INSIDE THE TIDE

Arenas Leads # 1 Tide Over Mississippi State

2008-11-16T15:28:00.004-06:00

Once again it wasn't all that pretty, but it was not close and we won. Kick returner/DB Javier Arenas stole the show last night as he and a stout defense lead # 1 Alabama over Mississippi State, 32-7, to take Alabama to 11-0 on the season and keep their hopes of a national title alive.

Mississippi State (3-8) came out ready to go and took a 7-5 lead in the first quarter after a long Tyson Lee touchdown pass. While Alabama did not have the offensive performance many Tide fans were hoping for, Alabama's third phase of the game, special teams, came to play. It started early in the game when DB Kareem Jackson came in on a punt block untouched, blocked the punt, and it rolled out of the end zone for an Alabama safety. Arenas then stole the show as his first punt return opportunity was returned to the two yard line setting up an easy Tide touchdown. Arenas later returned a punt 80 yards for a touchdown, setting off MSU coach Sylvester Croom. Kicker Leigh Tiffin added 3 field goals to complete the special teams sweep for Nick Saban's club.

LB Rolando McClain had 11 tackles on the evening and led an impressive defensive performance as the Tide shut down a pesky Mississippi State team that has beaten Alabama the past two seasons. Alabama finally figured out the Sly Croom riddle and now moves to an open date with arch-rival Auburn coming to Tuscaloosa in two weeks.

Now for some random commentary. It was a another "workmanlike" performance for a workmanlike team. That is just what we are. We win ugly, we are the Tennessee Titans of college football. Watching College Gameday yesterday morning Chris Fowler made the comment that some bookies said Alabama would be a 8 1/2 point underdog if the SEC Title game were played yesterday, which I see as good news. Florida is the beautiful homecoming queen that everybody is in love with. She has it all, no flaws. Alabama on the other hand is the 300 pound girl with warts on her face that nobody wants to dance with. She could probably out bench press everybody else at the party but people are not impressed with that. They want beauty and flash.

I am not saying Alabama will beat Florida Dec. 6 in the Georgia Dome. I have no idea if we can beat them. But I do think we will challenge Florida physically more than anybody else has this year. I think we will protect the ball and make them stop us from running the ball. The best thing that can happen to Alabama is for every talking head out there to pick Florida. To say there is no way Alabama can beat them. This team responds to challenges and plays its best when they are challenged, underdogs, or in a tough environment (i.e. Clemson, Georgia, Tennessee, and LSU). Unless Florida stumbles against The Citadel or Florida State it looks like that is what we will have, and it could not be a better situation for the Crimson Tide.

Saban Fired Up

2008-11-14T08:36:00.002-06:00

This video is from Hey Coach last night, Coach Saban's weekly radio show. It is pretty motivational overall but gets really hot around the 2 min. 45 second mark.

I think he wants Tide fans to be ready this Saturday. Enjoy.

Saban Fired Up

Bryant-Denny Expansion One Step Closer to Reality

2008-11-13T18:45:00.002-06:00

The University of Alabama Board of Trustees Physical Properties Committee heard a presentation from the University of Alabama today regarding the proposed $80.6 million expansion of the south end zone of Bryant-Denny Stadium.

After the presentation the Board unanimously approved the project to move into the third of four stages, the fourth being final approval to begin construction and bring the
facility to a capacity of more than 101,000 seats.

As you can see by the picture, this place would be sweet.

Game 11 Preview: Mississippi State Bulldogs

2008-11-12T07:48:00.005-06:00

Starkville, MS is a beautiful town. No I am kidding Starkville is horrible, but it is home to our next opponent the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Coming off a Liberty Bowl appearance last year the hype around Bulldog football was a little higher than normal this preseason but these Dogs have failed to live up to the hype.

Sly Croom's team enters this matchup riding a two game winning streak against Alabama but this is a different year. This State team is 3-6 overall and 1-4 in the SEC. The lone SEC victory came against Vanderbilt at home a few weeks back 17-14. That lost started a current four game losing streak for the Dores. The problem for State has not been on the defensive side of the ball but putting points on the board.

34 points is the highest point total of the season and that came against football superpower Southeastern Louisiana. State is yet to break the 25 point barrier against a SEC defense. On the flip side their defense is fairly stout as evident by their 3-2 classic against a potent Auburn offense earlier in the year. On offense the Bulldogs are led by QB Tyson Lee who enters the game completing 114 or 183 passes for 1119 yards and 4 touchdowns. 4 touchdowns for your QB through 10 games is not a good sign. Their best returning skill player coming into the year was RB Anthony Dixon but he has had a disappointing year with 647 yards and 6 touchdowns on 155 carries. To compare those stats to Alabama's RB, Glen Coffee enters the game with 1020 yards and freshman Mark Ingram has 539. Both of Bama's RB enter the game with 8 touchdowns.
On the defensive side of the ball Starkville's finest is often put in terrible spots by the offense. The defense is giving up an average of 21 points per game but the Dogs only average 16 points per game. Ouch.

In his Tuesday press conference, Mississippi State head coach Slyvester Croom (pictured below in a stunning leather jacket) knows the opportunity his team has.

"It's a great opportunity for us as a football team," Croom said. "It's rare that you get a chance to play the No. 1 team in the country during the course of the season. That opportunity has been afforded us and we're going to prepare as best as we possibly can and go over there and play as well as we possibly can in the hopes of winning a game, on the road, in Tuscaloosa, against the No. 1 team in the country."

A win over # 1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa would make State's season. It would make their third win in a row over the Crimson Tide and would put Croom (a Tuscaloosa native) back in brighter light in Starkville. Fortunately for us, it shouldn't happen. The last two seasons turnovers have doomed the Tide in this game. If we run the ball and play defense like we have all year and do not give the Bulldogs easy points we will win this game. Alabama is on a mission to make the national title game and will not overlook this team.

Tide Still # 1 in Latest BCS Rankings

2008-11-10T07:23:00.004-06:00

Another win. Another week at # 1.

Alabama remained the top ranked team in the country this week in every major poll and held off # 2 Texas Tech in the latest BCS poll that was released last night. The complete rankings are listed below. # 1 Alabama returns to Tuscaloosa this Saturday to take on their SEC West rival, the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

BAMA # 1 Again

Ramma Jamma in Death Valley...It Gets Better Every Time

2008-11-09T14:51:00.002-06:00

After Alabama's win at Tennessee a few weeks ago, we gave you a video of Alabama fans signing Ramma Jamma in Neyland Stadium, and it was sweet. Well this one is no different as Tide fans celebrate our victory yesterday in Baton Rogue. Enjoy and Roll Tide!

Oh and in case you were still wondering, Nick Saban is better than Les Miles.

Ramma Jamma in Tiger Stadium

# 1 'Bama Wins SEC West, Face Gators in Title Game

2008-11-09T12:13:00.007-06:00

Hello Tim Tebow.

With # 1 Alabama's road win at # 15 LSU yesterday the Crimson Tide locked up the SEC West title and will play in the SEC Championship game December 6th in Atlanta. On the same day Alabama won the SEC West, the 5th ranked Florida Gators took care of business at Vanderbilt and clinched the SEC East title.

That means we will have a sudo-college football playoff. Alabama and Florida will be playing a national semi-final to see who will move on to the national title game. Being ranked # 1 currently, if Alabama wins out against its remaining schedule of Mississippi State, Auburn, and Florida they will be in the title game for sure.

Florida's remaining slate has South Carolina, The Citadel, and Florida State before they meet Alabama. If the Gators win out they should also be sitting pretty to play for it all in January.

HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE WIN!!!

2008-11-09T08:30:00.006-06:00

After 3 mild heart attacks and a mini stroke I finally was able to sit back and enjoy # 1 Alabama's huge road win at # 15 LSU on Saturday. In their toughest game of the year, Nick Saban's bunch gutted out the overtime win, 27-21, in front of 93,000 plus angry Bayou Bengal fans.

Alabama (10-0, 6-0) did about everything possible to lose the game in the first half. On the opening possession Alabama drove the ball right down the field only to turn the ball over as WR Earl Alexander stretched the ball towards the goal line only to have LSU safety Chad Jones knock it out of his hands.

Alabama would turn the ball over two more times in the first half and luckily with a stout defense and terrible QB play by LSU's Jarrett Lee, the Crimson Tide headed to halftime tied at 14-14. The man responsible for ruining most of Lee's day is Alabama safety Rashad Johnson. Johnson had an All-American day with 3, that is not a misprint, he had 3 interceptions. One of those was in overtime that helped seal the victory for Alabama. Another one of them he returned for a TD to make the game 14-14 and take Alabama into halftime still feeling good about its chances.

On offense RB Glen Coffee had 126 yards and a TD and Les Miles' crew simply had no answer for freshman WR Julio Jones. Every time Alabama needed a big play in the passing game they went to Jones. We knew it was coming, Miles knew it was coming, everybody in Tiger Stadium knew it was coming, and they simply could not stop him.

