WJBO has learned that Ryan Perrilloux will be cleared of wrongdoing in the nightclub incident last week. Sources tell us he will more than likely make the trip to Alabama. WAFB TV is reporting that Derrick Odom will be charged later today. Our sources tell us he will then be dismissed from the team. Stay with WJBO and wjbo.com for updates.
How I missed the fact that Rush Propst announced his resignation last night is beyond me. The guy is a helluva football coach - but I think he let all of his "power" in the state get to him. His affair was wrong, but I'll be damned if that has anything to do with the man's ability to coach.
Now - who's next in line at Hoover? Jeremy Pruitt only has a one year contract with the University of Alabama. He might not be a bad fit, but I doubt anyone there would want to bring in somebody that worked under Propst.
In our never-ending quest to continue learning about our upcoming opponents, we continue blog-swapping with our friends at Pelican State Sports, a very informative and well-run LSU blog.
Remember to go check them out to see my answers to the same questions they answer here on this site.
What one opposing player would do you wish LSU had to make the team even stronger than it is currently?
At first, this question seemed like a tough one. Experts will tell you how LSU has awesome athletes at every position, but that doesn’t mean that they have great football players. And one that Bama has that I wish LSU had is DJ Hall. Much has been made this season of Early Doucet’s absence after suffering a groin injury, and that has contributed to the woes in the passing game. But even with Early Doucet healthy, the passing game needs another sure handed receiver. And since Doucet is really more of a possession type receiver, having DJ Hall’s 15 yards per catch average would give the passing game balance and someone else that could make a play when needed.
¶ 9:53 AM0 commentslinks to this post
Days 'til the coaches can stop answering questions about the "hype": 3
Well, my guitar player and I went flyering around the University of Memphis last night. If anybody doesn't already know, we're playing at Newby's on Saturday, November 17th. Yes, the same night as the Louisiana-Monroe game. Sucks, but it is what it is. I'm hoping the game will be a 2pm kickoff so I can watch it and then go out and do what needs to be done. Alas, I'm sure it'll be a 6pm kick and I'll have to get the bartender to put it on gameplan up there for me.
Prosevere is my band, yes. Come to the show!
Anyway, enough about that mess. That should be a good day. We're playing the same day as the UAB vs Memphis game at the Liberty Bowl, so there should be a good crowd on Highland that night. Regardless, we'll draw enough people to make it fun. Besides, beer and shots can make anything fun.
We'll continue "Blogging with the enemy..." later today.
For now, on to the news...
The key matchup of the day won't be any receivers vs defensive backs, or running backs vs linebackers. Instead, it will be Justin Britt against Glenn Dorsey. This should be the matchup of the day. As Britt put it Dorsey's "the best. That's what we came to Alabama to do - play against the best." Read more.
Honestly, you should read this article just for how long the headline is. It's pretty unbelievable. Either way, it's more garbage about how this game is about the players and not the coaches, and how the LSU players have no hard feelings towards their former coach, etc etc. Riiiight.
Our so-called "makeshift line" has quite a task ahead of them on Saturday, especially without suspended starters Antoine Caldwell and Marlon Davis. Read more about their upcoming job here.
Perrilloux, Dorsey, and Odom are still question marks for Saturdays game, although it looks much better for Dorsey - mainly because he has the say on whether he'll play or not. If his knee feels ok, then he'll get in there. The same can't be said for Perrilloux and Odom, who are still awaiting a decision from the coaches on whether or not they'll be allowed to play. Read more about the possible missing links.
Monday's practice was a sign that Alabama is planning on playing without the suspended "text book five." All of them were practicing in backup roles, rather than their normal spots. Read more here.
Dorsey, last night, never would answer the question of whether he'll play on Saturday or not. He did admit that he had doubts, but said that if he feels good enough, then he'll play.
The Crimson White has an article about LSU fans wearing houndstooth hats with purple and gold feathers. Some people may get mad, but I just laugh. It's almost sad that an SEC team doesn't have enough tradition of their own, so they have to try and either mock somebody else's, or borrow it. Karma sucks, gentlemen.
¶ 9:03 AM0 commentslinks to this post
Wow. Do you think LSU fans might be just a little bit uptight about the game Saturday? Teams that go into games tight usually come out nervous and make mistakes. Teams that play loose and have nothing to lose usually play good football. The favorites are the ones in trouble, usually.
With that said, I think our buddy TE, who commented on the Saban Bowl story over at fanblogs.com, might be just a touch uptight about this Saturday's game. Do you think maybe LSU fans are taking this game just a touch too seriously?
"It'd be different if Saban had actually left LSU behind...
Instead, he contacted LSU BOS members after the Florida loss last year in Gainesville about a possible return...
Oh...wait...no, he didn't...Jimmy Sexton did...Of course he did it without Saban's permission, right? LOL!
Then, he made that cute little racial epithet and tossed it out to the Bama media at his hiring press conference, belittling South Louisiana natives...
Then, he talked smack about our players after the Sugar Bowl...
Then, he illegally recruited Luther Davis...
(In my best "Dude, Where's My Car" Drive through lady voice) AND THEN...
He went to SEC Media Days and lied about an incident where one of his Administrative Assistants got a flat tire while at a wedding (Where LSU fans actually changed her tire out for her) and blamed it on tire-slashing LSU fans (I wonder how many will bring fix-a-flat and a Tire Kingdom Gift Card to Tuscaloser this weekend?)...
Let's not even talk about the illegal contact with recruits in Florida, the disparaging comments he made about South Florida's recruiting, Books for Bucks, or anything else...
Oh, and T-Mac...You've obviously NOT bought into the Saban mantra...Forget the hype, one of his basic tenents of coaching is to produce a consistent high level of play.
In order to do this, he treats "The next game" as "The most important game on the schedule". You fans might feel the Iron Bowl is the most important one, but you can't get to Atlanta without getting by LSU on Saturday. If you would rather beat Auburn than beat LSU to go to Atlanta, then your priorities as a fanbase are on par with Nick Saban's conscience.
But, don't worry...your REM cycle of Atlanta will be rudely interrupted by the severity of the beatdown we're cooking up for you here in Baton Rouge...
Forget the Books for Bucks, forget the barroom brawls, forget Nick Saban, forget Les Miles...
You aren't there yet. You aren't close. LSU is here. LSU is where you want to be. LSU's going to show you that you can't get there.
We're going to demoralize you. At home. In front of your fans. In front of your coach. In front of the nation. You've played exactly what you are...No one...
LSU will remind you on Saturday..."
I'm sure that our boys are shakin' in their cleats, brotha. Keep on talkin.
We continue blogging with the enemy today. Remember to go on over to Pelican State Sports to check out who I told them about.
2 players that you may not heard of to watch out for:
I guess I can’t say Ryan Perrilloux and Derrick Odom.
Offense: Terrance Toliver, Wide Receiver. Lost a little in all the hype of Early Doucet’s return, Demetrius Byrd’s last-second heroics, Brandon LaFell’s drops, is the steady emergence of Tolliver as a bona fide deep threat. The 6’5”, 190 lb true freshman was the number one wide receiver recruit in the nation last year (how about that – he’s not one of Saban’s players). It has taken him a little while to get onto the field, but has had a chance and has shown great speed and good hands. He is averaging 19.8 yards per catch, second on the team, and had two long catches called back for penalties.
