Alabama football needed a spark in the SEC championship game, heading out on offense at its own 25 with 10:16 left in the fourth quarter. No. 1 Georgia had just scored to cut the Crimson Tide’s lead to three points and take the momentum.

UA’s last offensive drive had ended with a punt, and before that, the Crimson Tide had started on the UGA 11 after a fumble recovery, but had to settle for a field goal.

“Singular focus,” Jalen Milroe said of the team’s attitude entering the drive. “That’s the biggest motto we had going into the game, singular focus and doing our job. It’s all about response. The biggest thing that we have on this team that contributes to any success is the FAMILY acronym: Forget about me, I love you. I think we do a really good job about that. It was about singular focus each and every drive.”

Milroe started the drive with a toss down the field to Isaiah Bond. The hero of the Iron Bowl ended up making four catches on the drive, one of them on third down to extend the game.

Alabama’s quarterback was named the game’s MVP, throwing for 192 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for another score.

“He talked on the sideline before we all came out,” UA running back Roydell Williams said of Milroe. “He was just like, ‘Protect the football. I’ve got your back, you’ve got mine, we all got each other.’ That was that.”

Bond finished the game with five catches for 79 yards, good for the team lead. The four on the last drive propelled Alabama down the field as the clock ran.

The wideout, who calls himself 007 as a homage to the British spy character with whom he shares a last name, has been getting noticed after last week’s 4th-and-31 miracle catch to beat Auburn.

For a moment, it appeared he had scored to finish the drive for Alabama.

“He’s been great all year,” Nick Saban said of Bond after the game. “I think the one word that I would say is he’s very consistent in practice as well as the game. If you’re a quarterback, you want to be able to trust your guys, that they’re going to run the right route at the right depth at the right time and show up at the right place. He does a great job of that.”

A review determined Bond hadn’t broken the plane for a touchdown. Alabama had to run two more plays to do that.

First, a quarterback sneak with Milroe. Then, a run by Williams to gain the final inches and six points.

Those points would end up decisive, though not without a fight from the Bulldogs. Georgia scored a touchdown with 2:52 left on the clock, before Alabama took back over on its own 30.

That next drive was the Milroe show. He rushed for 30 yards on the first play of the drive, and another two plays later, getting the first down that allowed Alabama to kneel the clock out.

“I had total confidence in our offense,” Crimson Tide linebacker Trezmen Marshall said. “I know (Georgia is) a great defense, I know they’re a great team. They weren’t gonna lay down, they weren’t gonna just let us run it all over them, but I believe in our offense, especially the offensive line.”

Mission accomplished. The Tide won the game, the championship and stayed alive in the quest for a College Football Playoff spot.

“You know how tired I am right now?” Saban asked after the game. “I mean, I’m happy as hell we won. My speech in the locker room after the game was one word: celebrate. I had just enough left in me to do the dance, just enough”