I felt good about this game all week because I thought we simply had better players. As the day went on and the game started I began to realize that LSU had everything in its favor. Playing at home (advantage), College GameDay in town (advantage), playing the # 1 team in America (motivation), and playing their ex-coach who they hate (motivation). Alabama was also just a better matchup for LSU then Georgia or Florida were. Those two teams run a spread type offense and LSU is just not built for that. They are a tough, physical strong team that wants to run you over. Sound familiar? That is us as well.

Given everything that pointed in LSU's way, including the three turnovers, Alabama still won the game. We went to Baton Rogue and beat the defending national champions with everything in the world going against us and that says something about this team. We played poorly and still figured out a way to win in one of college football's toughest road enviornments.

Attention now turns to our last two remaining home games against struggling SEC West rivals, Mississippi State and Auburn. State has beat us two years in a row and Auburn six. That will be motivation for this team but they have a larger goal...a shot at the national title. With the SEC West title already wrapped up and a date set with the SEC East champ Florida Gators, our brutal schedule continues. I am not sure if this team can win all three of those games, but I love our chances as this team just keeps finding a way to win.

Great Article About 'Bama Football

2008-11-06T10:16:00.004-06:00

I do not always agree with what CBSsportsline.com's Dennis Dodd has to say. That said, today's article about the Alabama football program and its head coach, Nick Saban, is a good one. Take a look at the link below.

'Bama football does not stay down

Cody Looks Good to Go vs. LSU

2008-11-06T08:25:00.002-06:00

# 1 Alabama should get a BIIIG boost when it travels to 15th ranked LSU this Saturday. Junior noseguard Terrance Cody has practiced all week and looks set to go against the Bayou Bengals. The timing could not be better as LSU depends on its run game to move the ball efficiently.

On Wednesday, Nick Saban was asked about Cody during his weekly press conference. "He has worked in practice and he has done a good job. He does not seem to have any increased soreness from the work he has done. We are working on his conditioning, trying to get him back in the swing of things, get him in shape and get his confidence back. He has done everything we have asked him to do in practice and has not had an issue."

Earlier in the day, Cody was named a semifinalist for the 14th Chuck Bednarik Award. The award is given to the national defensive player of the year. Mount Cody has 15 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss and anchors the middle of the Tide's defensive line that has allowed just 65.6 rushing yards per game.

LSU Coach Les Miles....Truly Insane?

2008-11-03T06:52:00.003-06:00

I have watched LSU head coach Les Miles since he arrived in the SEC and believe with all my heart that the man is absolutely crazy. I mean clinically insane. We will profile more about Miles' wackiness as the week continues. Here are a few videos that help me back up my claim.

LET 'ER RIP

Have a great day

The Top Team in the Land

2008-11-02T12:27:00.005-06:00

For the first team in a long time the Alabama Crimson Tide football team has a # 1 in front of it. In the latest polls released a few hours ago Alabama was ranked #1 in both the Coaches and AP polls.

The Tide moved up with their 35-0 win over Arkansas St. yesterday coupled with previous # 1 Texas losing at # 7 Texas Tech. The BCS standings will be released later today with Alabama expected be # 1 in those standings as well.

The new # 1 will get a tough test this week as they travel to # 15 LSU this upcoming Saturday.

Bama ranked # 1

Plenty of Room on Bama Bandwagon for Hollywood Celebs

2008-11-02T12:13:00.003-06:00

It seems everybody is jumping on the Crimson Tide bandwagon these days, including some Hollywood celebs. At yesterday's homecoming victory over Arkansas St. some interesting faces were seen in Bryant-Denny Stadium. Former Tide QB and national champion Jay Barker and his new wife country music star Sara Evans were attended along with movie and TV star Eva Longoria-Parker.

I wish I could tell you why the Desperate Housewives star and wife of San Antonio Spurs PG Tony Parker was in Tuscaloosa with Barker and Evans, but I cannot. Maybe she has a crush on nose guard Terrance Cody? Maybe she wanted to show off her 1992 Jay Barker replica jersey in front of 93,000?

Whatever the reason for her attendance, I like it. There is plenty of room for everybody on the Bama bandwagon.

# 2 Bama Pitches Shut Out win Over Arky St.

2008-11-02T08:19:00.003-06:00

It turned out to be a pretty good day for the 2nd ranked Alabama Crimson Tide football team. After dominating Arkansas St. 35-0 to move to 9-0 on the season, the Tide later saw # 1 Texas lose on a last second play to # 7 Texas Tech, thus a possible # 1 ranking for Nick Saban's club.

This homecoming game provided Alabama another mental test playing a potentially dangerous Arkansas St. team after a big win against rival Tennessee last week and a huge match up set up next week at # 15 LSU. Alabama opened the game with a touchdown on their first offensive drive with a 89 yard march, in which turned out to be the game winning points.

The Alabama defense was awesome all day long making trips across the 50 yard line a rarity for the Red Wolves. It was the first shut out for Alabama since a 17-0 win in 2005 over Mississippi State. Alabama took a 14-0 lead in halftime mainly because of missed opportunities, and a FG, on offense. The second half was a different story, however, as the Tide was in control the entire afternoon and put another 21 points up, including a defense touchdown on a interception return from All-SEC safety Rashaad Johnson.

Freshman running back Mark Ingram led the offensive charge with 113 yards on 12 carries and added two touchdowns. I need those kind of numbers today from my fantasy team. While QB John Parker Wilson did throw his first interception of the season in the red zone, he had a productive day otherwise and led the always methodical Tide offense to another good day.

The probable new # 1 Alabama Crimson Tide now turns its attention to the LSU Tigers in what will be called the Nick Saban Bowl 2. While that is a good story, its certainly not the biggest. Alabama has far more to play for than just making their coach happy to beat his old team. They can clinch the SEC West title with a win in Death Valley, and also put a tighter grip on their national championship hopes with a win of that magnitude. You can beat the Tide will be ready for that one.

PIG'S PICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-10-31T06:57:00.020-06:00

I wont lie to you, last week was tough on Pig's Picks in the SEC. I missed some games but I have regrouped and you are still up in money for the year if you have gone with me every week. I apologize for last week and lets make back your money.

Game 1: Ole Miss vs. Awwwwburn (Ole Miss by 6 1/2)

Who would have predicted this line at the beginning of the year? Ole Miss favored by almost a touchdown over the awwwwburn Lambs? Ole Miss comes into this one after a big SEC West win over improving Arkansas last week and the Lambs come in after an embarrassing blowout loss last Thursday night at West Virginia. Ole Miss has lost four games but could have won all of them, including the Alabama game. That is the good and bad news. The good news is they are good enough to be in every game and have a shot at the end. The bad news is they usually find a way to lose. I have diagnosed this Mike Shula disease as he made this strategy famous (see about every game against the upper tier SEC teams in his tenure). Anyway the game is in Oxford and Houston Nutt has owned Tommy Tuberville in the past. Auburn is reeling and looks like they may have thrown in the towel for the 2008 season. Plus Tuberville hosed Ole Miss with the way he left them years ago. Sure it was a long time ago but the Rebels have not forgot the way he left or his terrible choice in clothing. Lets go with the Rebels.

PIG'S PICK: Hoddy Toddy

Game 2: South Carolina vs. Tennessee (South Carolina by 5 1/2)

Steve Spurrier returning to his home state next year to save the Vols from despair? I just completely made up that rumor but feel free to run with it if you want. I think a more likely scenario is the 'Ol Ball Coach wanting to stick another L on his old nemesis Fat Phil Fulmer. Everybody is taking their shots at Tennessee this year, as they are just plain bad. The Vols need to go 3-1 in their next four to become bowl eligible. The good news is the tough part of their schedule is over with as they have already taken their licks from Florida, Georgia, and Alabama, all of whom are in the top 10 nationally. You will hear how Tennessee is desperate for a win and will come out and play hard but once again, it wont really matter. The Vols just do not have the playmakers to move the ball consistently on the Gamecock defense. While I do not think South Carolina is the greatest thing since sliced bread I think they are good enough to beat this Tennessee team by at least 5 1/2 at home.

PIG'S PICK: Go Cocks

Game 3: Mississippi State vs. Kentucky (Miss. St. by 2 1/2)

I did some research and yes, both of these teams are still in the Southeastern conference playing football in 2008. I will keep this one short and sweet as I know you do not care about this game or its outcome. The game is in Starkville, MS so all 57 people at the game will give the Bulldogs a decisive home field advantage. Kentucky comes into this one with 5 wins and just needs one more to become bowl eligible. Mis-Stake enters this game with 3 wins and is probably close to giving up on coach Sly Croom and the 08 season. Kentucky got CRRRRUSHED last weekend by Florida and has guys like me starting due to the 493248903284320 injuries they have suffered. With that said I still like Grumpy Ol Rich Brooks and think he can rally the troops and get that elusive sixth win this weekend.

PIG'S PICK: Big Blue

Game 4: LSU vs. Tulane (LSU by 25)

The battle of Louisiana. Well not really because Tulane has turned out to be bad. LSU is coming off its second loss of the season (neither one of them being close games) and has a huge game next week against #2 Alabama and Nick Saban. LSU should roll in this one with the only exception being if they completely overlook the Green Wave. This is a huge line but I think it happens, barrrrrrrrrely.