Defense: You’ve heard all the defense names before – Dorsey, Jackson, Steltz, Highsmith. Unheralded, but perhaps just as important, Darry Beckwith is a rock at middle linebacker. Only 6’1” but 230 lbs, he is a guy who is more than willing to fill the hole on runs up the middle. He has good closing speed, plays sideline to sideline and will hit like a ton of bricks. He is the kind of player who doesn’t miss tackles, because when he gets his hands on the runner, he keeps his legs driving through a tackle. Last year, he finished the year as LSU’s second leading tackler despite playing only 7 plays against Bama and missing the Ole Miss game.
Well, here we go. If you wanted the official police report on Perrilloux's incident, here ya go. Just a warning, it's a pdf file.
Apparently, the next LSU head coach, should Miles bolt to Michigan at the end of the season, could be Tommy Tuberville. Read MSNBC.com's article about it.
Coach Saban's weekly press conference transcription is located here. I found it interesting that he said that there's no real advantage to having coached a lot of those players before - of course, that could just be coach speak.
Ian Rapoport reminds us that emotions will be high, but probably not until after the game. Coach Saban does still care about the players he recruited to play at LSU, so he will, of course, want to see how they're doing and everything, but he is completely, 110% focused on winning the football game. We'll worry about the other stuff later because, as you know, he doesn't have time for that shit.
Les Miles is doing the same thing that Coach Saban is doing - downplaying the hoopla about the coaches and simply stating that the game is about the players. This game isn't anything more than a game for the lead in the SEC Western Division. Read more here.
Glenn Dorsey returned to practice on Monday, and, although he didn't do some of the drills, is feeling much better this week. He didn't say whether he'll be ready by Saturday, but he said it "feels good right now." Read more here.
Trying to sustain momentum through a bye week is a big "no no" because players will get sick of doing the same thing over and over. So they worked on fundamentals and on things they'll see from other teams later in the year, rather than focusing on LSU last week. That way they can be fresh this week and ready to attack by Saturday. Read more about Coach Saban's approach to the bye week.
Alabama is 8-2 in their last 10 games following a bye week, including a 7 game winning streak. Of course, Coach Saban is only 8-8, but that includes time spent at Michigan State and the Miami Dolphins. Read more interesting stats for the game here.
Alabama is not blowing this game up as big as everyone else is. To the team, it's just another Saturday, and another opportunity to not only get better, but to establish an identity - the same identity Coach Saban talked about in his initial press conference: being the team that everybody hates playing.
¶ 9:46 AM0 commentslinks to this post
Days 'til the West becomes a lot clearer than the East: 5
Yeah yeah yeah. Bama moved up 5 spots in each poll and didn't even play a game. I guess it helps that, in our last game, we just demolished a team that beat the #16 team in the country. Not that it matters, of course, because of the many, many, many triangles that have gone on this year. We'll try and name a couple right quick.
That's just a couple off the top of my head. I'm sure I'll come up with more later.
If you don't already have your tickets for this weekend, then please, go ahead and click on over to TickCo.com's LSU section and their Alabama section to get your tickets. This game should be absolutely incredible, so make sure you don't miss it.
Also, make sure that, if you're going to the game, WEAR CRIMSON. The University wants to make this a "Crimson Out" game, where everybody, other than the opposing fans, will have on Crimson. Should be a fun sight to see on television. Spread the word - cause there are far too many Bama fans for us to reach by ourselves. Haha.
So now...on to the weekend recap and some Bama news...
I honestly thought that Steve Spurrier was going to pull that miracle out of his rear up on the hill on Saturday night. Fat Phil lives to see another day though - and in remarkable fashion as well. His freshman kicker misses a 43 yarder, which was negated by a false start penalty, and then he drills a 48 yarder to send it into overtime. Then, in overtime, one of the best kickers in the country, Ryan Succop, misses a kick to send it to a 2nd overtime. I guess, if we can find a way to beat LSU, it would be awesome to go out and beat Tennessee a second time in one season.
Georgia looked like world beaters on Saturday. Tebow had -15 yards rushing? Are you serious? Georgia ate those boys up early and often. It was unlike anything I had seen from a Dawgs team. Of course, next thing you know, they'll go off and get beat by Kentucky or something, making the SEC East even more stupid. Yes, stupid is the right word.
Mississippi State took care of Kentucky - in Lexington, no less - and got within one victory of bowl eligibility. Andre Woodson looked absolutely putrid. The new upset pick among the sports show hosts down here already is Miss St over Alabama on Nov 10th. We'll see what happens.
I thought that both Ohio State and Boston College would lose this weekend. Boy was I wrong. Ohio State absolutely crushed Penn State. They actually look like the most legitimate team in the country right now.
And speaking of legitimate teams - Arizona State and Oregon both handled the Cali teams (Oregon 24-17 over USC, and Ariz St 31-20 over Cal) making this weekend's showdown in Autzen Stadium incredibly important in the national title race. Who knows what could happen out there. How goofy would a West Virginia / Oregon national title game be? I could see a 70-63 game there - unless they go to overtime, where both teams could hit triple digits.
Vandy won their 5th game in a non-chalant, bullshit manner over Miami (OH). They now have Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Wake Forest - that's 4 chances to get that 6th win. 11 bowl eligible teams in the SEC? You better believe it.
The pollsters bumped us up a few notches this week - I guess to help the hype for the game this weekend. LSU stayed at #3 in every poll, and we jumped to #17 in the AP, #18 in the Coaches, and #17 in the BCS standings.
The coaches will tell you that this game is all about the players - but we know the truth. This game is all about the coaches. You can also read more about it here.
Coach Saban said that focusing was not going to be an issue this week. He did say that coaching at LSU was a special time in his life, but he's coaching at Alabama now, and his job is to get the players here ready to play the best football they can possibly play. Luckily ESPN won't be in town to bother and distract the players. They can focus on LSU this week, unlike the Georgia game.
After a bye week where the team focused more on executing and becoming a better team, rather than scheming for a certain opponent, the week is here where the players will turn their focus towards LSU.
LSU, much like Alabama, has a history, this season, of taking games down to the wire. Read more about it here.
Ryan Perrilloux was allegedly beat up at the Varsity Theatre in Baton Rouge late last Thursday night into Friday morning. He has not filed charges, but there should be an incident report available sometime today. This kid just CANNOT stay out of trouble. Read more here.
Les Miles' office is in the House that Nick built. Read more about all of the enhancements and upgrades that Coach Saban set in motion and got LSU to build while he was there. It's interesting, to say the least.
Josh Cooper thinks this may be the game where Les Miles' gambling will catch up with him. He reminds us that even the best gamblers can't stay lucky for too long. There's a reason why casinos are insanely profitable - because nobody wins all the time.
¶ 9:01 AM0 commentslinks to this post
The story of LSU's corndog smell... Sadly, by an Auburn alum
"LSU fans smell just like corn dogs.
Yes, it is often said, but so, so true.
LSU fans do smell like corn dogs.
I would never tell them that to their face though. This is something better said at internet distances. Even now, I am afraid.
I am afraid that they'll know I said it. I'll walk past an LSU fan someday, and he'll see that look in my eye that gives it away. That look that says, "gee, what is that smell? Is it corn dogs?" The next thing you know, I'll have flat tires on my car.
If you only learn one thing from me today, remember not to tell LSU fans how they smell - you know, like corn dogs.
LSU fans seem, somehow, sensitive to that whole corn dog issue.
I think this may be why a lot of fans get beaten up by LSU fans. If you attend a game in Baton Rouge, try to avoid telling them that they smell like corn dogs. Say something else instead. Like, "Wow, LSU sure does have a great team this year. This is going to be a great SEC game."
