since scoring 45 in the second half of the 1973 victory over California . The 626 yards of total offense were the most amassed by an Alabama team since gaining 644 against LSU in 1989 . The victory improved Alabama ' s all - time record against the Blue Devils to 3 – 1 . Arkansas . Sources : In the first game played between two teams ranked in the top ten at Donald W . Reynolds Razorback Stadium since the 1979 season , Alabama was victorious with a 24 – 20 come - from - behind victory . After Ryan Mallett connected on an early touchdown to take a 7 – 0 lead , Alabama responded with a 54 - yard Mark Ingram touchdown run to tie the game at 7 – 7 . Arkansas retook the lead with a field goal and a one - yard Mallett run to take a 17 – 7 lead at the half . Midway through the third , Arkansas extended their lead to 20 – 7 . Alabama brought the score to 20 – 14 late in the third after a 20 - yard Trent Richardson touchdown reception from Greg McElroy . The Arkansas lead was then cut to three after a 36 - yard Jeremy Shelley field goal with just over 6 : 00 remaining in the fourth . After Robert Lester intercepted a Mallett pass and returned it to the 12 - yard line , Ingram took the next three snaps that culminated in an one - yard touchdown run to take a 24 – 20 lead . After a late Dre Kirkpatrick interception , McElroy gained a first down on a fourth and inches quarterback sneak to seal the victory for the Crimson Tide . Ingram led the team with 157 yards rushing on 24 carries and Richardson finished with 85 yards on eight carries . Kirkpatrick led the defense with nine tackles and an interception . For his five tackle , two interception performance , Robert Lester was recognized as both the FWAA / Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week and the SEC Defensive Player of the Week . The victory improved Alabama ' s all - time record against the Razorbacks to 11 – 8 ( 14 – 7 without NCAA vacations and forfeits ) . Florida . Sources : In a rematch of the previous two SEC Championship Game s , Alabama defeated the Florida Gators 31 – 6 . Alabama opened the scoring with a 28 - yard Jeremy Shelley field goal in the first , and then scored a trio of second quarter touchdowns . Mark Ingram scored on runs of six and one — yard with the third coming on a 19 - yard Marquis Maze touchdown pass to Michael Williams on a wide receiver pass . Florida got on the board late in the second with a 39 - yard Chas Henry field goal to bring the halftime score to 24 – 3 . After a second Henry field goal , C . J . Mosley returned an interception 35 - yards for a touchdown to make the final score 31 – 6 . Although Florida outgained the Crimson Tide in total offense 281 to 273 yards , their three turnovers resulted in 21 Alabama points . In addition to Mosley , Nico Johnson intercepted Trey Burton in the end zone and Dre Kirkpatrick intercepted a John Brantley pass . The game marked the first time Florida had been held without a touchdown since their previous visit to Tuscaloosa in 2005 , and resulted in Alabama leading the nation in scoring defense by allowing only 45 points through five games . Courtney Upshaw was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Week after making seven total tackles , with four for losses , a fumble recovery and two pass deflections . Chance Warmack was recognized as the SEC ' s Offensive Lineman of the Week for his performance . The victory improved Alabama ' s all - time record against the Gators to 21 – 14 ( 22 – 14 without the NCAA vacation of the 2005 victory ) . South Carolina . Sources : With ESPN ' s College GameDay in town and in front of a sold out Williams – Brice , Alabama was upset by the South Carolina Gamecocks 35 – 21 . After Alabama scored on its opening drive with a 32 - yard Jeremy Shelley field goal , South Carolina responded with three consecutive touchdowns . Stephen Garcia threw three touchdown passes , with the first to Marcus Lattimore for nine - yards followed by strikes of 26 and 15 - yards to Alshon Jeffery , to give South Carolina a 21 – 3 lead in the second quarter . Alabama reached the end zone late in the second on a nine yard Greg McElroy pass to Julio Jones to make the halftime score 21 – 9 after the extra point failed . On the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter , Garcia threw the ball out of the end zone for a safety following a bad snap . After the free kick , Alabama scored on a 39 - yard Shelley field goal , to make the score 21 – 14 . After a one - yard Lattimore touchdown run , Alabama answered with a 51 - yard Darius Hanks touchdown reception from McElroy , to make the score 28 – 21 . However , Lattimore scored on a two - yard touchdown run late in the fourth to give the Gamecocks a 35 – 21 victory . The win marked South Carolina ' s first all - time victory over a team ranked number one in the AP poll . For the game , McElroy set a career high in passing for 315 yards