PIG'S PICK: BAYOU BENGALS

Game 5: Tulsa at Arkansas (Tulsa by 7)

The Hogs a touchdown dog at home against the Golden Hurricane???? Wow, what a crazy season. I have to admit I have not seen Tulsa play this season so I have no idea if their record and top 25 record is legit or not. I am picking with my guy here and saying Coach Bobby Petrino and his Hawgs step up and at least cover in this one.

PIG'S PICK: PIG SOOIE

Game 6: Georgia vs. Florida ( In Jacksonville) (Florida by 6)

The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. A huge game in its own right, and even bigger this year as both teams are playing for the SEC Title and a chance to keep their national title hopes alive. Urban Cryer and Mark Richt both seem like arrogant jerks but are also great coaches. The Dawgs snapped the Gators streak over them last year with a big whipping and a famous personal foul call as the entire team stormed the field to celebrate the game's first touchdown. That is big news right now but won't be when the game starts. Georgia looked good against LSU last week but they are playing a better Gator team tomorrow with a lot to play for. I like future anger management patient Tim Tebow and the boys from Gainesville in this one BUT only by a FG...thus I like the Dawgs to cover.

PIG'S PICK: Georgia to cover, Florida to win

Game 7: # 2 Alabama vs. Arkansas St. (Alabama by 22 1/2)

Homecoming in Tuscaloosa. The 2nd ranked Crimson Tide step out of SEC play to take on the Arkansas St. Red Wolves in this one. I will keep this preview short and sweet. Alabama is better and should win by multiple touchdowns. Arkansas St. is not completely terrible however and has shown they can score (83 points in their second game) and has the top ranked defense in the Sun Belt Conference. They have lost three games this year but have not been blown out of any of them. They have also not played a team like Alabama yet. Alabama will win, but the question is will they let an inferior team hang around and let the game be closer than it should be? I hope not, but am going with history on this one, but I hope I am wrong.

PIG PICK'S: Arkansas St. to cover, Alabama to win.

Ramma Jamma in Neyland Stadium...What a Sweet Sound

2008-10-29T19:37:00.005-06:00

I realize we have moved on from the 29-9 win over Tennessee last week but I think you need to see this video. The Million Dollar Band playing "Ramma Jamma" at the end of Alabama's blow out win at Neyland Stadium. So make sure your volume is turned up, check out all the crimson, and enjoy Tide fans....

Ramma Jamma in Knoxville

Famous Arky State Alums

2008-10-29T07:40:00.011-06:00

We are introducing a new feature today on Inside the Tide...famous alumni from the schools we play. Many of you might not know a lot about Arkansas State University so here is an introduction to a few celebs who have spent time on the beautiful (or it could be awful, I have no idea) ASU campus in Jonesboro, AR.

1. Mike Beebe- Current Arkansas Governor. Maybe he can follow in the footsteps of other former famous Arky govs Bill Clinton (President/womanizer) or Mike Huckabee (Presidential candidate/TV talk show host) I am not kidding I saw a commercial for Huckabee's show the other day.

2. Jeremy Biggs- Professional Racquetball champion. There is pro racquetball?

3. Ray Brown- Former NFL Lineman that still holds the NFL record for playing 3498290348032 years in a row and started a game at age 104.

4. Rodger Bumpass- Voice of Squidward on SpongeBob Squarepants (Goat's favorite show). A true celebrity here.

5. Cleo Lemon- Greatest name and QB to ever play in the NFL. Cleo almost pulled off the impossible in trying to lead the 2007 Miami Dolphins to a winless season. Unfortunately, they ended up winning a game or two. Lemon currently holds 16 records for Arkansas State.

6. Debbye Turner- Former Miss America and current news broadcaster. You know we can't leave a Miss America off the list!

Game 9: Arkansas St. Preview

2008-10-28T10:58:00.008-06:00

The # 2 Alabama Crimson Tide football team continues its quest for a perfect season this week as they step out of SEC play to take on the Arkansas State Red Wolves of the Sun Belt conference. If you are reading this a little confused about the name Red Wolves you should be. Arkansas St. was formerly the Indians, but was forced to change their name when the NCAA apparently got bored, needed something to do, and made colleges with Native American type nicknames change them, unless they could get support from a particular tribe in the area. Apparently, the Native Americans around Jonesboro, AR did not go to bat for Arky St.

My knowledge of the state of Arkansas or wolves is not vast, so I have no idea if their are Red Wolves running around the state or they just put some names in a hat and Red Wolves won out. Enough about their name, lets take a look at their team.

Arky St. enters the game with a 4-3 record overall and is 2-1 in the Sun Belt conference. Arky St. is coming off a bye week and in their last appearance the Red Wolves dropped a tight game to the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragun Cajuns 28-23. Arkansas St. does come to Tuscaloosa with a fairly impressive resume this season, including a season opening win at Texas A&M.

After the Texas A&M win, Arkansas St. hung 83 on Texas Southern, in a 83-10 win. That was not a misprint....they scored 83 points. While I realize Texas Southern is not full of All-Americans, anytime you score 83 points on somebody you have an offense. In their three losses (Southern Miss, Memphis, and La-Lafayette) Arkansas St. is yet to really be blown out. Their largest margin of defeat was against Memphis 29-17, and that was a two point game with 3 minutes left.

Statistically the Red Wolves rank at the top of the Sun Belt Conference in most categories. On offense they are averaging 436 yards per game which is good for 3rd in the league and average 33 points per game, which is also good for 3rd in the Sun Belt and 22nd in the country. Junior QB Corey Leonard leads the Red Wolves offense with 1474 yards on the season and has thrown 11 touchdowns. He brings a very impressive 137.98 quarterback rating into Tuscaloosa. On the other side of the ball, they are ranked first in the Sun Belt in overall defense and give up the fewest points in the league giving up 335 yards per game and surrendering 21.6 PPG.

Alabama enters this game relatively healthy with nose guard Terrance Cody the only real notable starter not able to go in this game. While Arkansas State comes in with a big win over a power conference team, the Crimson Tide should be able to handle the Red Wolves on Saturday if we come to play. The challenge for Alabama is to keep focus against an inferior team coming off a big road win at Tennessee last week and a chance to wrap up the SEC West title next week at LSU. Hopefully Coach Saban can get through to his team that there is a lot to play for Saturday and can point back to the La-Monroe game last year as a point of reference as to what can happen when we just show up and don't come to play.

# 3 Penn St. is off this week and either # 1 Texas or # 6 Texas Tech will remain unbeaten after Saturday night, so Alabama can not afford to slip up to this team if they plan to play for it all in January. With only four regular season games remaining, I think the Tide realizes the importance of every game at this point in the year.

Titanic Victory

2008-10-28T10:01:00.007-06:00

I know this website caters to Alabama athletics and hardly ever leaves life in the SEC, but today is going to be different for two reasons. One, we are playing Arkansas St. this week, we should win the game going away, and there is not that much exciting information out there on the Red Wolves.

Second, Goat and I are big Tennessee Titans fans and they won a HUUUUGE game last night on Monday Night Football against the superpower that is the Indianapolis Colts 31-21.

For what seems like a lifetime the Titans along with the Jaguars and Texans have looked up at the Colts as they have dominated the AFC South year after year. 2008 appears to be different however as the Titans quest for perfection continued as they improved to 7-0 and now have a four game lead over the rest of the division as the Colts, Jaguars, and Texans are all 3-4.

Anyway, I wont ramble on but congratulations to the Titans on a huge win both in the standings and for the mental state of the team and their fans. Everybody now knows the Titans ARE better than the vaunted Colts. Plus, its always nice to beat ex-Vol Peyton Manning. Below is a real article about the game from a real writer.

Titans Beat Up Colts

# 2 Tide Holds off JoePa, Penn St. in Latest BCS Rankings

2008-10-26T19:51:00.004-06:00

All week long the talking heads of college football debated that if # 3 Penn St. went to # 9 Ohio St. and came out with a win and Alabama did not look impressive in Knoxville the Nittany Lions could jump Alabama in this week's BCS poll.

Luckily for us, Alabama did look impressive in a 29-9 win at Tennessee and held off Joe Paterno's team in the second BCS poll released earlier tonight. While Penn St. did close the gap behind Alabama this week their remaining strength of schedule will make it tough for Penn St. to catch Alabama unless we lose. The Nittany Lions have three games remaining against Iowa, Indiana, and Michigan St, none of which will be big enough to vault the Nittany Lions over either Alabama or Texas. Also, the Big 10 does not have a conference championship game unlike both the BIG IX and SEC.

The entire BCS poll is linked below:

Latest BCS poll

# 2 Alabama Blows Out Vols in Knoxville 29-9

2008-10-26T10:37:00.004-06:00

Before the game, I had many conversations with fellow Tide fans and the consensus in each one of those was that if we did not turn the ball over and give points to Tennessee, we would win the game. That said, you can imagine how excited I was from my top row seat (literally, I was sitting on the top row) when Javier Arenas fumbled a punt and gave Tennessee the ball on the 5 in the first quarter.