It's hard. I know. It's like when you're having sex and you try to think about baseball. That corn dog smell is just so overwhelming. It makes it hard for you to think about football or baseball or whatever else. Your brain wanders into corn dog topics like: "Gee, I wonder if I took a bite of your finger, if you would taste just like a corn dog?"; or "Is this a real person or is it a giant corn dog trying to make me think it is a real person?" or "What did that giant corn dog just say?" or "Excuse me, Mister, why is it that you smell just exactly like corn dogs smell?" or, of course, after a silencer: "Madam, did you just let the corn dogs out?"
Heck, after what I've heard about LSU fans, I think it may be better not to smell them at all. Okay, not all of them. Some of them are nice. Sure. Smell the nice ones. That's okay.
You know what else is a bad thing to do? Holding your nose around them. They are real sensitive to that, too. Try holding your breath. But don't be obvious about it. Somehow they know you're trying not to breathe in the corn dog smell. And that offends them. They'll likely punch you for that if they catch on to what you're doing.
If you do breathe it in long enough, though, it'll permeate your whole body, and then you'll smell like a corn dog just like they do. But don't say, "Dang, now I smell like a corn dog." They take offense to that. And they will throw things. But not corn dogs. Hard stuff. Stuff that leaves bruises and makes you bleed. Then you may have to get stitches or something. Just don't say it. If you do start smelling like a corn dog, just shut up about it. Okay?
I think kids are acutely aware of corn dog smells too. Counsel your kids on how to behave around LSU fans. If LSU fans are driving around town, do not let your kids stick their heads out of your car window and sniff the air. No. Keep your windows rolled up. An odd change in their expression - indicating they smell corn dogs - might get a wrench or pipe or some other object tossed at your windshield. So, that's dangerous. Let your kids stick their heads out of the car windows as you drive - on some other weekend
I know you are just as puzzled as I am about some of this corn dog stuff. What puzzles me most is that I've never actually seen any of these LSU fans with a corn dog in their hand. Okay, maybe there's no mystery there - maybe they already ate the corn dogs. Who knows? Maybe there's a corn dog factory in Baton Rouge and they all work there. Maybe, there's a corn dog lotion that they wear, or a French perfume.
Maybe their city council puts corn dog juice in the water supply - kind of like fluoride. The politics there are probably weird. The big political issue during the city election is whether they should add more ketchup or more mustard to the water. Don't comment on it though. It's not politically correct over there. It's like a malnutrition issue or something. It's like the corn dogs are probably added to the water to prevent starvation or something.
I know when you go to Baton Rouge, you're thinking: "Ahhhh. Here I am in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I'll bet the people here smell just like boiled crawfish or shrimp etoufe' or some fancy Cajun food." But just stop thinking that. That's just a myth. They smell just like corn dogs.
In fact, please listen to my advice. Leave them alone about the corn dog odor. And don't try masking the odor with something stronger. They'll curse at you. They'll say something like: "WTF, how dare you smoke a cigar in my home," or "WTF!! Are you too good for the smell of corn dogs?" and they'll cuss out your kids too: "WTF!!! Little Mister fancy pants over here acts like he doesn't want to smell like corn dogs."
Cajuns are not like us. Don't you see that, yet? They are really sensitive about being sniffed and about their corn dog aroma. They know they smell like corn dogs and it is no laughing matter to them at all. I know, I know. We sniff the bammers and the UGA dawgs and the Ole messes, and we keep a straight face with each of them, but don't press your luck with the Cajun tiger fans. Don't refer to Death Valley as corn dog valley either. I mean that's just wrong. Even if you've been drinking, they'll beat you up and curse out your kids.
Along these lines, be extra careful when you laugh in their direction - even if you're laughing about something else. Like baseball or football, or sex or whatever. If you can't control yourself and you must laugh though, do not snort. The snorting makes them think that you smell their corn dog body odor from a distance or that you're choking on it or something. They'll likely burn your van for that. We lost a campus building over just one snort.
So, just remember. You can love one another without sniffing each other. You can enjoy the clash of a couple of good football teams. You can enjoy the thrill of the rivalry. But after the game, please heed my words. Please just move along. No sniffing the opposing fans this Saturday. Okay? Get your corn dog jollies at home."
Also, if you want to read some hilarity about how LSU is already making excuses for if they lose, read the Tiger Rant over at tigerdroppings.com. Apparently, the refs are going to give Alabama the game next Saturday.
¶ 12:41 PM1 commentslinks to this post
WOOO HOOOO!!! The Foo Fighters are coming to Memphis on Friday, January 25th. Talk about excited. My old lady and I had our first kiss at a Foo Fighters concert back in '04, standing in the mud at Memphis in May. It was awesome.
Anyway, talk about a crazy ass day. Already had more work this morning than I'm used to in an entire day.
But enough about that.
The Virginia Tech / Boston College game last night was the perfect example of why you NEVER EVER EVER EVER run a prevent defense when there's time left on the clock. I can understand if it's the last couple of plays and you don't wanna give up a hail mary, but to do what Virginia Tech did last night was absolutely unbelievable and borderline insane. Don't give a Heisman Trophy candidate time to throw the football. Keep bringin people like you did early in the game. There's a reason why you held them to ZERO POINTS through 95% of the ballgame.
So, the highest LSU will be ranked is #2 next week, but that's ok by me.
We'll continue on with our stretch of blogging with the enemy, Faimon from Pelican State Sports. Today we're both giving our favorite games in the history of the LSU vs Alabama rivalry.
Check out his site for my answers - his favorites are listed below...
I tried to pick games in my lifetime (born in 1973), so that I wasn’t going back to stuff from the fifties and sixties that Bama fans keep reminding me of. All but one of these occurred during my 34 years. And full disclosure here: I grew up in Baton Rouge, but graduated from Louisiana Tech University, so I have some pretty great memories of games in 1997 and 1999, too, but I guess those don’t count.:)
Anyway, here are my five favorite games in the history of the Bama-LSU:
1) 1982: LSU 20-10 Bama I don’t remember much about this game – I was only 9. But I do remember the euphoria that we felt in Baton Rouge. So much so, that there was a joke going around my elementary school: “Hey did you hear that Bear Bryant beat his wife? Yeah, he went home after the game and asked her what time it was, and she said twenty to ten.”
2) 2001: LSU 35 – 21 Bama I have some pretty special memories of this game. I was in Alabama for the game, but not in Tuscaloosa. I was in Montgomery, visiting my grandmother. Of course, she insisted on taking us shopping at Maxwell Air Force Base on Saturday afternoon during the game – and I don’t argue with a 82 year-old woman with tattooed eyebrows (she says its easier than continually applying makeup). So I was wondering around the BX when I found a TV above the customer service desk and stood there, watching the game. By then, LSU was up, and it was clear that Rohan Davey was having an immense day (528 yards) and so was Josh Reed (19 receptions, 293 yards). The AF officer who stood next to me for about five minutes was obviously a Tide fan, because when he saw the score, he harrumphed and walked away. This game announced LSU’s return to prominence. Later that year, LSU won the SEC title and then the Sugar Bowl. Sweet.
3) 1997: LSU 27 – 0 Bama After a full year of having horrible nightmares about the freshman Shaun Alexander going for 290+ yards in Tiger Stadium, this shutout win in Tuscaloosa was sweet relief. This was the LSU of Herb Tyler and Kevin Faulk and Rondell Mealey. This was the smash-mouth football that the Memphis Tider loves so (link: http://pelicanstatesports.wordpress.com/2007/10/25/the-extravaganza-rolls-on/) – (51 rushes, 265 yards). Though this wasn’t the biggest win of the year (that came October 11th), it was good early sign about this LSU team, which ended 9-3.