on 27 of 34 passes , and Jones had a team high 118 yards on eight catches . Marcell Dareus was recognized as an honorable mention SEC Defensive Player of the Week for his eight tackle performance . The 34 points allowed by the Crimson Tide defense were the most allowed since giving up 41 to LSU in 2007 . The loss also marked the end of a 29 - game regular season win streak , an overall 19 - game win streak , and an 18 - game regular season conference winning streak . It was Alabama ' s first overall loss since being defeated by in the 2009 Sugar Bowl and their first regular season and regular season conference loss since losing to Auburn in 2007 . The loss brought Alabama ' s all - time record against the Gamecocks to 10 – 4 ( 12 – 3 without NCAA vacations and forfeits ) . Ole Miss . Sources : A week after their first regular season loss since the 2007 season , Alabama defeated their long - time rival , the Ole Miss Rebels on homecoming in Tuscaloosa 23 – 10 . The Crimson Tide took a 10 – 0 lead in the first quarter on a seven - yard Greg McElroy touchdown pass to Preston Dial and a 49 - yard Cade Foster field goal . Scoring continued in the second quarter with Alabama ' s Jeremy Shelley and Foster connecting on field goals of 19 and 44 - yards . Mississippi ' s Bryson Rose connected on a 22 - yard field goal to make the halftime score 16 – 3 . In the third quarter , McElroy connected with Trent Richardson for an 85 - yard touchdown reception . The catch was the fourth longest touchdown reception in school history . Later in the quarter , Jeremiah Masoli connected with Melvin Harris on a 15 - yard touchdown reception to make the final score 23 – 10 . On special teams , Marquis Maze totaled 125 yards on six punt returns and was named SEC Co - Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance . The victory improved Alabama ' s all - time record against the Rebels to 44 – 9 – 2 ( 48 – 8 – 2 without NCAA vacations and forfeits ) . Tennessee . Sources : In the 93rd edition of the Third Saturday in October , the Crimson Tide defeated the Tennessee Volunteers 41 – 10 . Tennessee scored first , on a 59 - yard Tauren Poole touchdown run to take an early 7 – 0 lead . Alabama responded by scoring on its next two drives : a 36 - yard Jeremy Shelley field goal , and a one - yard Greg McElroy touchdown run to take a 10 – 7 lead . The second quarter closed with a 42 - yard Shelley field goal and a 33 - yard field goal by Michael Palardy of Tennessee to make the halftime score 13 – 10 . Alabama opened the second half by driving 70 yards in four plays , with Julio Jones having receptions of 38 and 19 yards and Mark Ingram punching in the touchdown from one - yard out to extend their lead to 20 – 10 . After Palardy missed a 52 - yard field goal , Trent Richardson ran the ball 65 yards for a touchdown on the second play of the ensuing drive for a 27 – 10 Alabama lead . Later , Robert Lester intercepted a Matt Simms pass , and Alabama extended its lead to 34 – 10 , after an 80 yard drive with Ingram scoring from one - yard out . Alabama scored the final points of the evening in the fourth quarter when A . J . McCarron hit Richardson for a five - yard touchdown reception to make the final score 41 – 10 . It was Alabama ' s most lopsided victory over Tennessee since defeating the Volunteers 35 – 0 in 1963 . For the game , Julio Jones set a school record with 221 receiving yards , eclipsing the previous mark of 217 yards set by David Palmer against Vanderbilt in 1993 . Ingram and Richardson finished with 88 and 119 yards on the ground respectively . For his performance , left tackle James Carpenter was selected as the SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week . With his 117 yards on 14 carries , Tauren Poole ended Alabama ' s 41 - game streak of not allowing a 100 - yard rusher dating back to BenJarvus Green - Ellis ' s 131 yard performance for Ole Miss in 2007 . The game also marked the first between Nick Saban and Derek Dooley who previously worked for Saban as an assistant coach at LSU and with the Miami Dolphins . The victory improved Alabama ' s all - time record against the Volunteers to 47 – 38 – 7 ( 48 – 37 – 8 without NCAA vacations and forfeits ) . LSU . Sources : Coming off their bye week and in what was dubbed by some as " Saban Bowl IV , " Alabama was upset by their long - time rival , the LSU Tigers 24 – 21 . LSU scored first on a 45 - yard Josh Jasper field goal to take a 3 – 0 lead . Alabama scored their first points early in the second quarter on a one - yard Greg McElroy touchdown pass to Trent Richardson to take a 7 – 3 lead at the half . Both teams traded touchdowns in the third . The Tigers scored first on a 75 - yard Rueben Randle reception from Jordan Jefferson , and the Crimson Tide responded with a five - yard Mark Ingram touchdown run . LSU scored 14 fourth quarter points to secure the victory with a pair of Jasper field