# 2 Alabama (8-0, 5-0) held the the Big Orange to a FG on that possession and dominated the game from that point in route to a 29-9 victory over Tennessee (3-5, 1-4) in Neyland Stadium Saturday night. It marks the second straight victory for the Tide over Phil Fulmer's bunch as the Tide routed the Vols 41-14 last year in Tuscaloosa.

QB John Parker Wilson did a great job of finding open receivers all night finishing 17-24 for 188 yards and added a rushing TD. He was efficient and did not put Alabama in a bad position at any point during the game. Wilson's favorite target was freshman phenomenon Julio Jones who finished the game with 6 receptions for 103 yards, which equated to a 17.3 average per catch.

If you read Inside the Tide earlier in the week you learned that Tennessee safety Eric Berry was the only Vol who would probably start for Alabama and that theory rang true Saturday night. As the game progressed it was evident that Alabama just simply had better, stronger, faster players. The only dark spot on the evening was special teams play which produced the above mentioned Arenas fumble and a partially blocked punt that put Tennessee in another good spot to score before half, but a combination of good defense and Vol penalties led to a missed FG attempt as the first half ended.

For the first time in the last few outings, the Crimson Tide dominated the second half outscoring Tennessee 16-6 and the six the Vols scored were garbage points with Alabama leading 29-3 at the end of the game against our second team defense. Alabama opened the second half with a FG and then drove down the field later in the 3rd quarter and scored on a QB sneak from Wilson. The game went downhill from there for the Vols as Alabama cruised to an easy win.

Alabama now turns its attention to next week's non-conference homecoming game against the Arkansas State Indians. With LSU's loss at home to Georgia yesterday, Alabama now just has to go 2-1 in its remaining three SEC games against LSU, Mississippi St., and Auburn to move on to the SEC Championship Game as the SEC West Champion.

PIG'S PICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-10-24T12:24:00.020-06:00

It is again that time for your favorite part of the week....PIG'S PICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If you took my advice last week and put down some doll-hairs then I made you rich (or at last got you 3 gallons of gas). Anyway another good slate of games to pick from this week including my favorite game in college football....The Third Saturday in October.

Game 1: Ole Miss @ Arkansas ( Ole Miss by 6 1/2)

Our first game is a tough one to call. Ole Miss has been up and down all season and Bobby Petrino's Hogs started the season looking horrible, but two those losses were against the # 1 and # 2 teams in the country right now in Texas and Alabama. They let one slip away last week blowing a big lead at Kentucky. While I think Ole Miss is the better team in this one I hate the game being in Fayetteville. However, I do like the fact that Goat's boy Houston Nutt is returning to Arkansas for the first time and you know he wants this one against his former employer. Nutt and his Rebels will pull out all the stops in this one and barely cover.

PIG'S PICK: Ole Miss

Game 2: # 5 Florida vs. Kentucky (Florida by 26)

26 point line in the SEC? Ouch, no love for the Cats. I realize the Gators are the better team. I realize the game is in Gainesville. But I believe in the Cats defense (kinda). The problem in this one is I am not sure if Kentucky's offense can score enough on Florida's D to keep this one close. Florida head man Urban Cryer also needs an impressive blowout win to impress the pollsters and up his chance of getting back into the national title game conversation. While I think he leaves his stars in to run the score up, I think the Kentucky coach Rich "Always Grumpy" Brooks and his Wildcat D will help their poor offense cover the spread.

PIGS PICK: Kentucky to cover, Florida to win

Game 3: Vandy vs. Duke ( Vandy by 10 1/2)

Put down the books and get out of the library you geeks, because a Vandy-Duke football game actually has some importance! Both teams are straining trying to get to that magical 6 wins and become bowl eligible for the first time since Jesus was a boy. Vandy has dropped two in a row after a 5-0 start but both of those were on the road in the SEC, so I will give them a little lee-way. Duke comes into the game sitting at 3-3 and has also lost two in a row. This is Vandy's best shot at getting that 6th win and they will take advantage. I like the 'Dores to bounce back at home and beat the Blue Devils with the ugly stick...the same one that was used on Coach K.

PIG'S PICK: Vandy

Game 4: # 9 Georgia @ # 11 LSU ( LSU by 1 1/2)

As an Alabama fan, I will be screaming my guts out for the Dawgs in this one to get LSU that second SEC loss. Unfortunately, I do not see it happening. While I like Georgia's playmakers (Stafford, Moreno, Green) I hate their O-Line. They are young, their best players are hurt and they are just not that good. Bad news considering the strength of LSU's team is their D-line. While I think Georgia is a solid team overall they have played a brutal schedule and been beat up a little bit. It is a long flight to Baton Rogue from Athens and Death Valley is a tough environment for a visiting team, especially in a game this important. LSU's offense is also showing signs of life. It pains me to say this but go with the Tigers.

PIG'S PICKS: LSU

Game 5: Mississippi State vs. Middle Tennessee St. (Miss St. by 10)

Do you care about this game? Absolutely not. But it involves a SEC team and you want to win some money. MTSU is about 25 minutes from my house so I am fairly familiar with their football team and have learned this...they step up against teams they should get crushed by (see Maryland). The opposite can be said for Mississippi State, they seem to lay a lot of eggs. Not sure if the Blue Raiders can win on the road but they will keep it within 10.

PIG'S PICK: MTSU (to cover)

Game 6: # 2 Alabama at Tennessee (Alabama by 4 1/2)

My favorite game of the entire college football season. I know, I know, the Iron Bowl is sweet, but I am old school and enjoy a good state school vs. state school battle. There is no way I can go to work Monday if we lose this game, and luckily for me I do not see that happening. The line for this one started around 7 and has come down a a good bit to 4 1/2. As gambling goes that is a big jump, so a lot of betters out there like the Vols to pull the upset at home. While I think Fat Phil will have his boys ready to go, I think Saint Nick will counter and have the Tide focused in Knoxville.

For whatever reason we have played much better on the road and when we feel threatened by a good team. Plus, I just do not think Tennessee has the playmakers to win. If you go position by position I would not trade any of our guys (with the exception of Vol safety Eric Berry). If Alabama does not turn the ball over, they will win. We need to beat them up on both sides of the ball and build an early lead and COME OUT AND FINISH IN THE SECOND HALF!!!! I think this is the week Alabama does that and I will enjoy that from my great seats in the nose-bleeds of Neyland Stadium. Hopefully I am sitting beside these two...
PIG'S PICK: ALABAMA

Somebody Get Tuberville a Crayola Box

2008-10-24T11:49:00.005-06:00

I have to admit before the West Virginia-awwwburn game last night I was fairly torn on what I wanted the outcome to be. Do I go with my instincts and root against the Tigers even if they were playing communist Russia? Or do I root for them because they are representing the SEC and it would potentially help our strength of schedule at the end of the year?

Well, when the game started my hatred of all things awwwburn won out and I was rooting heavily for the Mountaineers. That said this article is not about the game, or how the Tigers blew a 17-3 lead and let WVU rip off 31 straight points, or how they are now 4-4 overall. This article is about head coach Tommy Tuberville's jacket. What is that color? Is he hoping Mack Brown gets hit by a car and is showing the Texas people how good he looks in their burnt orange?

I simply do not understand this. The man makes millions, has an entire football staff at his disposal, and a wife who could pick something out for him! Auburn gives him free clothes to wear that are the right color! FREE CLOTHES! How hard is this? Look at the picture above, Kody Burns is even looking at him like what the heck is that jacket!

And gloves! Is he a 8 year old waiting at the bus stop! Be a man and take off the gloves! Hopefully you can tell by the 938490234 exclimation marks how mad this makes me, so I am going to stop writing. Please somebody get Tuberville a Crayola box so he can figure out this out.

Tide Basketball Team Predicted to Win SEC West

2008-10-24T11:11:00.004-06:00

The Alabama Crimson Tide basketball team is coming off a 5-11 SEC record last season, has missed the NCAA tournament the last two years, lost its best player to the NBA draft and best perimeter shooter to graduation. Sounds like its going to be a bleak year doesn't it?

Well, it wont be according to the SEC media who picked the Crimson Tide to win the SEC West this year. The biggest reasons for the preseason prediction is two fold: Alabama returns 9 players from last years team and returns All-American point guard Ronald Steele, who red shirted last season while recovering from knee problems that have plagued him the last two seasons. According to Steele his knee is finally back to normal.

"I'm just happy to be out there playing with no pain. I'm back to playing the game without thinking, without hesitation. And every day it gets better." Steele recently told the Huntsville Times. Returning with Steele this season is the only other senior Brandon Hollinger, junior Alonzo Gee, Yamene Coleman, Senario Hillman, and all everything 5- star recruit JaMychal Green.

I am not going to tell you losing PF Richard Hendrix to the NBA is not going to hurt, but big time programs have to go through this all the time and if Alabama wants to be a big time program they need to overcome this. Helping with that are that the early reports on Green have been outstanding. While he is still adjusting to the half court college game his athletic ability and size (6-9, 225 lbs.) as a 18 year old have everybody around the program excited.

