The question was simple. How bad did Jase McClellan think Alabama football needed its bye week? The senior running back started his answer, then paused for a beat.

“Bad, bad,” McClellan said after the Crimson Tide beat Tennessee, causing a gaggle of reporters to laugh. “It feels good to know that we got some rest coming up this week.”

No. 9 Alabama (7-1, 5-0 Southeastern Conference) will be idle this Saturday and use its extra days of preparation to scout future opponents and get a jump ahead on its next matchup against LSU on Nov. 4. But more importantly, as McClellan noted, the team needs a few light days to recover. Even McClellan himself, who ripped off 115 yards and a touchdown against the Vols, entered the game “beat up,” per head coach Nick Saban.

During Saban’s shortened appearance on his weekly radio show “Hey Coach,” he said six UA players were held out of practice this week due to injuries. Part of that could be preventative care after eight straight weeks of contests, including a handful of chaotic SEC duals.

Saban said that through the Catapult measurables — a GPS tracker that records a player’s average speed and explosiveness, among other metrics — Alabama has maintained its physicality well. Saban cited the data saying only one player has dropped off “2%” from their explosivity output numbers.

“It’s too early to tell how those guys are going to respond. … They’ll get Friday, Saturday and Sunday (off). But hopefully those guys, this week off will help them immensely in terms of their ability to come back and get healthy next week and prepare for the game,” said Saban.

Overall, the Tide has managed injuries well this season. Cornerback Terrion Arnold left Oct. 21′s game with a concussion and was seen practicing in the footage distributed by team media. Interior linebacker Trezmen Marshall missed his first game of the year with bruised ribs. Saban said last week that offensive lineman Terrence Ferguson was “closer to 100%” than he had been after an ankle sprain.

The status of defensive back Malachi Moore (ankle) and tight CJ Dippre (leg) was unclear heading into the Tennessee game, but both ultimately played in the 34-20 win.

Nick Alvarez is a reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @nick_a_alvarez or email him at [email protected].