goals and a one - yard Stevan Ridley touchdown run and a successful two - point conversion . Alabama responded with a nine - yard Julio Jones touchdown reception , but was unable to get a defensive stop late in the game preserving the 24 – 21 LSU victory . Turnovers proved costly for Alabama with LSU scoring field goals on drives after a McElroy interception in the first and fumble in the fourth . The loss brought Alabama ' s all - time record against the Tigers to 45 – 24 – 5 . Mississippi State . Sources : A week after being upset by LSU , Alabama returned to Bryant – Denny and began a three game homestand to end the season by defeating long - time rival Mississippi State 30 – 10 . The Crimson Tide took a 6 – 3 lead in the first quarter by trading field goals with the Bulldogs on a 36 - yarder from Jeremy Shelley , a 24 - yarder from Derek DePasquale and a 45 - yarder from Cade Foster . In the second , Alabama reached the end zone for the first time on the evening after Greg McElroy hit Marquis Maze for a 45 - yard touchdown reception and a 13 – 3 lead . After a punt on the next Bulldog series , an 80 - yard Maze touchdown return was called back as a result of an illegal block on the play by Alex Watkins . On the next play , Mark Ingram took a short bubble screen pass from McElroy 78 - yards for a 20 – 3 lead at the half . On their first offensive possession of the second half , and on the third consecutive offensive play , Alabama scored on a long touchdown play . This time Julio Jones ran the ball 56 - yards for a touchdown to extend the Alabama lead to 27 – 3 . Shelley scored Alabama ' s final points in the fourth on a 28 - yard field goal with State scoring their lone touchdown late on a 27 - yard Chad Bumphis touchdown reception from Tyler Russell . The Alabama defense allowed only 149 rushing yards , registered five sacks and two interceptions . In this game , the Crimson Tide wore Nike Pro Combat uniforms for the first time . These uniforms featured crimson jerseys with grey and white houndstooth numbers , a houndstooth stripe on the helmet , houndstooth gloves and an American flag sewn into one of the sleeves in honor of Veterans Day . The houndstooth design was chosen as a tribute to former Alabama coach Bear Bryant who was known for wearing a houndstooth fedora during games . The victory improved Alabama ' s all - time record against the Bulldogs to 73 – 18 – 3 ( 75 – 17 – 3 without NCAA vacations and forfeits ) . Georgia State . Sources : Originally scheduled to be played on November 20 , in July 2010 this game was moved to Thursday , November 18 to give the Crimson Tide extra time to prepare for its game against Auburn . In the first ever meeting against the Georgia State Panthers , the Crimson Tide was victorious 63 – 7 . Alabama scored first on an eight - yard Greg McElroy pass to Julio Jones . After a Mark Barron interception ended the first Georgia State drive , Alabama responded with a 71 - yard drive capped by a one - yard Mark Ingram touchdown run to take a 14 – 0 lead . In the second quarter , Alabama scored on a defensive play when C . J . Mosley returned a Drew Little interception 41 - yards for a touchdown . Alabama then extended their lead to 28 – 0 on a ten - yard Jones touchdown reception from McElroy . At the end of the Panthers next possession , Chavis Williams blocked a Bo Schlechter punt that was returned 22 - yards for a touchdown by Brandon Gibson . On the following kickoff , an Albert Wilson fumble was recovered by Gibson to give the Tide possession deep in Panther territory . Four plays later , Alabama extended their lead to 42 – 0 on a three - yard Eddie Lacy touchdown run . On the ensuing kickoff , the Panthers scored their only points on the evening when Wilson returned the kickoff 97 - yards for a touchdown and a halftime score of 42 – 7 . With the game in hand midway through the second quarter , Alabama played many of its reserve players in the second half . The Tide scored in the third quarter first on a seven - yard A . J . McCarron touchdown pass to Chris Underwood and again on an one - yard Demetrius Goode touchdown run after a Chris Jordan interception to take a 56 – 7 lead into the final period . In the fourth , Jalston Fowler scored on a 36 - yard touchdown run to make the final score 63 – 7 . After he completed 12 of 13 passes , McElroy set a new single - game Alabama record for completion percentage of 92 . 