That said, the bottom line for this team will rest with Steele. If he is truly healthy and his old self we will win a lot of games, if he is not, then we won't. Our non-conference schedule provides some exciting games including Alabama playing in the Maui Invitational opening up with the Oregon Ducks. Depending on the outcome of that game we will either play potential # 1 North Carolina or Chaminade, the UNC game will give us a good early look at our chances. Clemson and Georgia Tech also provide ACC non-conference competition early in the year. Below is the complete preseason poll.

SEC MEDIA PRESEASON BASKETBALL POLL
SEC EAST:
1. Tennessee
2. Florida
3. Kentucky
4. Vanderbilt
5. South Carolina
6. Georgia

SEC WEST
1. ALABAMA
2. LSU
3. Ole Miss
4. Miss St.
5. Auburn
6. Arkansas

Vols D-Coordinator John Chavis....A Cross-Dresser?!

2008-10-22T07:04:00.005-06:00

In this morning's Tennessean (Nashville's paper) Tennessee defensive coordinator John Chavis had an interesting response to a question posed by a reporter. The question was, "Are you scared that star safety Eric Berry could be used on offense?" A fair question since WR/QB Gerald Jones could be out for this game and Rocky Top is looking for playmakers on offense.

Chavis' response was a tad peculiar however. Instead of a basic Yes, blah blah blah or No, blah blah blah, Chavis gave us them gem of an answer...

"If I ever get to the point where I'm afraid of anything then I'm going to stay home. I can't wear my wife's dress right now-it's not the right size. But if I ever get afraid, I'm going to stay at home and probably start cross-dressing."

WHATTTTTTTTTT? What kind of an answer is that? Apparently Mr. Chavis just wanted a reason to talk about himself wearing something from Kohl's misses department, by the way stop in this weekend for Bonus Buys and outstanding deals on all your favorite brands. Is it just me or is it hard to see Nick Saban talking about himself cross dressing?

Lucky for you, Inside the Tide has acquired this never before seen photo of John Chavis participating in his favorite leisure activity. Enjoy Tide fans, Enjoy.

Game 9 Scouting Report: Tennessee

2008-10-21T10:37:00.006-06:00

2nd ranked Alabama travels north to Knoxville, TN this Saturday night to renew one of the best rivalries in college football...The Third Saturday in October. This year's Volunteers have been a big disappointment thus far and enter the game 3-4 overall and 1-3 in the SEC. Ranked in the top 25 in the preseason, many thought the Vols could challenge Florida and Georgia for the SEC title, but that has not come close to happening. Alabama might be visiting at a bad time however as last week as the Big Orange did play their best game of the year crushing visiting Mississippi State 34-3.

On offense Tennessee is led by new starting QB sophomore Nick Stephens. Stephens has taken over for often criticized Jonathan Crompton and played fairly well in his few starts. Stephens is completing 49.3 % of this attempts for 542 yards with 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. That is the biggest difference thus far between Stephens and Crompton, Stephens does not turn it over and put the Vols in awful situations. In multiple games this year (Florida & Auburn) Tennessee had costly fumbles or interceptions around their goal line that led to easy points for the other team. In the Auburn game in particular a botched hand-off attempt in their own end zone resulted in an Auburn touchdown, Tennessee lost that game 14-12.

The best play maker on offense for Tennessee is WR and sometimes QB Gerald Jones. Jones lines up at QB in Tennessee's "G-Gun" formation which is the Vols version of the "Wild Rebel" that we saw last week against Ole Miss. As seen last week Nick Saban has figured this thing out so I doubt Tennessee attempts its much on Saturday night. The Vols might not have the option as Jones left last Saturday's game in the 1st half with a high ankle sprain and did not return. Arguably the Vols best O-Lineman Anthony Parker also left the game with a high ankle sprain. Fulmer said both were questionable this week against the Tide (it would be nice if they missed a week).

On defense, Coach Fulmer's bunch has more success and a decent season so far. The D is led by one of the best safeties in America in former 5 star recruit and sophomore Eric Berry. Berry currently leads the SEC with 5 interceptions and has the ability to score any time he touches the ball. Tennessee enters the game 5th in the SEC in total defense right behind Alabama and give up an average of 16.0 points per game.

While this sounds really strange to say, we faced more individual play makers last week against Ole Miss than we will in Knoxville this weekend. I would take Jevan Sneed, Enrique Davis, Dexter McCluster and Greg Hardy at each of their positions over what Tennessee currently has. That said, Fulmer is usually at his best when his team is backed into a corner and a win over # 2 Alabama knocking them out of the national title game picture and ending their perfect season would make the Vols. That said, I think we are just better than Tennessee and seem to bring a different intensity and focus to road games. For whatever reason we have played much better on the road (Clemson, Arkansas, and Georgia) than we have in Bryant-Denny this season.

I see Tennessee playing hard and making it a good game for a while but Alabama has to many play makers for Tennessee to win this game. On a side note, Alabama leads the all time series with a record of 45-38-7.

Getting to Know Phillip Fulmer

2008-10-21T08:57:00.011-06:00

Tennessee Head Coach Phillip Fulmer is considered "The Dean of SEC coaches" mainly because he has been there since 1904. Phil takes a lot of crap from Alabama fans and I really do not understand why, Phillip has done a lot good things for many different people in his tenure at Tennessee. Let's take a closer look.

1. He has turned Tennessee into a basketball school...(girl's basketball). I am not kidding, the state has a license plate option for Lady Vol fans. Maybe Nashville will luck out and we can get a WNBA team!!!

2. Even with our current economic crisis Fulmer has single handily made millions for Krispy Kreme stock holders.

3. The state of Tennessee uses the sweat that Fulmer produces during a game to keep all of the bodies of water in the Volunteer state full during drought season.
-Note to Alabama Governor Bob Riley, there is some extra if you guys need it.

4. Fulmer is a Tennessee guy. He is from the state, played for the Vols, and truly bleeds orange. You have to respect a guy who loves the school he coaches that much. I did some investigating and got my hands on this never before seen picture from Fulmer's middle school.

5. We have to give credit to Fulmer for some of the great characters in American commercials and films. He was the inspiration for both the Michelin man and that huge white thing from Ghost Buster's movie.

6. Fulmer is also a national spokesperson for eating disorders. He is an inspiration to many young teenage girls throughout Tennessee for his work against anorexia.

As you can see we should not hate Phillip Fulmer, instead we should be thinking him. So from all Alabama fans, thank you Phil.

Tide Ranked 2nd in First BCS Poll

2008-10-20T06:21:00.002-06:00

It is only mid-October but Alabama controls its own destiny to the national title game. The first BCS (Bowl Championship Series) rankings were released yesterday and Alabama came in at # 2 behind # 1 Texas and in front of # 3 Penn State.

The gap between Alabama and Penn St. was actually much larger than some projected it would be Saturday night and with its remaining strength of schedule, including a possible SEC Title Game, the Crimson Tide would certainly play for it all if it remains unbeaten. The complete poll is linked below.

BCS STANDINGS

Bama-Vols Set to Play Under Lights

2008-10-19T19:31:00.003-06:00

Finally a game time is set!!!!

# 2 Alabama will take on the Tennessee Volunteers at 7:45pm ET in Neyland Stadium this Saturday night on ESPN. CBS decided to pick up the top 15 match up of Georgia at LSU at 3:30pm ET.

What does this mean? Cool atmosphere but a late drive back to Nashville after the game.

Hang On and Move On

2008-10-19T18:12:00.003-06:00

Another week, another heart attack. That is what Alabama football has become the last few weeks. 2nd ranked Alabama jumped out to a 24-3 lead over visiting Ole Miss at halftime only to see the Rebels storm back in the second half to make it a game, but with a final two minute defensive stand, Alabama (7-0, 4-0) hung on to pull out the 24-20 victory.

It was the same type of game that we saw two weeks ago against Kentucky and it certainly was not a pleasure for Alabama coach Nick Saban or any Alabama to watch, but alas, we won again and that is all the matters in the end.

With our remaining schedule being as tough as it is we could win all of our games by 1 point and be in the national title game. There is no doubt Alabama is going to have to play two halves of football to accomplish that feat. Our offense is going to have to make plays in the second half and not just rely on big halftime leads to be enough. Our defense is going to have to make more plays and crucial stops that kills the spirit of our opponent. That is what it is going to take for Alabama to play for it all. We can win games like this against Kentucky and Ole Miss....we can not against LSU or Florida.

Negativity aside, there is something to be said for winning close games. In the last five years in Tuscaloosa we always seemed to find a way to lose these types of games, now we are finding ways to win them, and that is huge.

We now turn to Tennessee who is coming off their most impressive win of the year man-handling Mississippi State at home 34-3 yesterday. Going to Knoxville will be a challenge but given our history this season I am kinda looking forward to a road game performance.

PIG'S PICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-10-17T19:46:00.015-06:00

Another great week of games and another edition of Pig's Picks...your source for making a lot of money without working. Looking at this week's slate of games in the SEC I have decided this week is "Egyptian Cotton Week". These lines are so big there is no way the underdogs cant cover these spreads. Egyptian cotton covers....get it?