4) 2003: LSU 27 – 3 Bama Every game from this year I remember with special fondness. This game was late in the year, mid-November, and LSU was expected to win against a Bama team under first year coach Mike Shula, and LSU just took care of business every way they could. They dominated in every facet of the game, just a great win all around.
5) 1895 – LSU 12 – 6 Bama Ok, so who really cares about this game? But it gave LSU a 1-0 record against Bama.
Coach Saban isn't sure if this was the best time for a bye week. Time will definitely tell, but I think it's better to get everyone rested and fired up before playing such a good opponent. You can read more about what the players are doing with their few days off here.
Josh Cooper, from the Decatur Daily, looks at what the Tide needs to do during the bye week and the week leading up to the game in order to help their chances against LSU.
LSU's receivers have had a bad case of the drops in the past few games. Lets hope this continues. One would only imagine what meeting a linebacker on a crossing pattern across the middle would do to their confidence. Byrd and LaFell are both having troubles.
LSU is dead last in the SEC in red-zone defense. Opponents are 19 of 19 with 14 touchdowns and 5 field goals. Read more about their recent defensive troubles here.
The 5 players in the text-book debacle, could be cleared to play in the LSU game. If the "extra benefit" was over $100, then they would be required to serve an NCAA mandated suspension of 10% of the season, which is 1.2 games. So they may have to miss part of the first quarter. Either way, there could be more suspensions forthcoming, but we'll have to wait until next week to find out.
Well, DJ Hall didn't even win SEC offensive player of the week, but AT&T deemed him fit to win their All-America Player of the Week last week. Granted, it is voted on by fans, but to even be nominated is more than any other SEC player this week. His 54% of the vote beat out Oregon running back Jonathan Stewart (24 percent), Tulane running back Matt Forte (12 percent) and UCLA cornerback Alterraun Verner (10 percent).
Want some interesting stats for the game? Alabama is 6-0 when scoring first this year and 0-2 when the opponent scores first. As far as the Western Division standings go, Alabama has held the Western Division lead after 8 weeks into the season on 6 different occassions. We have gone to Atlanta 4 times out of those 6, but the last 2 we did not. Here's hoping something changes.
¶ 9:20 AM1 commentslinks to this post
Very strange to be crossing blogs with an LSU blogger this time of year. You would think we'd hate each other, but, y'know...I guess it's actually alright.
There once was a time when I would cheer for LSU, except for the Alabama game, because I liked how they played football. Smash mouth, run it up the gut, type football - the kind that Alabama was used to. They always played games the right way, rather than having to trick their opponents, they just ran over them. At one point, they weren't very good at it - hence the horrible record through the 90s, but they still were fun to watch because they played non-gimmick football. Even when they were beating us through the Nick Saban era and all that, I still enjoyed watching them play smash mouth. It was fun - except when they played us.
Oh well. Pelican State Sports and I will be cross hitting each others blogs this week. To see my response to this this same question that he's answered, please go check out his site.
Things I like/Things I hate about Alabama
This is easy to write, really, because the thing that I like is closely related to what I hate.
I like: Alabama’s tradition. Any honest college football fan will admit that Bama’s tradition (12 – yes, I know it’s 12) is among the top 3 in college football. It is an amazing record over time. Around the nation, the words Crimson Tide call up hazy memories of players dominating games while wearing large forearm pads and narrated by the non-senile voice of Keith Jackson. Because I am in my mid-30s now, I can only faintly recall the image of a grizzled old man stalking the sideline in a houndstooth hat. But I can remember my dad, who grew up in Alabama, telling me legendary stories of drills Bear Bryant ran and players he had. Hey, I read The Junction Boys too, and loved it. If you need any further proof, check this link:
That’s a blog entry I wrote saying that College Football needs Bama to be good, along with Notre Dame, Nebraska, and Miami. My reasoning was that college football is better when Bama is good, precisely because of The Crimson Tide history. So that is one thing I love about Bama.
Things that I like, but not as much as the tradition:
1) The Uniforms- the number on the helmet is so simple, so classic
2) Gene Stallings-coached teams – now that is how defense is played
3) The Rammer-Jammer cheer. Yeah, the wording is stupid, but it sounds cool when the whole stadium does it.
I hate: The tradition. Ok, not the tradition itself, but the way Bama fans act like the rest of us don’t know it. WE GET IT! YOU’VE WON IN THE PAST. WE KNOW THAT YOU DOMINATED COLLEGE FOOTBALL. Look, you would hate it if Michigan fans constantly told you how the Wolverines have won the most games of any college team of all time. That’s how we feel. Bama has been an afterthought in the SEC race since 1992. Remember the Dubose years? Franchione’s brief stop? Mike “It’s rollin’ baby” Price’s almost tenure? We do, and the word that most accurately describes Bama over the last 15 years is ‘irrelevance’ (the word ‘probation’ is a close second). This is the new millennium – it’s time to stop assuming that success in the sixties and seventies entitles you to a privileged position now. In case you haven’t noticed, Kentucky is now a factor in the SEC. Things have changed since 1979. You have to earn your respect in the new millennium SEC. So perhaps a little humility until you actually win something would be nice. It would be shocking, too.
Like I said, go check out Pelican State Sports to see my response to the same question.
They're keeping wraps on Dorsey's injury down in Baton Rouge. To the point that they closed practice with several players nursing injury. Read more here.
The Hat thinks that the players will think more about the upcoming game than he will. He says he has no real desire to beat Saban, but the players might think differently. Jacob Hester, however, is not one of those players. He just really doesn't give a damn. Read more here.
Alabama went at this bye week with a lot of intensity. They've been hitting harder in practice than they have all season, just to try and fix mistakes that they are making themselves - not to prepare for LSU yet. Read more here.
Coach is trying to keep the hype down about the game. He's still saying it's the players' game. Of course, he's reminding them that a championship is still in reach. Read more here.
LSU fans are READY for the Alabama game. BIG TIME. Check out the AOL Fanhouse for a preview video. That video even got me fired up.
Glenn Dorsey sat out practice on Tuesday, and I believe on Wednesday. I have a strong feeling that he won't play against us next Saturday. I guess we would have to thank the Aubies for being goons, right? Oh well. Read more about his injury here. Part of me wants him to play so we can say that we beat them at full strength, but then another part of me doesn't want him to play because he could single-handedly stop our entire rushing attack. Hmm...
Question and answer with our friend, Faimon, from Pelican State Sports. Check out his blog to see my answers to the same questions.
1) If you were your team's coach, how would attack the other teams offense/defense?
If I was Les Miles, I would need bigger pants hold my nuts. But after securing trousers with a big enough banana-hammock, I imagine I would attack the Tide like this:
LSU on Offense: Bama’s defense has been fairly stout, but not outstanding. Luckily for the Tide, their (relative) weakness is pass defense, and that is where LSU struggles the most. But, assuming Early Doucet and Matt Flynn are both fully healthy, that adds a dimension to the passing attack. LSU must keep doing what it has been doing, meaning utilize lots of formations. Run Hester and Scott from the I-formation to pound the ball. Run Holiday and Williams out of the shotgun and the pistol, on both the zone read and the option, the toss, draws, delays and screens. And then I would look to run some play-action passes, hit Dickson over the middle and try to work Byrd and Lafell deep on the outside, and Early Doucet for mid range routes. I would run a 60-40 run-pass offense with this group of LSU players. There are so many talented ball-carriers, and being able to run at will makes the passing game so much easier. LSU also has to utilize its power, so that by the fourth quarter Bama, which doesn’t have a ton of depth, is tired. LSU has been better in the second half of its last two wins and it needs to play some ball-control to grind Bama down.
