After a few blowouts in the series, it was an interesting Alabama-Tennessee Saturday night.

The Crimson Tide eventually pulled away for a 35-13 win -- its 13th straight in the rivalry -- but not without seeing Tua Tagovailoa go down with another high-ankle sprain. The chaotic feel to the game, along with the injuries made it difficult to watch every play closely.

Good thing we do this thing every Sunday afternoon where we go back and watch the DVR recording of the game. In what seems like an extended version of this weekly rewind, here are some extra observations and context for what you saw in Bryant-Denny Stadium.

-- The first Alabama offensive snap was that controversial run-pass option slant to Jerry Jeudy. Jeremy Pruitt said during the week it would be hard to stop and Alabama opened with it.

-- It was a busy night for the penalty flags including two pass interference calls on Alabama’s first possession. Both teams had 93 penalty yards with Tennessee being called for 13 infractions to the Tide’s nine. Saban said later that most of Alabama’s penalties weren’t of the undisciplined variety. He wants to see better technique in pass coverage to cut down on the pass interference calls on defense.

-- Before the game, ESPN’s Molly McGrath said she was talking to Vol WR Jauan Jennings who said this wasn’t the typical championship-level Alabama defense. It was Jennings, however, who bobbled the pass on the second possession that was intercepted by Jared Mayden.

-- The Vols would, however, find some success later in the game when some smart game planning matched the top receiver on Tide middle linebackers for some good plays. Jennings finished with six catches for 66 yards.

-- Not sure what Tagovailoa was seeing on the interception because there were two Vols in better position to make the catch in the neighborhood of tight end Miller Forristall who wasn’t even squared up to bring the ball in. Perhaps more notable was the speed Henry Ruggs showed chasing down Nigel Warrior.

Nigel Warrior picks off Tua Tagovailoa, look at how Henry Ruggs III runs him down 👀 pic.twitter.com/k9rPBzgWOZ — NCAAF Nation (@NCAAFNation247) October 20, 2019

-- Of note, Warrior was heavily recruited to Alabama. His lead recruiter? Jeremy Pruitt. He was the No. 4 safety in the country as a high 4-star recruit on 247Sports. Warrior tied for a team-best six tackles and the 59-yard interception return.

-- On Brian Robinson’s 10-yard touchdown, Miller Forristall had the seal block to clear the edge for the Hillcrest High graduate. “I mean, just finishing through the goal line. One on one versus the defensive back, I’m supposed to win that matchup every time,” Robinson said later.

-- Vol freshman QB Brian Maurer was having a solid start (5-for-7, 62 yards) before taking the friendly fire hit to the head. Shane Lee hit him after throwing a pass and his head made contact with an O-lineman. It’s always a risk coming back from a concussion after week and Maurer suffered one seven days earlier against Mississippi State.

-- Tennessee’s Tim Gordon broke a 33-yard run early in the second quarter. Saban said after the game there were a few mistakes in fitting gaps and it looked like there was some pre-snap confusion among the two freshman middle linebackers and a lineman got to the second level to seal off Shane Lee to find a crease. It was the longest play of the day for Tennessee.

-- In another example of bending without breaking, the Vols reached the red zone four times and scored just one touchdown. In fact, Alabama scored as many touchdowns on Tennessee red-zone trips as the Vols did when factoring Trevon Diggs’ 99-yard fumble return score.

-- Tennessee also pulled off something I can’t remember seeing. The visitors were called for three penalties on a single play early in the second quarter. Two holdings and an ineligible lineman downfield. The pass was dropped anyway and it led to one of the two field goals kicked in the red zone.

-- Kendall Randolph made the seal block that allowed Najee Harris to walk in with his second TD of the game early in the second quarter. About as unopposed as a touchdown run gets.

-- Anfernee Jennings didn’t get a sack Saturday but was credited with two QB hurries. He’s been active in the opponents’ backfield consistently all season.

-- Impressive speed from defensive lineman Christian Barmore chasing down Jarrett Guarantano from behind to force a second-quarter punt. It was close to a late hit out of bounds that wasn’t called. Barmore had one tackle Saturday.

-- Now to the play that injured Tagovailoa, it really didn’t look like much in real time. He got up and walked to the huddle without even reaching for the ankle. Staying in for the next play, it didn’t look like he planted when throwing a screen pass to Jaylen Waddle. And when Alabama called a timeout to avoid a delay flag, the first step Tagovailoa took looked bad. The limp was immediate. We spotted it from the press box when it happened but it seemed to take a while before ESPN noted it. Tagovailoa was quickly surrounded by the medical staff and Mac Jones trotted in.

-- The last time Tua Tagovailoa was held without a passing TD? Go to Oct. 14, 2017 when he threw 2 passes against Arkansas that day. Had TD throws in next 23 appearances.

-- It was interesting to see the sideline erupt when Ty Perine entered for his first career punt. The walk-on from Prattville hit a 42-yarder that was fair caught and drew a loud ovation. Teammates were waiting to mob him on the sideline.

-- Ty Chandler broke a 25-yarder on the play after the punt when former Tide reserve OL and Vol transfer Brandon Kennedy got up to the linebackers to hit Shane Lee and clear the way. Well blocked all round on that play.

-- The biggest call of the night has to be the unnecessary roughness call on Darnell Taylor after a second straight 3-and-out with three Jones passes that misses the mark. It was a borderline call. Not the most overt infraction but it was right in front of the white hat and Jones slipped down when Taylor pushed himself up. I remember thinking it looked like he was lingering on top of Jones longer than usual but could be convinced either way on whether it was a penalty. Either way, it was called and Najee Harris carried the load most of the way for a scoring drive.

-- Slade Bolden threw his first college touchdown pass in the Wildcat formation to cap that penalty-extended drive. Forristall was wide open in the end zone and the high school QB found him. “It was a great experience, I’m not going to lie. You pray for times like this and you finally get the chance. Everybody executed great. Miller got open and thankfully I threw a good ball.”

-- The game still didn’t feel completely secure until Trevon Diggs’ 100-yard fumble return for a touchdown. A few plays earlier, Xavier McKinney quietly saved a touchdown by getting to the corner when Chandler looked like he had a lane to run it in. D.J. Dale also had a hit behind the line in the goal-line stand.

-- It was a one or two-score game throughout the second half before that. Just a bad decision by Guarantano to change the play at the line and the punched fumble made him pay. Alabama won the turnover batter 2-1.

Michael Casagrande is an Alabama beat writer for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.