You never want penalties to be called on your team, but some are more costly than others.

One such example occurred for Alabama football late in the first half against South Carolina after a personal foul called on Bray Hubbard during a kick return in which Alabama didn’t take the ball out of the end zone.

It moved the ball from the 25-yard line to the 13-yard line for the ensuing drive with 1:37 left before halftime.

The reason it was significant is because the next play resulted in a safety. When Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe was called for intentional grounding, he was in the end zone.

South Carolina added two more points to its score and got the ball back with 1:20 left.

Alabama went on to hold on to win the game 27-25, but the penalty that preceded the safety was one of many missteps by the Crimson Tide on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“Every situation is a learning one, and we’re going to talk about that,” Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer said. “We have to read body language of what’s happening. I haven’t seen it, so what I say might be totally not correct, but the understanding is that when he comes across the field, I know what his responsibility is. When he’s coming across the field and doesn’t hear a whistle, you’ve just got to kind of, at some point, have a sense of what’s happening in front of you. If your guy has slowed down or anything like that when you hit him. I know the ball wasn’t that deep into the end zone. I thought we might field it and bring it out.”

DeBoer said he thought it was a late decision whether to keep it in the end zone for a touchback or bring the ball out.

“It wasn’t something where he was egregiously trying to go out and get a penalty,” DeBoer said. “It was more a matter of reading what’s happening in front of you and instinctually knowing the play is a touchback.”

DeBoer plans to go back and watch the film to see how close it was, but he said he knows by the letter of the law it was a penalty.

“We can’t have it and we can’t do it,” DeBoer said.

The personal foul on Hubbard was one of seven penalties called on the Crimson Tide in the game.

Another costly one: Que Robinson was called for a facemask when he sacked South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers on the Gamecocks’ second-to-last drive.

That gave South Carolina the first down on Alabama’s 31-yard line. The next play, Sellers hit Nyck Harbor for the touchdown that brought the Gamecocks within two.

“The small things add up and we find ourselves in a fight to the end.”

Alabama is averaging 7.8 penalties per game. It had seven against South Carolina. The Crimson Tide was ranked No. 94 in fewest penalties among FBS teams entering the weekend.

“Penalties, we’re striving for zero,” DeBoer said. “That’s what we’re trying to do. We emphasize it.”

Add penalties to Alabama’s to-do list of things on which to improve after back-to-back overall uninspiring performances against Vanderbilt and South Carolina.

Nick Kelly is an Alabama beat writer for AL.com and the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X and Instagram.