LSU on Defense: Three words: blitz, blitz, blitz. LSU should be able to stop the fun in the base defense, so the focus has got to be on stopping the pass, something the Tigers have struggled a bit with against Kentucky and Auburn. The Tigers need to get some hits on JPW early, make him think about them the whole game. At this point, I don’t know if Glen Dorsey will be playing after that Barn cheap-shot he took, but it is obvious from the last 3 games that expecting sufficient pressure to come from the front four is unrealistic. Pelini must bring pressure from many different angles, too. Brandon Cox was able to buy time on roll-outs, so Pelini needs to anticipate this and utilize the corners on outside blitzes. In the secondary, press DJ Hall, but shade a safety towards him, too. He is a very good receiver and will kill a team if you let him, as the Tennessee game showed.
2) Who on the other team scares you the most? Terry Grant scares me a little. Javier Arenas scares me a bit on special teams. DJ Hall scares me a lot. JPW scares me if he is given time to throw. Les Miles scares me more than all Bama players, coaches, and fans put together.
3) Who do you think your team can take advantage of, etc.
I don’t know of any specific players that we can take advantage of, except perhaps JPW. If LSU is able to exploit his lack of mobility and tendency to just hang it up sometimes, then I think it will be a long night for the Tide offense. Other than that, I think LSU has to exploit its offensive depth to keep the Tide defense off-balance and by the end of the game, tired. Bama has shown the will to fight to the end, but I don’t think that they have the depth to stay with LSU for 60 minutes. If LSU is able to wear down the Bama defense, I expect LSU to pull away in the fourth quarter and win by 10 or more.
Don't have much time to get to a whole lot today, so we'll just break right into the news. I'll have more, including some back and forth with our buddy over at Pelican State Sports, this afternoon.
Alabama has until gametime next Saturday to declare the 5 suspended players ineligible. The NCAA doesn't want them "just sitting out a game" while a school continues an investigation. Either they're ineligible or they're not. Read more here.
Bama has been improving, and LSU suddenly looks beatable. Could spell for a classic matchup on November 3rd. The Clanton Advertiser talks about how the LSU/Auburn and Alabama/Tennessee games helped setup what should be a beast of a game.
Coach Saban says that the Tide is not focusing on LSU in this week's practices just yet. They're working mainly on fundamentals and improving in areas where they're messing up. A gameplan isn't necessarily always about preparing for what the other team will be doing - it's more or less what you do that will set the tempo. If a team doesn't win then it's generally because of something they messed up on. Like the Florida State game - poor pass protection led to John Parker's fumble inside the 10 yard line which game FSU an easy score, which also proved to be the difference in the game. Get better at everything, don't make as many mistakes, and you can win any ballgame on the schedule.
LSU has gotten into a habit of making mistakes - like 12 penalties for 103 yards against Kentucky, and poor clock management against Auburn. They're working on all of that during the bye week, but hopefully we can count on them to be idiots again. Read more here.
¶ 9:32 AM0 commentslinks to this post
So I come into work this morning, and our server is completely down. Talk about a great way to start off the morning. Phone call after phone call of "my internet's not working" or "I can't print to the network printer" or whatever. Talk about insane.
Either way, I'm back up and at 'em. As you noticed at the top, I've got a countdown going until the LSU game. I would have to believe that Gameday will NOT be in attendance, simply because they chose Ohio State vs Penn State in Happy Valley this week rather than USC at Oregon - I'm guessing so they can go to Arizona State at Oregon next week. Wouldn't bother me in the slightest.
Coach Saban is already talking about this game being about the players, not the coaches. He sees it as "a tremendous opportunity." So, we'll see if the kids can take advantage of it. Read more here.
Coach said that the textbook system failed the players. "If we call a bad play and it doesn't work, we're responsible." Sounds about right.
Finebaum says that there are two words that will make him think long and hard about leaving for Texas A&M - Nick Saban. Saturday's victory over Tennessee was huge, and Auburn's defeat in Baton Rouge was also tough - knocking Auburn, presumably, out of the SEC Championship picture for the 8th time in 9 years. Read more here.
He doesn't do many of these "public speaking" things, so when he does one, fans gather in droves to hear him talk. Coach Saban spoke in Birmingham and told about, among other things, his biggest surprise being the high expectations for a team that went 6-7 last year that hasn't had many top 20 recruiting classes.
Ron Higgins points out that this conference is the craziest bunch of crap you'll ever see. Vandy beating a top 10 team. Kentucky, a top 10 team as well, losing to Florida and it being considered an upset. There's just sooo much parity. Read more here.
¶ 9:10 AM0 commentslinks to this post
This weekend was absolutely wonderful. I'm not going to worry about a buncha news and everything today. Yes, the textbooks deal could potentially be huge - just look at Ball St - but until we know some better facts, I'm not going to let it be a distraction. The players didn't let it on Saturday, so we won't let it in the blogosphere.
I told you I had a good feeling over the last few days. Vegas knows what they're doing. Take this for instance. Tennessee opens up as a 2 point favorite over Tennessee in Knoxville 2 weeks ago. The line moves drastically over the week, with Georgia being a 1.5 point favorite by kickoff. Tennessee win 35-14. Alabama opens up as a 1 point favorite over Tennessee. Everybody, again, thinks the linemakers are insane. The line begins to shift. At kickoff, Tennessee was a 1.5 point favorite. Alabama wins 41-17. So for you gamblers, make sure to watch for games like this. Vegas generally knows what they're doing.
And Fulmer's nonchalant attitude toward the loss may have just meant that he knows he's gone after this season. He acted like he didn't even care. But oh well...it's only one game. And since he's won 11 of 14 against Alabama, I guess he can afford to be like that.
Is Coach Saban saying his final goodbyes to Phil? Fulmer looks to be in trouble.
So here we go.
Alabama vs LSU. November 3rd. And this one is for ALL the marbles.
The shot at Atlanta. The idea that everything we dreamed about can still be attained. The chance to knock LSU out of contention for a national championship. A chance to go down in history and be the first team to beat a top 3 opponent in Bryant-Denny Stadium...and if Ohio State loses at Penn State, and BC loses at Virginia Tech this week...the chance to defeat a #1 ranked team in BDS for the first time EVER.
Sooo...if you wanna be at the HUGE game on November 3rd, you need tickets. And tickets are sold out - but you can still pick some up at TickCo.com. For LSU fans that are reading up on Bama for the next 2 weeks, buy your tickets at their LSU Tigers section, and for Alabama fans, buy your tickets at their Alabama Crimson Tide section.
Rocky Top Talk did graphs of everything that went in Alabama's favor on Saturday, so go check them out.
John Pruett says that this win validates Alabama as a real threat in the SEC Championship picture. He's right.
Scarbinsky, for once, nails it right on the head. This game against LSU has the feel of a Super Bowl. An extra week to hype it up. Everything up for grabs. And best of all, it's a chance to test out what they used to say about Bear Bryant. He could take his players and beat yours, or he could take your players and beat his with them. Well, if Coach Saban can handle LSU with Alabama's players, then this place may just absolutely go off the deep end. And I can't wait. :-)
The Alabama players went through 5 straight games that came down to the last minute of the game - up until the dismantling of Tennessee. Now, the players are definitely welcoming the bye week to get healed up before facing LSU. It's also good news to get the bye week after a very emotional game - as we've witnessed with LSU at Kentucky after beating Florida, and Kentucky vs Florida after beating LSU.
