TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — For the third consecutive Saturday, Western Kentucky started its game extremely slowly.

At Indiana, the offense couldn’t find a rhythm and the defense couldn’t catch Kellen Lewis. At Eastern Kentucky, the offense moved the football, but the defense struggled against the pass.

Saturday night at Alabama, neither the offense nor the defense seemed to catch its footing.

The result: a lopsided loss.

“I wish I knew (what it was),” WKU coach David Elson said. “It was a combination of things. We didn’t have every phase together early in the game and couldn’t get off on the right foot.

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“We’ve just got to prepare better and see if we can fix that.”

Elson said he doesn’t think the slow starts are due to lack of emotion. Instead, the high level of competition so far in 2008 might have something to do with it.

“You’d have to ask them about that, I haven’t really sensed it - guys seem excited and ready to play,” Elson said. “We’ve played against some pretty tough competition so far, but I really don’t have an answer for it.”

From a player perspective, the answer is still a mystery. But one thing is clear: They know it has to stop.

“I don’t know, it took us three quarters to get anything going really,” offensive lineman Greg Ryan said. “They didn’t do anything extraordinary against us, we had the same looks from them from the scout team this week - but we just didn’t get it done.

“We just have to correct it.”

Senior quarterback David Wolke said the answer to the Hilltoppers’ early woes is simple - making plays.

“There wasn’t nothing wrong with what we were doing or calling,” Wolke said. “We just weren’t making plays.”

Field stretching

For the second time this season, the WKU offense failed to do much with its ground attack.

One question that seems to continue to pop up is why the Hilltopper coaching staff hasn’t decided to take more shots downfield. Outside of Tristan Jones’ 30-yard touchdown reception, nearly all of Wolke’s 27 pass attempts were 10 yards or less.

Elson admitted the ratio probably needs to change. But once again, he stressed that balance and running the ball effectively are the most important parts of this offense.

“I think we need to try and get the ball vertically downfield more,” Elson said. “That’s something we did talk about during the offseason and in spring practice and it’s just something we’re just going to have to continue to work on.”

Third down woes

One of the biggest reasons Alabama racked up more than 550 yards on Saturday was its ability to convert third downs.

Conversely, WKU’s inability to get its defense off the field when it needed to forced the Hilltoppers into several huge holes all evening long.

“It hurts a lot, we got them in third-and-eight and third-and-nine a lot, tried to come after them a little bit but they protected well, and bottom line is, they have a senior quarterback that put the ball in play,” Elson said. “I thought we were close, but just couldn’t make those plays when we needed them.

“When we get them in a third-and-8 or -9 early in the game and force them out in one of those, then offense has more momentum and a little more pep in their steps. We just need to figure out how to get to that quarterback in those situations.”

Extra Points

Jones’ 30-yard touchdown in the second quarter was the first touchdown Alabama’s defense had allowed all season. The Crimson Tide didn’t allow one last week against Tulane, and during their season opener, Clemson scored on a kickoff return. ... Jones now has two catches in his WKU career, both for touchdowns. In addition, junior Brad Savko caught his first career reception. ... Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson earned a place in Crimson Tide history as a 20-yard run in the third quarter made him the school’s all-time total yardage leader.