Game 1: Tennessee vs. Mississippi State (Tennessee by 7 1/2)

Ah yes its been another exciting week for an Alabama fan living in the Volunteer state. Both of these teams have underachieved this season giving their preseason expectations. Tennessee was ranked looking to repeat as SEC East champs and Miss St. was looking to turn the corner after their first bowl appearance under Sly Croom. This game is in Knoxville so I understand throwing the Vols a few points but 7 1/2 is a lot and the Bulldogs are coming off a big win over Vandy last weekend. I see this game coming down to the wire with the Fightin' Sly Crooms' covering this spread.

PIG'S PICK: Mississippi State to cover

Game 2: # 10 Georgia vs. # 22 Vanderbilt ( Georgia by 15)

Conventional wisdom and years of playing each other would leave the average mind to say "Georgia is good, Vandy is Vandy and there is no way the Dawgs won't cover." Good thing I am a genius. Here are some facts. Georgia is not as good as we thought they were. Vandy is better than we thought they were but not great. Georgia has more talent than the Dores. Vandy has a lot of heart and will play UGA hard. People see the name Vandy and assume they are terrible, but this team is not. Go against your conventional wisdom and go with Pig. Take the Dores to cover.

PIG'S PICK: Vandy to cover

# 13 LSU at South Carolina (LSU by 2 1/2)

Holy smokes how LSU got smoked last weekend and I have to admit I loved it!!!!! On the other side South Carolina has been hot as a firecracker lately and gets the Bayou Bengals in Columbia. Everything looks ripe for an upset in this one but NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND!!!!! While South Carolina will play for the Tigers hard LSU will have to much talent in the end and pull away from the Gamecocks. On a side note I really hope I am wrong for Alabama's sake and South Carolina wins and have their ever been two crazier coaches than Spurrier and Miles going against each other?

PIG'S PICK: LSU

Arkansas at Kentucky ( Kentucky by 7 1/2)

These two teams are just not very good and average at best. Kentucky just does not have the talent on the offensive side of the ball and Arkansas is young, rebuilding, and adjusting to Bobby Petrino. The Hogs did score a huge win at awwwwburn last weekend (hahaha). Anyway you don't need to hear about this game because I know you do not care. This one will be close with Kentucky winning in the end and the Hogs cover.

PIG'S PICK: Arkansas to cover

# 2 Alabama vs. Ole Miss (Alabama by 12 1/2)

Ohhhh how I hate this game. Both teams are coming off a bye week so they should be well prepared for each other and relatively healthy. I say I hate this game for a few reasons. 1. We tend to play a lot better as the underdog (Clemson and Georgia) and struggle as big favorites (Tulane and Kentucky). The key to this one is getting to Rebel's QB Jevan Sneed and making him feel uncomfortable. If Alabama lets him sit in the pocket all day he will find open guys. On the other hand I think Alabama will be ready for this one. Ole Miss beating Florida at home a few weeks ago can do nothing but help us be ready to go. I also like the game being in Tuscaloosa. I like the Tide to win, just don't think it will be by 13 plus.

PIG'S PICK: Ole Miss (to cover, Alabama will win the game)

Former Tide Great Shaun Alexander Signs with Redskins

2008-10-14T15:34:00.013-06:00

This is not huge news on the national front but it is GIAAANT news to me, so I am letting you know about it. One of my favorites of all time and former Alabama great running back Shaun Alexander signed a deal with my beloved Washington Redskins this afternoon.

Alexander was signed because Redskins backup RB Ladell Betts injured his knee Sunday against the Rams. The plan is for Alexander to backup starting RB Clinton Portis but at least our boy Shaun is back in the league. The full story is linked below.

Shaun is a 'Skin

By the way, for those of you reading this and who know me a Shaun Alexander Redskins jersey would be a sweet gift.

Would the real Ole Miss Rebels please stand up...

2008-10-14T10:16:00.004-06:00

2nd ranked Alabama has had two weeks to prepare for this Saturday's game against the University of Mississippi Rebels. The only problem is you are never sure what Ole Miss team you are going to get any given week.

In his first year, Head Coach Houston Nutt has brought some new wrinkles to Oxford and there is no doubt Ole Miss is better this year than they have been in the past, largely due to their new QB Jevan Sneed. The Achilles heel of this team, however, has been its inconsistency.

Let's review the Rebels season so far. At 3-3 this is how Ole Miss has gotten there: Memphis-Win, Wake Forrest-Loss, Samford-Win, Vandy-Loss, Florida-Win, South Carolina-Loss. Do you notice the trend here? They win one, lose one. Unfortunately for us, they are due for a win using this formula. Some will say that two of their three wins are against inferior competition in Memphis and Samford. The bad or good news for Alabama, depending on how you look at it, is their shocking win over then # 4 Florida at The Swamp.

On one hand, it should scare Tide fans in the fact that if Ole Miss is good enough to go to Gainesville and beat the Gators, they can come to Tuscaloosa and beat us. On the other hand, it might help Alabama keep a focus on Ole Miss and not look ahead. Watching every minute of Alabama football this season and in the years past, you can also see a trend that has developed. We play our best when we are truly challenged. Our two best performances this year have been when we enter the game as an underdog, Clemson and Georgia. We had far more talent and blew out Western Kentucky and played great at rebuilding Arkansas but went through the motions and did not look good against Tulane and Kentucky. I wrote off the Kentucky performance to the Cats being better than we originally thought, but then a very average South Carolina team goes to Lexington last week and takes it to 'em.

Even looking back at last season the same Alabama team blows out eventual SEC East champ Tennessee then has one of the worst losses in school history to LA-Monroe at home a few weeks later. The reality is this has been Alabama football in recent history....playing to competition.

I give you that rant to prove why I think Ole Miss winning at Florida will help Alabama. We need to be ready to go or this team will beat us. If the Kentucky and Tulane games proved anything it proved Alabama is not good enough to just show up and win, we have to give everything we have every week if we want this dream year to continue. While Alabama has looked like the better team thus far and has far more to play for, this is a game to be nervous about given Ole Miss' recent trend....just ask the Urban Meyer.

A Tribute to Coach O

2008-10-14T08:44:00.008-06:00

As we all know it is Ole Miss week and the Rebels come to Tuscaloosa under new coach Houston Nutt. We have all week to preview Nutt and his 2008 Rebels, but let us take a look back at the greatest coach in Ole Miss history...Ed Orgeron.

This link gives us a look at my hero.

Coach O's record at Ole Miss was 10-25 overall and 3-21 in the SEC and has to live life knowing he never beat Mike Shula (ouch), but that does not matter. What does matter is that you could not understand a word the man said, he was jacked, and probably my favorite college coach ever this side of Nick Saban.

Sure, Nutt may have a better SEC record but more importantly, who would you take in a fight?

Ronald P. McDonald Accepts awwwburn OC position

2008-10-13T07:20:00.004-06:00

While I realize this is not relevant specifically to Alabama athletics, I would not be doing my job if I did not report that Auburn University named fast food legend and well known funny man Ronald P. McDonald their new offense coordinator effective immediately. While this might come as a shocking move to many head coach Tommy Tuberville feels this is the best solution for his team's offense woes after his Tigers dropped a 25-22 stunner at home to lowly Arkansas on Saturday.

On a 4:15am phone call last night Tuberville gave Inside the Tide the scoop.

"Our offense has been a joke for a long, long time and we feel that Ronald, with his clown experience can add a lot to our program. While McDonald does not have any formal coaching experience he has proved successful in the past at making people smile at kid's birthday parties and is one of the best plastic ball pit operators in the country.

"The first thing I am going to do is fix the makeup of our players." When asked what he felt was wrong with the mental makeup of his players McDonald responded, "No. I am talking about actual makeup...for their faces."

Another key element McDonald brings to Auburn is his great style. Not coaching style, actual style. While he does not dress quite as dapper as Head Coach Tuberville, his MC Hammer pants and striped socks should fit in nicely with the rest of the Auburn staff.

A very inside source (The Hamburgler) also told me in confidence that McDonald was actively recruiting his good friend Grimace (pictured) to quarterback the Tigers next season and was quoted as saying "He can't be any worse than what we have right now."

PIG'S PICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-10-08T10:29:00.019-06:00

Ahhh yes, another addition of Pig's Picks. Hopefully you took my advice last week and made some cheddar from my 3-1 record against the spread. Since I have to head out of town early for my boy Brian Burton's wedding this week in Virginia here is an early addition of Pig's Picks.

South Carolina @ Kentucky (Kentucky by 1)

I have to admit I was impressed with both Kentucky's defense and Gamecock QB Chris Smelley last week as he lead South Carolina to an impressive road win at Ole Miss and UK made Alabama sweat at home. I feel pretty good about the Wildcats in this one. This makes back to back road games for South Carolina and I think Kentucky is a good, underrated team. Plus, it is real tough for me to respect a team that has a chicken on their helmet. Take the Fightin' Rich Brooks' in this one.

