This time, the Tide was mightier than the gun.

What has historically been a real problem for the Alabama Crimson Tide, is merely that: history.

The Crimson Tide came out on top against the Oklahoma Sooners by the score of 34-24, a program that has had their number for the past two seasons -- ever since Kalen DeBoer took over as the head coach in Tuscaloosa.

After a rough few weeks, including getting smoked in the SEC Championship against Georgia, many had begun to doubt if Alabama was even worthy of a playoff appearance.

After this win, perhaps those rumblings have changed.

Let's take a deep dive into the game, and cover a few takeaways from last night's game.

Let’s just get the negative out of the way shall we? Because there was a whole lot of positives.

Oh boy, did the Tide have us feeling down and out early. After going down 17-0 before the first half, there was a lot (emphasis on a lot) of concern that Alabama’s season was over before the clock even struck zero.

Listen, this was a great win, but given how anemic the offense had looked in weeks prior to this game, the slow start wasn’t exactly an endorsement of what to look forward to.

But they proved us all wrong.

Alabama was certainly sluggish out the gate. It let up significant pressure, where on two occasions, let Oklahoma pass rushers come in untouched for an easy sack.

In the first quarter, when Oklahoma had a 10-0 lead, the Sooners had over 11 minutes of possession time, Alabama had only 12 total yards, and there were plenty of missed tackles from the Crimson Tide.

And it forced Ty Simpson’s hand to bring his team back to the promised land.

Ok, let’s be honest, Simpson’s first quarter is exempt from this section. 

But from the second quarter on, there’s no other video more appropriate to describe Simpson than this:

Simpson looked like the guy we were so accustomed to seeing over the course of the season. He made throws that he was supposed to, seemed poised, and was able to read the defense and adjust accordingly.

Don’t get it twisted, Simpson looked a little panicky to start. Even Kirk Herbstreit was saying that he looked wired. But as one quarter passed, a new Simpson dawned on us.

In the second half, Simpson completed nine out of 13 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown, and two of those passes should’ve been completions had it not been for drops by Germie Bernard and Kaleb Edwards.

His accuracy was on point, something that he had been battling with for several weeks. The player that we saw build an impressive Heisman resume over the first half of the season had finally returned at the time when the Crimson Tide needed him the most.

I’ve seen enough. 

It’s been clear from the jump that Alabama’s weakness lies on the ground.

But any time Alabama has needed a spark from the run game, running back Daniel Hill has come to the plate.

It’s fair to say that despite the seniority that Jam Miller has, that Hill is the clear RB1 of this program. There’s nothing flashy about his game. He’s a 6-foot-1 240 pound behemoth, but he has sheer power and deceptive speed that allows him to be a gamebreaker if needed.

For the game, Hill ran nine times for 43 yards with a long of 30 yards. He also nabbed the dagger touchdown in the middle of the fourth quarter that ultimately put the Tide ahead 34-24.

Alabama isn’t going to get elite running like it is used to seeing, but if the Tide needs a good run, they’re better off turning to Hill .

The defense stepped up.

It was getting a little worrisome in the beginning of the game, as the tackling was abhorrent. In total, Alabama had nine missed tackles, with most of them being at the beginning of the game.

Luckily though, the boys stepped up when it was needed.

Both Keon Keeley and Yhonzae Pierre kicked things off with back-to-back sacks, and from there, it seemed like an all out party. 

However, the big play that turned the tide (pun intended) was when Zabien Brown returned a pick six near the end of the second quarter.

If there was ever a need for someone to step up, it was the true freshman wide receiver, Lotzier “Lottie” Brooks.

We’ve been big fans of Brooks since the season started, but given how Isaiah Horton, Ryan Williams and Bernard (minus the acrobatic catch) had limited roles, Simpson kept looking Brooks’ way.

What has always stood out in Brooks’ game was his shiftiness, exceptional speed, but also his dynamic hands.

He managed to catch Alabama’s first first down of the game at the nine minute mark of the second quarter, and it was fairly underthrown. Luckily, Brooks who’s a receiver by day, contortionist by night, managed to save the play and nab the ball.

But it was his two touchdowns – the first two touchdowns of his college career that was crucial for the Tide.

Had it not been for him, this game wouldn’t have panned out the way it did.