FBS powerhouse Alabama rolled past Mercer football on Saturday with a final score of 52-7, giving Mercer their second loss of the season. It was the Bears’ only game of the season against an FBS opponent as No. 7 Mercer is on the hunt for a spot in the FCS playoffs while the No. 9 Tide is hoping to get into the College Football Playoff.
Whitt Newbauer ‘28 led the team with 140 passing yards, going 15/22 with one touchdown and one interception. CJ Miller ‘27 led the team with eight carries for 44 yards, and Kelin Parson ‘25 led the team with six receptions totaling for 39 yards. Parsons was shown being carted along the sidelines in the first quarter, but he reappeared later in the game. The Bears were without all-purpose yardage leader Brayden Smith ‘27 on offense and the team’s leading defensive lineman Brayen Manley ‘27.
In a press conference after the game, Head Coach Mike Jacobs was asked about how the team will move on after this loss, heading into the regular season finale against Furman University.
“The great thing about kids today is, man, they forget, you know. I’ll dwell on something for three weeks and it’ll be done for them probably by the time they get on the bus,” Jacobs said. “We gotta quickly move on from a mindset standpoint to work on what needs to be done, but we’ll evaluate the film and learn and be hyper-critical and move on from there.”
The loss was Mercer’s fifth against Alabama in as many games, and it was the third time that Mercer has played the Tide since the program was reinstated in 2013.
To start the game, the Bears received the ball and put together a couple first downs thanks to two penalties by Alabama. On his first touch of the game, CJ Miller ‘26 fumbled the ball at Alabama’s 40-yard line and the Tide returned it eight yards to their own 48-yard line. Alabama went on to score their first touchdown of the game on a 29-yard rush from 17-year-old wide receiver Ryan Williams.
After a Mercer three-and-out, the Tide went on an 85-yard drive aided by a roughing the passer penalty on Isaac Dowling Jr. ‘25 early on. Four plays later, Mercer’s defense appeared to have come up with a fumble recovery of their own, but the play was called back after it was determined the runner was down before losing control of the ball. Six plays later, Williams scored his second and final touchdown of the game for Alabama.
The Bears’ best drive of the first quarter started with a one-yard pass from Newbauer to Parsons, followed by a 19-yard scamper from Miller. While he initially ran to the right side of the field, Miller broke a tackle behind the line of scrimmage and cut to the left, giving the Bears’ their longest rushing play of the game. An 18-yard pass to Adjatay Dabbs ‘28 brought Mercer to Alabama’s 37-yard line, but a penalty and two short passes put the Bears’ offense in third-and-long. A pass breakup by the Tide led to the only interception of the game, and Alabama scored seven plays later on a 44-yard pass.
Another promising Mercer drive two possessions later ended with a turnover. Parker Wroble ‘26 caught a pass at the Mercer 46-yard line, weaving through Alabama’s secondary for 25 yards before a Tide cornerback forced a fumble that was returned for a touchdown.
Four minutes later, Mercer caught Alabama at low tide.
Newbauer, whose parents were in attendance and who is reported to be a Tide fan growing up, faced pressure on his right side as he hurled a 31-yard bomb down the right sideline. Kendall Harris ‘28, as it turned out, was right there, working one-on-one against a cornerback. Stretching out just his right hand, Harris plucked the ball from the air and pulled it to his chest while getting both feet inbounds. The touchdown was Harris’ first collegiate score, and was the longest play of the game for the Bears.
Alabama received the ball to start the second and the Mercer defense held steady, allowing one score from the Tide coming out of halftime. After Alabama pulled Heisman candidate Jalen Milroe following the first drive of the third quarter, both offenses sputtered. Mercer’s offense had two three-and-outs while its defense bent but did not break as the Tide brought in more and more of its second and third-string players.
As the fourth quarter came along, the beleaguered Bears’ defense allowed a 43-yard play as an elusive Alabama quarterback escaped Arias Nash ‘26, connecting with his receiver despite safety Carmelo O’Neal ‘28 being just inches from batting the ball down. O’Neal had a career-high three tackles in the game, as well as a pass breakup. The Tide added another touchdown later in the quarter, finishing the game with 508 yards to Mercer’s 202. Against an Alabama defense that features many of the best players in the country, the Bears converted one of nine third downs, but they allowed just one sack, for a loss of 12 yards.
The defense, which is one of the best in the FCS, had to deal with a dangerous duo of Milroe and Williams, both of whom will likely be drafted in the first round of their respective NFL Draft. While the Tide stepped off the gas late in the game, opting to play their reserves to avoid the risk of injury this late in the season, Mercer continued to play many of their first-string options. Notably, DJ Smith ‘26 did not see the field, although he was suited up for the game. Smith was the starting quarterback for the Bears heading into the season, but has since seen Newbauer start every game since Oct. 26.
Mercer returns to Macon this Saturday for Senior Day as the Bears take on the Paladins at 3:30 pm. The game will determine whether they hold a share of the Southern Conference title, or if it is theirs outright. A win guarantees their sole first-place finish, but with a loss and a Western Carolina University win, the two teams share the title. The Paladins are 2-4 this year in the SoCon, beating East Tennessee State University and The Citadel, both of which Mercer beat earlier in the season.