3 percent to break the previous record he set against North Texas in 2009 . The game also marked the first time Alabama played on a Thursday night since defeating Southern Miss in 2001 , and the return of both former Alabama head coach Bill Curry as the Panthers ' head coach and quarterback Star Jackson who transferred to Georgia State prior to the 2010 season . The 63 points were the most scored by an Alabama team since defeating Vanderbilt 63 – 3 in 1979 . Auburn . Sources : In the 75th edition of the Iron Bowl , the Auburn Tigers overcame a 24 - point deficit to defeat the Crimson Tide 28 – 27 . Alabama opened a 21 – 0 lead after the first quarter with touchdown scores on their first three offensive possessions . Touchdowns were scored on a nine - yard Mark Ingram run , a 68 - yard Julio Jones reception from Greg McElroy and on a 12 - yard Darius Hanks reception from McElroy . The lead was pushed to 24 – 0 in the second quarter after a 20 - yard Jeremy Shelley field goal before the Tigers began their comeback . Auburn scored their first points late in the second on a 36 - yard Cam Newton pass to Emory Blake to bring the score to 24 – 7 at the half . With the only Alabama points in the third scored on a 32 - yard Shelley field goal , Auburn brought the margin to 27 – 21 entering the fourth on a 70 - yard Cam Newton touchdown pass to Terrell Zachery and a one - yard Newton run . The Tigers took a 28 – 27 lead in the fourth on a seven - yard Philip Lutzenkirchen reception from Newton that held to the end of regulation . With his 10 catch , 199 yard performance , Julio Jones set Alabama single - season records for both receptions and receiving yards in eclipsing the previous marks of 67 receptions by D . J . Hall in 2007 and 1 , 056 yards by Hall in 2006 . The loss ended a 20 - game home winning streak for the Tide dating back to the 2007 loss to Louisiana – Monroe , and brought Alabama ' s all - time record against the Tigers to 40 – 34 – 1 . The CBS telecast of this game earned a 7 . 5 rating , the highest for any game of the 2010 college football season through week 13 . Michigan State . Sources : On December 5 , Capital One Bowl officials announced Alabama would face the Big Ten co - champion Michigan State Spartans in the 2011 Capital One Bowl . In a strong defensive performance where the Spartans were held to a total of minus - 48 yards rushing , Alabama was victorious 49 – 7 . Alabama scored touchdowns on their first four offensive possessions . Mark Ingram scored first on an one - yard touchdown run to complete a 13 play , 79 - yard drive on Alabama ' s first possession . After a Robert Lester interception of a Kirk Cousins pass on the Spartans ' opening drive , the Tide scored on an eight - yard Trent Richardson touchdown run . Alabama extended their lead to 28 – 0 at the half following touchdown runs of six and 35 - yards by Ingram and Julio Jones . After holding Michigan State to a three - and - out to open the third quarter , Alabama scored its fifth touchdown in six offensive possessions when Marquis Maze scored on a 37 - yard Greg McElroy pass . Up by 35 points late in the third , the Crimson Tide pulled many of their starters that resulted in many players seeing action from deep in the depth chart . Eddie Lacy extended the lead to 49 – 0 with touchdown runs of twelve - yards in the third and 62 - yards in the fourth quarter . Michigan State scored their only points late in the fourth on a 49 - yard Bennie Fowler touchdown reception from Keith Nichol to make the final score 49 – 7 . The 42 - point margin of victory was Alabama ' s largest in a bowl game since defeating Syracuse 61 – 6 in the 1953 Orange Bowl . The minus - 48 yards rushing allowed by the Alabama defense was the fewest ever allowed in a bowl game and the second fewest allowed all - time only eclipsed by a minus - 49 yard performance against Houston in 1962 . With his pair of touchdowns , Mark Ingram established a new Alabama record for career rushing touchdowns with 42 to eclipse the previous mark of 41 set by Shaun Alexander . The contest also marked both Nick Saban ' s and Bobby Williams ' first game against the Spartans since their respective terms as Michigan State ' s head coach between 1995 – 1999 and 2000 – 2002 . Depth chart . Starters and backups . Rankings . Entering the 2010 season , the Crimson Tide was ranked No . 1 in the AP and Coaches ' Preseason Polls . The No . 1 preseason ranking was the first for Alabama since the 1978 season . In week six , Alabama dropped to the No . 8 ranking in both the AP and Coaches ' Poll following their loss to South Carolina . The Tide rebounded in the rankings though week nine , rising to No . 5 before dropping to No . 11 in the AP and No . 12 in the Coaches ' Poll following their loss at LSU . After their loss to Auburn , Alabama dropped to No . 15 in the AP , No . 18 in the Coaches ' Poll and No . 16 in the final BCS standings . Following the victory over Michigan State in the Capital One Bowl , Alabama finished No . 10 in the final AP , No . 11 in the final Coaches ' Polls . After the season . As part of the A - Day celebrations on April 16 , the 2010 team captains Greg McElroy , Dont ' a Hightower and Mark Barron were honored at the Walk of Fame ceremony at the base of Denny Chimes . Later that day , as recognition for becoming the fifth Alabama head coach to win a national championship with the 2009 squad , the University unveiled a statue of coach Saban along the Walk of Champions outside Bryant – Denny Stadium . Final statistics . After their victory over Michigan State in the Capitol One Bowl , Alabama ' s final team statistics were released . On the defensive side of the ball , they ranked third in scoring defense ( 13 . 