PIG's PICKS: BIG BLUE

#13 VANDERBILT at MISSISSIPPI STATE (Vandy by 2 1/2)

You might be thinking 2 1/2 is a very small line for team ranked # 13 playing at a terrible Mississppi St. team that comes into this one really struggling. My inside sources (Beano Cook) told me there is a reason this line is so small. Vandy is coming off one the biggest wins in school history, they are due for a let down, and they have to travel a good distance to beautiful downtown Starkville, MS (I'm kidding about beautiful and downtown) for this one. There were a few folks who were on the Miss St. bandwagon before the year ( I even thought they would be better than this) but something has gone wrong for Sly Croom's boys thus far. I see Mis-Stake keeping this one close throughout, but think Vandy will win by at least a FG.

PIGS PICK: SHOW YOUR GOLD (Barely)

Arkansas at # 20 Auburn (Auburn by 19)

Wow ,I really do not know what to say about this one. First of all, how is awwwburn still ranked with 2 losses and no wins over quality teams? Auburn still has a good defense but their offense has been turrrrible. Arkansas has just been brutal in every aspect, even the awful hats Bobby Petrino wears ( I think he went to the hometown Wal-Mart for the one he wore last week). The game is in Auburn but Arkansas has historically given Ears Tubbervile fits...but that was Houston Nutt's old Hogs, not this weak Petrino bunch. I like Auburn to win, just not by 19 plus. Another 3-2 win for the the war buzzards?

PIGS PICK: PIG SOOIE (To cover, not win)

Tennessee @ # 10 Georgia (Georgia by 12)

Ohhhhhh what a year for the Vols. Coming into this game a dozen point underdog Rocky Bottom is looking at a 2-4 start and 0-3 SEC record in the face, so you know they will come out desperate. It wont matter, as they have been that bad. Tennessee got a HUUUGE win over Northern Illinois last week (sarcasm) in a 13-9 blowout that many Vol fans considered a "moral defeat". Georgia is coming off a bye week after an embarrassing loss to Alabama and should be ready for this one. I still do not think Georgia is as good as we are told before the year, but they are certainly better than Tennessee in Athens.

PIGS PICKS: HUNKER DOWN DAWGS

# 4 LSU at # 11 Florida (Florida by 6)

A team that has alrady lost to Ole Miss and ranked # 11 favored by six over an undefeated defending national champion ranked # 4? This does not make sense to me. I realize the game is in the Swamp, but LSU has won 2 out of the last 3 in Gainesville. I have watched both teams a few times and agree that neither has looked unstoppable but are both very talented and quality teams. This one comes down to the wire and while I do not think LSU will win (I really hope they don't for Alabama's case), I think they keep it within 6 points and cover.

PIG'S PICK: GEAUX TIGERS (To cover, not win)

Finally...A Decent Act for Homecoming

2008-10-08T06:59:00.002-06:00

As the bye week random article train keeps rolling along here is some more good news for Alabama football fans. After years of questionable musicians playing Homecoming, Alabama has gone out and got a sure crowd pleaser...Mr. Hank Williams Jr. More details in the article below.

Bocephus at the Capstone

Even Vandy Fans Hate Auburn and Tennessee!!!

2008-10-08T06:48:00.004-06:00

Here is a little Wednesday morning humor for you on a bye week. These pictures was taken last Saturday in Nashville as # 19 Vanderbilt upset # 13 Auburn 14-13. It is always great when a historical SEC bottom dweller can make fun of your two biggest rivals for you. Nice work Dore fans, nice work.

AP Voting Breakdown

2008-10-06T09:03:00.003-06:00

We are off this week so you will find a lot of reaching for material since we have no opponent to talk about. Below is a link to see how each AP voter had Alabama this week. An interesting find is that one gentleman had us ranked # 4 in his poll while he had LSU at # 2. What is interesting about this? He is from Baton Rogue, LA.

13 voters had Alabama # 1, 27 had us at # 2, 15 had us at # 3, 9 had has at # 4, and one guy who must not watch college football had us at # 5. College Gameday host Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit both have the Tide # 2. Anyway attached is the poll.

Alabama Week 7 Breakdown

News from Nashville

2008-10-06T07:11:00.004-06:00

Here is an update from the Music City for all those wondering.

-Vandy fans are on top of the world with their win over awwwwburn and new # 13 ranking.
-The Presidential debate here is tomorrow night so everybody is jacked up about that.
-The Titans are 5-0 so that is sick.

But this picture does a great job of summing up what is happening in the state of Tennessee.

Kentucky Game Thoughts

2008-10-05T12:22:00.006-06:00

There are a few things we can take away from 2nd ranked Alabama's 17-14 win over Kentucky yesterday. First of all, the majority of Alabama fans I have spoke with need to relax and enjoy another SEC win. Kentucky came into the game undefeated, on the verge of being in the Top 25 and, in my opinion, better than most of America thinks they are. I predict the Wildcats finish higher than both South Carolina and Tennessee in the SEC East.

This said I am not trying to make excuses for Alabama. Did we play well? No. Were there times during the game where we looked bad? Yes. Are we the second best team in the country? I don't know, but it really does not matter. Halfway through the regular season Alabama is in the national title game conversation rather you think they should be or not. As for the rankings whether we are ranked 1st, 5th or anywhere in between it really does not matter because of the remaining schedule.

#1 Oklahoma, #3 Missouri, and #5 Texas of the BIG XII will begin to knock each other out in the next few weeks. Texas still has to play Oklahoma, so somebody is losing. Texas has to play Missouri, so somebody is losing. If Missouri beats Texas and everybody else they will have to play the BIG XII South winner(Texas or Oklahoma) in the Big XII Title game. Bottom line: One team comes out of the BIG XII.

#2 Alabama and #4 LSU have a date in Baton Rogue in November that will settle that debate if both teams are still unbeaten. LSU also has top-15 Florida and Georgia left on their schedule before they meet the Crimson Tide. Alabama has Auburn, Tennessee, and multiple other trap games left on their schedule. If we are sitting 12-0 or with 1 loss they then would have to go to the SEC Title Game against the East champ ( I hope its Vandy). Bottom line: One (or none) team gets out of the SEC undefeated.

I give you that mini schedule to prove the point that the rankings do not matter in week 6, so just enjoy it. Alabama has been down for so long why are we nervous/anxious about being ranked #2 in America? As fans we just need to enjoy it and our players just need to forget it and win one game at a time...that is all they can control.

Also, think about what a difference a year or two makes. A Mike Shula Alabama team losses that game yesterday (No offense Mike). With Kentucky having the momentum and our offense in a coma in the 2nd half we drove the ball downfield, ate the clock, kicked a FG and iced the game. A drive like that against a good SEC defense in that situation has not happened for us in years. Have we gotten such big heads we can not enjoy a nice SEC win? Sure we played bad but I cannot remember any undefeated team without close games along the way, but those teams find a way to win the games and move on, we did that. We have played 6 games and won 6 games, I am not a math major but you cannot do much more than that.

General point Tide fans.....Let's just enjoy our great season and being extremely relevant on the national stage and in the SEC Title race again.

p.s. I went 3-1 in my picks last week. Maybe Wall Street needs me to bail them out.

Not Such a Fantastic Finish

2008-10-05T09:18:00.010-06:00

Glenn Coffee (38) rushes past UK defender on his way to a career high 219 yards

After Alabama jumped to a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter as a result of Kentucky's quarterback, Mike Hartline's, fumble near his own endzone and Alabama's defense rumbling in for six and Glenn Coffee's 78 yard touchdown run, an eerie feeling of complacency seemed to come over the team and the entire stadium.

Heck, I even found myself feeling confident, even after all of the disappointment and disgust I have been put through over the last ten years. It was hard not to say to yourself, "Hey, we should have scored on every drive!"

“We’re certainly happy with the win,” Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban said. “But we put on a clinic for how to keep the other team in the game.”

Kentucky's defense was very physical. It seemed as if when we hit them in the mouth, they hit right back. This is something the 2008 Alabama Crimson Tide has not been accustomed to.
If Alabama is to gain the success all Tide fans long for in this 2008 season, games like this will go a long way toward them doing so.

A great coach said, "You show me someone who is successful, and I'll show you someone who has gone through adversity" - Lou Holtz

In previous years, the Tide would have lost this game. We would have completely lost our focus and execution for such a length of time that we would have gift wrapped a win for the Wildcats and sent them riding an impressive 5-0 record and a defeat of the number two team in the country all the way back to Lexington.

But there comes the difference in mindset Saban has infused into our players. We no longer run from adversity, we embrace it.

The Tide showed heart on Saturday night, a champions heart. One many Tide fans haven't seen since Ben Matlock ruled the Hollywood courtroom.

PIG'S PICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-10-03T13:31:00.011-06:00

For those of you out there who know me you know how incredibly intelligent I am. One of my many talents is the ability to win you money picking college football games.

You might be asking yourself "If you are so smart why don't you bet and make a bunch of money for yourself?" Good question and the answer is simple....my wife won't let me, and I do what she says.

Anyway lets look at this weeks SEC games, you listen to Pig's Picks and write in next week and let me know how much money I made you. If you lose then betting is a sin and you should stop anyway.