Rankings don't matter - at all - but it's still fun to look at. After everybody kinda wrote us off as a 7-5 football team, we are now back in the polls at #22 in the AP, #24 in the Coaches, and #24 in the BCS. Check it out here.
LSU's last second touchdown pass was ridiculous. Les Miles didn't even know what was going on. At least that's my guess, because had the ball been batted up in the air, or juggled for a minute, or, well, anything, really, then LSU loses without even a shot at a field goal to win it. But, alas, Miles is playing like he has nothing to lose - and I'm willing to bet it's because he's already got another job lined up. Mark my words.
Florida made Kentucky look like Kentucky again. Tebow is Superman. Everyone else is just a pawn in their system. If they don't make it to Atlanta, I will be VERY shocked. Funny thing - Tennessee could still win out, since we know how bad South Carolina, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Vandy really are. But there again, wouldn't it just be hysterical for all of those teams to beat Tennessee? That's possible as well.
Ole Miss fans here in Memphis are saying that their game against Arkansas was the worst coached game in the history of Ole Miss athletics. Now, don't say I didn't warn you. It looked like Coach O spent more time complaining about officiating this week than actually gameplanning to stop McFadden and Jones, who combined to run for 4,051 yards on the Rebels, on their way to 44-8 drubbing. Coach O could be gone after this season, because it seriously looks like they may not get a win in the conference.
South Carolina's loss to Vanderbilt was anything but understandable. Giving up 17 points to Vanderbilt in your own stadium is one thing, but to not be able to score a touchdown AT ALL on their not-so-vaunted defense is just embarrassing. Spurrier really screwed this one up by messing with the QB rotation again. After Chris Smelley was really getting a feel for the offense, and this team had been crushing other teams on their way to a #6 ranking in the polls, they drop a game, at home, to Vanderbilt, thanks to the swapping of Blake Mitchell and Chris Smelley. Hey OBC, pick one and stick with it.
Cal lost at UCLA. And we thought Tennessee was Jeckyl and Hyde, y'know? UCLA lost 44-6 at Utah, and 20-6 at home to a HORRIBLE Notre Dame team, but is still undefeated in Pac-10 play. So what exactly does that say about the Pac-10?
Ohio State will probably lose at Penn State this week. Boston College will probably lose at Virginia Tech this Thursday.
Everyone, go ahead and hope beyond all hope, that Oregon and Arizona State both remain unbeaten this weekend so that Gameday will make a return trip to Autzen Stadium on November 3rd. I don't want to risk that crew being here for a HUGE ballgame again. Oregon has to play USC, in Autzen, this weekend, and Arizona State has to play Cal, in Sun Devil Stadium. If one or both lose, look for Kirk Herbstreit and Lee Corso to make a STRONG push to come back to Tuscaloosa. I think both of these guys want to be at that game.
Melvin Ray kinda let the cat out of the bag when talking about his official visit to Alabama. "I will be taking an official visit on December 7. Star Jackson and Julio Jones will be there, so we will get to know each other better." Not to mention the fact that Julio Jones cancelled a visit to the LSU / Auburn game, and didn't go to the FSU / Miami game so he could come to the Alabama / Tennessee game.
¶ 8:47 AM1 commentslinks to this post
Wow. Just wow. That was probably the most fun I've had watching a football game in a long time. Seeing that much fire from Coach Saban was fun. And the best part - the offense didn't really do anything different, they just executed today. It was fun, to say the least.
Now then, of course, I want to know what on earth is going on with the 5 suspended players. Hopefully it's not too big of a deal. Regardless, this sets up the LSU game to be one for the ages.
Man, I don't know how much longer I can handle working. Only about 45 years 'til retirement though, so it's getting closer. Haha.
I haven't made picks on here in a while, but here's what I've got this week -
Florida (-6.5) @ Kentucky Mississippi St (+24) @ West Virginia Auburn (+10.5) @ LSU Tennessee @ Alabama (0)
I'm hoping a couple of these work - I've been doing relatively well this year.
Regardless, it's Tennessee time, and I need to show my hatred for all things orange.
I have hated UcheaT for a LONG LONG time - and a good reason, of course, is because I live in Memphis, where about half of the city supports those bastards. Everyone has their reasons for hating a school, and mine are about the same as everyone else's - their fans are arrogant redneck assholes that don't know when to shut the hell up. I cheer for EVERY team that's playing the Colts, week in and week out, just because I hate Peyton. I smiled a little bit when Jamal Lewis went to jail. I still laugh whenever Travis Henry goes out with an injury. And these are guys that don't even play for UT anymore - they've moved on to the NFL, but I still hate them with everything in my soul. Call it a burning passion, if you will. Their school colors are disgusting. Their fight song makes me want to vomit. All in all, I hate EVERYTHING about Tennessee.
Ok, now that's we've gotten past that, here's what's going on in the news today...
There are a lot of differences between Nick Saban and Phil Fulmer - but there is one huge similarity: both are winners. Saturday should be fun.
Mark McCarter goes into detail about just how much the officials are relying on instant replay this season. It sounds more like he's still bitter about Ole Miss getting beat. C'mon man - it's Tennessee week. There's better things to write about than your perception that Ole Miss got the shaft. Shut up and get over it.
Erik Ainge says that his team is ready for Saturday - "There's not really much to say. It's Alabama-Tennessee. We're cranked up." Like we've talked about all week, their offensive line is doing a great job - Ainge has only been sacked twice this year. It's up to our defense to get some kinda pressure on him. He's a bad decision maker under pressure. Read more here.
Tennessee has two freshmen starting in the secondary. DJ Hall joked that we'll take it easy on them. Riiiiiight.
Pete Fox, from VandyMania.com, is picking UT by 10 tomorrow. Sounds cool to me.
Scarbinsky actually has a decent article this go round, stating that if Bama beats Tennessee, Alabama fans won't just be drinking the Saban kool-aid - they'll be bathing in it.
The 3rd Saturday in October is, at least for this year, known as seperation Saturday. The winner of Auburn / LSU will lead the SEC West along with Alabama, if they pull out a win over Tennessee. Both of those games are huge because if LSU and Alabama both win, it sets the stage perfectly for a knock-down drag out fight to the death in Bryant-Denny on November 3rd, and I guarantee that the whole world will be watching to see who takes control of the SEC West. Anyway, enough about that - read more here.
¶ 8:42 AM3 commentslinks to this post
It's getting closer. And for the first time since I can remember - I will get to turn or ESPN Gameday, open my first beer of the day, and then start the Alabama / Tennessee game almost immediately. How cool is that?
Sucks that it's that early, which means I won't be able to make it down to the game, but it is cool because my guitar player and I will get to watch the game after a long night of partying here in Memphis.
I've got a REALLY good feeling about this game. I don't know what it is, but the way the line has been moving and everything...it just reminds me of a couple of weeks ago when everyone thought Georgia was gonna kill Tennessee. Now the everyone thinks Tennessee will kill Alabama. Hmmm....
Tennessee is giving up the 2nd most punt-return yards in the nation. I called it last week - that Javier would have a big game. I'm calling it again. He'll zip past UT - maybe not for a score, but he'll set one up.
The offensive line is being shuffled again this week, but Coach Saban isn't being as open about it. Looks like he's got something up his sleeve. Read more here.
