alt tab taken over and trying to get it back I am running a Galaxy Tab A with Android 6.0.1, but it differs from my cell phone in one regard.

On my cell phone I can press-and-hold the "Home" button center bottom, and get a list of open applications, and can then select one.

On my Tab A, I get Google.

I want to get Google out of the Alt-tab feature WITHOUT removing Google itself from my tablet (as I have Gmail etc.).  How do I do this?
The feature you describe is the "recently used apps". Most recent devices have a separate key assigned to that, looking like two intertwined rectangles:



Seeing some screenshots of the Galaxy Tab A (and finally approved by you), this button is located to the left of the "Home button" on your device.