54 points per game ) , fifth in total defense ( 286 . 38 yards per game ) , tenth in rushing defense ( 110 . 15 yards per game ) and thirteenth in passing defense ( 176 . 23 yards per game ) . They were also the conference leaders in both scoring and total defense . On offense , nationally the Crimson Tide ranked 18th in scoring offense ( 35 . 69 points per game ) , 22nd in total offense ( 444 . 08 yards per game ) , 27th in passing offense ( 261 . 15 yards per game ) and 29th in rushing offense ( 182 . 92 yards per game ) . Individually , Robert Lester led the SEC with an average of 0 . 62 interception s per game . Awards . In the weeks following the SEC Championship Game , multiple Alabama players were recognized for their on - field performances with a variety of awards and recognitions . At the team awards banquet on December 6 , Mark Barron , Dont ' a Hightower , and Greg McElroy were each named the permanent captains of the 2010 squad . At that time Julio Jones was named the 2010 most valuable players with Dont ' a Hightower and Mark Barron named defensive players of the year and Greg McElroy and Mark Ingram named the offensive players of the year . The SEC recognized several players for their individual performances with various awards . Defensive back Mark Barron , wide receiver Julio Jones and offensive guard Barrett Jones were all named to the AP All - SEC First Team . Offensive lineman James Carpenter , defensive lineman Marcell Dareus , running back Mark Ingram , linebacker Dont ' a Hightower and defensive back Robert Lester were all named to the AP All - SEC Second Team . Quarterback Greg McElroy and center William Vlachos were each named AP All - SEC Honorable Mention . Four players were named to the Coaches ' All - SEC First Team including Barron , James Carpenter , Marcell Dareus and Julio Jones . Barrett Jones , William Vlachos , Mark Ingram , Dont ' a Hightower , return specialist Trent Richardson and defensive backs Robert Lester and Dre Kirkpatrick were named to the Coaches ' All - SEC Second Team . Four players were named to the Freshman All - SEC Coaches ' Team including offensive lineman D . J . Fluker , linebacker C . J . Mosley , defensive back Dee Milliner and punter Cody Mandell . In addition to the conference awards , several players were also named to various national All - American Teams . Julio Jones and Mark Barron were named to the AP All - American Second Team and Marcell Dareus and Barrett Jones were named to the AP All - American Third Team . Barron was also named to the All - America team by the Football Writers Association of America ( FWAA ) . Quarterback Greg McElroy , tight end Preston Dial and offensive lineman James Carpenter were all selected to play in the Under Armour Senior Bowl . Coaching changes . In the week following the Capitol One Bowl victory , several changes were made to the Alabama coaching staff . Defensive line coach Bo Davis resigned his position to serve as the defensive tackle s coach for Texas . The following day , Chris Rumph was hired by Coach Saban from Clemson to replace Davis as defensive line coach . On January 12 , assistant head coach and offensive line coach Joe Pendry announced his retirement . The following day , former Miami interim head coach Jeff Stoutland was hired to replace Pendry as offensive line coach . On January 21 , wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator Curt Cignetti resigned his position to accept the head coaching job at Indiana University of Pennsylvania . On February 7 , Mike Groh was hired a Cignetti ' s replacement as wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator . NFL Draft . Of all the draft - eligible juniors , Mark Ingram , Julio Jones and Marcell Dareus declared their eligibility for the 2011 NFL Draft on January 7 . At the time of their announcement , each was projected as a first round pick . Five Alabama players , two seniors and three juniors , were invited to the NFL Scouting Combine . The invited players were offensive lineman James Carpenter , quarterback Greg McElroy , defensive end Marcell Dareus , running back Mark Ingram , and wide receiver Julio Jones . In the draft , Alabama set a school record with four players selected in the first round . The first round selections were Dareus ( 3rd Buffalo Bills ) , Jones ( 6th Atlanta Falcons ) , Carpenter ( 25th Seattle Seahawks ) and Ingram ( 28th New Orleans Saints ) . McElroy was selected in the seventh round ( 208th New York Jets ) . Preston Dial signed as an undrafted free agent with the Detroit Lions in July 2011 after the NFL labor dispute was resolved .