John Parker Wilson is getting better at game management. He has a lot more control over his play calling, and he has to be able to read defenses in order to do that. The players are impressed with him and they expect him to get even better - starting this week.
Even though the game is on Lincoln Financial, the game hasn't lost any hype among Alabama and Tennessee fans. I, for one, still hate Tennessee with everything that is in my soul. I could say really mean things now, but I don't think it's appropriate for the blog. Either way - the Decatur Daily has compiled a list of the top 10 games in the rivalry, and they even talk about how it's not a down year for the teams, regardless of what the national media would say.
Ok, one of my neighbors used to be a collegiate official. What he brought up to me regarding the Ole Miss play was that the explanation was correct. The Ole Miss player went out of bounds, therefore making him an ineligible receiver. The 2nd part of the play - and yes Hotty Toddy, you were correct - there was no indisputable evidence. You couldn't tell who touched the ball first (even though it looks like Hodge did first). Once the first part of the play, where he ran out of bounds, was reversed, they couldn't go back and give him the catch because there was no indisputable evidence which player touched it first. That's the explanation I was given.
I also noticed that the silent leader of this defense, to this point, has been Kareem Jackson. My dad and I talked about it last night - nobody is throwing at him during games. They take a couple of chances, but when they need a play at the end of the game, they go towards Lionel Mitchell or Johnson or somebody else - never at Jackson.
Y'know the difference between Kareem and all of our other defensive backs? Kareem hasn't developed bad habits under another coaching staff. He's fresh for the teaching.
Ok, so anyway, back to the game at hand - I watched the Tennessee / Mississippi State game last night. It was very very interesting, to say the least. I think we've got a VERY good shot last night. Something fishy is going on in Tuscaloosa. Coach Saban's got something up his sleeve - whether it will be a new defensive line rotation (enter Davis, McCullough, Chapman, etc) to keep everyone fresh, or new schemes, or something. I feel a little something different in the air. Not to mention the fact that there's something about us being favored by -1 that just doesn't sound right. People should start running with that line and bet Tennessee, just like the public did when Tennessee was a -2 favorite over Georgia and the line moved enough to give Georgia the -1.5 advantage by kickoff.
We'll just have to see, but don't say I didn't warn you when we end up blowing these guys out.
Lionel Mitchell says he didn't even realize that there was a controversy - says he doesn't really read the papers or listen to the radio very much. Riiiiight. Read more here.
Yes, it is extremely possible for John Parker Wilson to play his best game and not throw a touchdown. Ask Coach Saban. Read more here.
Alabama isn't the only team that does well when they score first - Tennessee has scored first in all 4 of their victories so far this year. Alabama has scored first in all 5 of their victories - so I guess the first 5 minutes will determine the game, ehh?
Rashad Johnson is a helluva ballplayer - and to think, he started out as a walk-on running back here at the Capstone. Read more here.
Former Tennessee standout, Chuck Smith, has been helping out Wallace Gilberry all year. You gotta wonder if he'll be helping this week.
Kinda scary, but since Bryant, the only other coaches that started 5-2 were Ray Perkins and Bill Curry. DuBose started 4-3. For some reason though, I don't feel like this hire will end up like those. Read more.
Stop the 4-yard dive off tackle, and you stop Tennessee. That play is what they base their offense around. 2nd-and-6 or 3rd-and-2 is incredibly manageable and puts Erik Ainge into comfortable situations. Stop that play and we've got a chance to really stop their offense.
The Sporting News chimes in about how both of these teams get off to quick starts. Read here.
You haven't been paying attention, have you? I know, I know...you already thought you knew Arenas was a star. Yeah, he leads the SEC in punt returns, etc. What you didn't know is that Javier is making a name for himself...in the secondary. He's the Tide's 6th defensive back and is doing a damn good job at it. Read more.
¶ 8:51 AM2 commentslinks to this post
Jeeez Louise. My digital camera is shittty. And it doesn't help that I recorded my dvd at a lower quality on Saturday, but I swear I'll get a better picture than this one - thanks to Pete Holiday at the AOL Fanhouse for it.
So, there you have it. I don't want any more phone calls from my Ole Miss friends telling me that we're cheaters, etc. The play is what it is. Go beat Arkansas and then we'll talk.
I'll post the link to Pete Holiday's article again, which explains that Ole Miss got robbed at the end of the first half when Glen Coffee fumbled, but the play was ruled down, so they couldn't review it. They did NOT, however, get robbed on the last play of the game.
Andrew Bone, TideSports.com recruiting guru, has an article up about Alabama trying to win the border battles with several recruits.
One kid that I really want Rashad Johnson or Zeke Knight to get a pretty good hit on is Austin Rogers. There's just something about the kid that I don't like. Either way, check out this article about him.
Rogers Redding, the SEC coordinator of officiating, said that he has looked at the play several times and that the correct call was made and that there's no way that you can look at it any differently. Of course, Pete Boone and Ed Orgeron didn't want to hear that, and they're still claiming that a mistake was made and that they were robbed of a football game. You can read about all of that here, along with the incident where an Ole Miss fan confronted and started yelling at several of our assistant coaches after the ballgame.
Transcript for the Tennessee game press conference - here.
Baron Huber is actually from right outside of Knoxville. He's got some fun little stories about the rivalry up there where he's from. Read more here.
Dear Ole Miss fans, If you had kept us from scoring 10 points in the 4th quarter, you would've won the game anyway. So shut up.
Anyway, enough of that. I live in Memphis with 4 billion Ole Miss fans and Ole Miss biased media, etc, and it's just been disgusting. Phone calls saying "well, if it had been the other way, they would've given you guys the play," or "ya'll are just lucky" or "the SEC just wants you guys to win more with your new coach for better ratings." I respond, of course, with "No, it's just that our coaches are actually pretty smart, because they saw the guy go out of bounds, and in the last 2 minutes of ballgames, all plays are reviewed. The refs just needed more time to review it so we called time-out."
This is the 2nd time this year that we were down in the 4th quarter, and we came back to win the ballgame. That's 2 more times than we did in the entire Shula campaign. Impressive.
As for the controversial last call, that's about all you can say about it. We're lucky it was on our sideline. Of course, the play should have never even happened. The official that was in that endzone is a MORON. He's the same one that downed the ball at the 1-yard line on the punt earlier that got reversed, and he's also the one that wasn't watching where the players' feet were on that last play - he kept watching for the ball. Very very bad officiating. He was not doing his job correctly.
The ruling was correct - and I know this thanks to HD TV and DVR. The rule is that after a player - ANY player - steps out of bounds, they cannot be the first to touch the football once it comes back inbounds. Both Lionel Mitchell and Shay Hodge stepped out - the review was over whether or not Hodge touched the ball first, or Mitchell. Had Mitchell touched it first, it's illegal touching and the down would have been replayed from the 40-whatever yard line. Since Hodge touched it first, it's a loss of downs, which means it went over to Alabama. That was the review, not whether he was forced out, or whether it was a completion because Lionel touched it first. It was never in doubt that the catch was illegal on both parties.
So, thanks to the official not doing his job correctly the first time, debris, whiskey bottles, coke bottles, cups, shakers, and just about anything else that fans could throw on the field, were all launched in unison as soon as the play was reversed. Now, why didn't we hear a whole lot about this in the national media? Our cup throwing was ridiculous, yes, but not nearly as bad as what transpired in Oxford. Luckily nobody was hurt, but that's just luck, because it was an ugly incident.
Regardless, we were exposed big-time on several big plays for Ole Miss. A long run by Green-Ellis, and a couple of really long passing plays that were just perfect passes and perfect catches, really showed that we could be in trouble against Tennessee. They're bigger and faster than Ole Miss, but I think Ole Miss has a better receiving group.
Oh well, I still think this is going to be a good week. And seriously, 11:30am kickoff? What the hell is that all about? We couldn't even pull ESPN2?
If you need tickets, make sure you head on over to TickCo.com and check out their Alabama vs Tennessee section, and don't forget that you can get tickets to any Bama game this season by looking at their Alabama home and away section.
And, since it's Tennessee week, we have to introduce the family - thanks to Roll Bama Roll for this one - Lulu and Junior.
Chris Capps got into the game for a few plays because Mike Johnson was struggling so hard with Greg Hardy. Hardy had a field day against our right tackle, no matter who it was. If that kid could play like that every game, Ole Miss might be better than 2-5 right now. To read more about Capps, read here.
Ole Miss will decide today whether or not to send a video to the SEC officiating office to review the controversial play or not. Coach Saban snuck in a quick shot at the Ole Miss fans after the game, while talking about the fans throwing bottles on the field - "I just want our players to represent the university with class. If (Ole Miss fans) want to be classless, that's their business." Sounds good to me.
This is the first time since 1988 that the UT / Bama game won't be broadcast nationally. It is a different feel, as Coach Phil Fulmer said in his post-game comments.
The Birmingham News points out that John Parker Wilson's best game came at the perfect time. That is, of course, not to say that it was a perfect game, by any means, but it was still his best managed game of the year. We've still got to get better in the redzone, and we've got to get better throwing the football. JP missed several wide-open receivers, stared down people too long, and just all around wasn't great, but it was his best game so far, and you could actually see improvement.
The Montgomery Advertiser brought up the "Cardiac Kids" thing again, with this being the 5th straight game that has been down to the wire. Read more here.
We just finished a pretty brutal stretch of games with Arkansas, Georgia, Florida St, Houston, and Ole Miss - which is a pretty tough stretch for any team in the country - but now we get into the meat of the schedule. The last 5 games are going to be ridiculous. Tennessee, LSU, at Mississippi St, Louisiana-Monroe, and at Auburn. Read more here.
The Daily Journal reviews Ole Miss's performance from Saturday. They didn't do very well as far as turnovers and getting the ball in their playmakers' hands.
The play of the day wasn't Terry Grant's touchdown, or any of our other scoring plays. It was a run by Coach Saban - 25 yards down the sideline to grab an official and tell them to review the play that left 7 seconds on the clock and Ole Miss at first and goal from the 4 yard line. Saban grabbed an official, told them to review it, and called timeout to let them to "look at it good." Melick chimes in about it.
Cecil tells it like it is - Alabama and Tennessee should REALLY be playing at a later time. Good crack at the end by saying that, hey, maybe you can go check out U2 or the Rolling Stones at one of the clubs on the Strip after the game. After all, it'd be another strange setting for two legends.
Scarbinsky can't tell where the indisputable evidence is on the replay - but would like for the SEC offices to air it on secsports.com and on ESPN and LF Sports and CBS next week so everybody can see what the replay officials saw, because he's hurting for Ole Miss today. Of course, it wasn't hard to figure out - because I could see it on LF Sports' broadcast on my TV at home.
The Alabama players headed to the locker room with their helmets still on - basically doing everything they could to not get hit by a flying bottle. They were told to quickly get off the field as whiskey bottles, vodka bottles, and even high heel shoes rained down on the south endzone. There were two Ole Miss students and a juvenile arrested for throwing objects. Read more here.
¶ 8:49 AM5 commentslinks to this post
So, I'll admit, I'm lazy. I took today off work and slept in a lil bit to catch up on some much needed sleep. I also went ahead and made my picks for the week and updated my band's site before I got on here. So you might could say I'm slackin...hard.
Anyway, on to the daily stuff.
You've read link after link about all of this, so I'll map out the basic preview for tomorrow:
Alabama always struggles in Oxford.
Ole Miss always plays over their heads against us.
We generally win, but it is always close.
We're thin on defense, but have looked ok against the run.
Ole Miss has a helluva running back, but has underperformed on the ground this year.
If we don't get pressure, Seth Adams will pick our zone apart.
If Ole Miss doesn't get pressure, they'll get hit with some big plays over the top.
John Parker will probably look lousy.
The running game will be effective but under-used.
The defense will give up a big play or two to keep the thing closer than it should be.
...and there you have it. That's about the best way to sum it up. That's how every Alabama / Ole Miss game in Oxford goes, other than the anomalies in 2001 and 2003.
I don't have any proof to back this up, but I really think that our special teams will be huge. Look for Javier Arenas to have the game of his life. Just a gut feeling.
Robert Lester, the safety from Foley that had two picks against Daphne, supposedly committed to Alabama today. Still waiting on word of that. He and Julio Jones are apparently good friends and are wanting to attend school together.
I figure I'll post more about the Ole Miss game in the morning. At the moment, I'm gonna go enjoy the rest of my day off! ROLL TIDE!
¶ 1:45 PM0 commentslinks to this post
I'm hurtin this morning. Went and hung out with some guys at Newby's last night, and when I got home, my daughter was already asleep in the bed with my better half. So rather than move her, I just laid down. Big mistake - that child kicks and rolls around and moves more than any other human being on earth. I'm tired as hell this morning, and sore from sleeping on my side all night with a foot in my back. Haha.
EDSBS.com covers the Pitt / Navy game better than any other sports site. It was a ridiculous call by Wannstedt and he should be fired. End of story. Talk about idiocy. Read Orson's thoughts on it here.
If you wanted it to be confirmed, you now have it: the BDS expansion is a reality. Enrollment is going through the roof, and the need for a bigger stadium is definitely there.
We already know that our coaching staff knows how to scout - and they not only do it for other teams or recruits: they scout themselves. Basically, it's like going through the game film to see what the other teams might see. The idea is to not be predictable.
Franphony was "admonished" by Texas A&M in a press conference this morning. He was also ordered to shutdown CoachFran.com, and was told that he could no longer employ any staff members that could be construed as representing Texas A&M or providing information or reports relative to his position as head coach at Texas A&M. Which means he had to fire Mike McKenzie, the guy who actually wrote the e-mails for him. Mike rubbed everybody in Tuscaloosa the wrong way back in '02, so it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. Read more here.
CollegeFootballNews.com says that Bama will win 31-24, while the Harmon Forecast has us winning 27-24. A win is a win, so here's hoping they're right.
¶ 9:37 AM0 commentslinks to this post
I was lucky enough to score some free tickets to check out a couple of DAMN good rock n roll bands last night - and this was real rock n roll, not the bullshit that's on the radio today. This is the real deal sex, drugs, and rock n roll that we know and love.
Talk about cool. It was a helluva show. Alice in Chains' new singer sounds exactly like Layne, so that's cool. They played all of their hits, which was awesome. Then Velvet Revolver played that good old school Hollywood classic punk rock. Just straight up rock n roll. COCAINE!!! ALCOHOL!!! Crazy shit man. I had a beer and stayed on the lawn with my guitar player and bass player the whole time. We were taking notes...haha.
The key matchup of the day won't be any receivers vs defensive backs, or running backs vs linebackers. Instead, it will be Justin Britt against Glenn Dorsey. This should be the matchup of the day. As Britt put it Dorsey's "the best. That's what we came to Alabama to do - play against the best." 