SEC SLATE:

# 2 Alabama vs. Kentucky Line: Alabama by 15.5 points

Alabama will win the game but will not play their best coming off their huge win last week and 15.5 is a lot of points to cover against a somewhat good SEC team. The Tide wins, but take the Fightin' Rich Brooks' to cover. The more important questions in this game are 1. Where will I park? 2. How nice is the new Houndstooth?

PIGS PICK: Kentucky to cover

# 12 Florida at Arkansas Line: Florida by 24 1/2

That is a ton of points to give up. Florida just dropped a stunner to Ole Miss at home. Arkansas is brutal. Just brutal. This is not a good recipe. Sure Florida has to travel a long way for the game but it should not matter. Florida rolls over the hapless Hogs.

PIG'S PICK: Florida

# 13 Auburn at # 19 Vandy Line: Auburn by 4

Lot of questions here. Why is Auburn's offense so bad? Is this Vandy team for real? Is College Gameday really in Nashville? Why is College Gameday coming to Nashville the one time I won't be here? Will all 7 Vandy fans show up at 9am for Gameday? Could I play QB for Auburn? Anyway back to the game. When Tommy Tuberville called me this week for clothing advice I told him to ditch the spread and run the ball like a man. I also told him to stick to his current wardrobe and wear 45 layers and just pick random colors. He will listen for at least a week. I say Auburn wins the game but its CLOOOOOOOSE! My Magic 8 Ball tells me a late FG gives awwwwwwwwwburn the win.

PIG'S PICK: VANDY to cover

South Carolina at Ole Miss Line: Ole Miss by 2 1/2

Can Tuscaloosa native and Gamecock quarterback Chris Smelley outplay Ole Miss QB Jevan Sneed in Oxford? No. My inside sources (ESPN) tell me freshman QB Stephen Garcia will not start but get plenty of time to try to get South Carolina their first SEC win since 1947. No but seriously the Gamecocks have lost 6 SEC games in a row.

PIG'S PICK: OLE MISS

Game Six Preview: Kentucky

2008-10-03T07:44:00.004-06:00

The 2nd ranked and undefeated Alabama Crimson Tide football team welcomes another undefeated foe this weekend as the Kentucky Wildcats come to Tuscaloosa.

Kentucky (4-0), who probably has not received enough attention five weeks into the year, began the season with a surprising 27-2 win at Louisville in front of a national television audience in impressive fashion. Since then Kentucky has feasted on a directional school buffet with wins over Nofolk St., Middle Tennessee St., and Western Kentucky (this is the reason you have not heard much about UK this year).

Although they have not played a tough schedule thus far, UK has shown they can be a good team. Also a concern is a possible mental letdown from Alabama coming off a gigantic win last weekend at # 3 Georgia. Anytime you win a game that big and move to # 2 in the nation the risk of letting success go to your head is always there. Kentucky Head Coach Rich Brooks does not think that will happen.

"All I know is we've got to play them and what they've done the week before isn't a significant factor," Brooks said of Alabama. "The fact is they are the No. 2 team in the nation, they are undefeated and the closest game they've had is Tulane and they probably weren't as interested in that game as the others. Alabama has made a statement and is on a mission. We know Coach Saban is very good at keeping his team focused."

You are right Coach Brooks, it does seem Coach Saban is very good at that. As we were all celebrating the win last weekend Nick Saban was on every TV channel in America talking about how bad we played in the 2nd half. While he did finally admit he was very happy with the win you could tell Saban would make sure Alabama would be ready to go for this game.

Enough on that, now to some notes on Kentucky....

-First-year starter Mike Hartline has thrown for 633 yards this season and three touchdowns in his last two contests as he continues to improve.

"I am about as pleased as I can be for what he has done in his first four starts," Brooks said about Hartline. "He is throwing the ball more consistently than I felt he would."

A key to winning this game is stopping Hartline and his favorite target Dicky Lyons (have to respect a grown man who goes by Dicky). Our boy Dicky has 25 receptions, 189 yards, and a touchdown in the year.

Anyway you do not care about all this and I will not bore you with what Alabama can and can't do (cover punts and kickoffs) because if you are reading this you already know those things.

Bottom line: Alabama wins the game, but does not cover. Final score: 'Bama 24-14.

Is Anyone Really Legit?

2008-09-30T18:44:00.006-06:00

As we navigate through the 2008 college football season, one thing is for certain, after a team is defeated by Alabama they suddenly lose their reputation as a upper echelon football team.

Prior to Alabama's victory over Clemson in the Georgia Dome, the Tigers were seen by many analysts and fans throughout the country to be a national title contender, but after the Tide had their way with the on the field turf in Atlanta they were simply another "sad" excuse for another over hyped Clemson team.

Then you have the meeting "between the hedges" in Athens this past weekend. My question is where were the skeptics of Georgia before the game? All Alabama fans heard throughout the week prior to the game was, "Georgia's skill people are just to much to overcome for the Tide."

Good call on that, skeptics.

Georgia's vaunted running back, Knowshon Moreno, had 34 yards on nine carries. While Matthew Stafford was knocked to the ground so often by the Tide's defense he was unable ,to participate in the post game press conference due to headaches.

Even Georgia Coach Mark Rict has to search for a "silver lining".

"Let's talk about the game, or at least let's talk about the second half," said Richt, whose team trailed 31-0 at halftime. "We won 30-10. We dominated them in the second half."

I guess he's a "glass half full" kind of guy. The only problem is the other half of the glass spilled in his lap. Sometimes it seems people have real difficulty giving somebody, or in this case some team, their just deserves.

Somebody Needs a Pick-Me-Up!

2008-09-30T18:41:00.002-06:00

Monday's Roll Tide News

2008-09-29T15:56:00.005-06:00

Below is a link detailing today's activities in the world of Alabama football given to you by our boy Ian Rapoport of the Birmingham News.

MONDAY'S RAP SHEET

While you never want to see injuries during the middle of SEC play, the tender hamstring of WR Mike McCoy will allow Alabama to build some depth at the position with Nikita Stover, Will Oakley, and B.J. Scott likely getting more looks if McCoy can not go Saturday against Kentucky.

BAMA In the National Title Game...Would I Lie to You?

2008-09-28T19:08:00.006-06:00

I took a gander at ESPN.com's latest bowl projections on Sunday night and found something interesting....us in the BCS Title Game against the Oklahoma Sooners or Missouri Tigers. While nobody has yet to identify what exactly a Sooner is, it would be awesome to play them, or anybody else, in the title game.

Are we getting ahead of ourselves??? Absolutely, but after the last few years of mediocrity all this positive national attention has me feeling like Terrence Cody walking into a Golden Corral....amazing.

Here is the link:

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/bowlprojection?season=2008&week=5

Stafford Needs Some BC Powder

2008-09-28T16:12:00.007-06:00

Just moments after his offense was undressed by the 'Bama defense, Georgia Quarterback Matthew Stafford, refused to
participate in the post game press conference due to extreme headaches.

"(Director of Sports Medicine) Ron (Courson) does not think it was a concussion, but (Stafford's) head was knocked around pretty good," Richt said. "There was no loss of consciousness or thought process or anything like that, he was fine in that regard."

True this is no laughing matter, but it is sort of funny. You see Georgia, you aren't in Tempe anymore, nor or we Hawaii.

Alabama is winning by dominating competitors in the trenches. Not only are the "Big Uglies" dominating defensive lines, but they are dominating the previous number one rush defense in the country.

This Alabama team still has a LONG way to go, but shows more signs for the 'Bama nation to be excited than we have seen in the last fifteen years.

# 8 BAMA LIGHTS UP # 3 DAWGS IN ATHENS

2008-09-28T11:41:00.008-06:00

All week we heard about the vaunted "blackout" at Sanford Stadium in Athens, GA Saturday night. When the game started it looked like the the # 3 Georgia Bulldogs had "blacked-out".

# 8 Alabama (5-0, 2-0) dominated from the first play and scored on its first five possessions to take a 31-0 lead into halftime, answering any lingering questions if this Crimson Tide team is legit.

Nick Saban had Alabama ready to play in a hostile environment for the second week in a row and completely out-coached Georgia's Mark Richt.

It was really the same ole story we have seen all year as the Tide just flat beat the other team up on both sides of the ball. Our offensive line dominated a Dawg defense that came into the match up # 1 in the country against the run, and our defense had Georgia QB Matthew Stafford running for his life all night and made Heisman contender Knowshon Moreno irrelevant in the outcome.

I will not bore you with stats or how it got a little hairy in the 2nd half (pun intended) after Georgia got within 14 points. The bottom line is Alabama answered the Georgia run, went on the road in the SEC against the # 3 team in America and beat the tar out of them...when is the last time we can say that happened?

After Alabama opened the season with a huge win against then # 9 Clemson the story was not how good Alabama looked, but how bad Clemson did, it will be the exact opposite this week. The story is not what happened to Georgia but how much better Alabama was then the 'Dawgs in their own backyard.

Alabama now will be in the national championship conversation, for at least a week. Alabama has another big test as undefeated Kentucky comes to Tuscaloosa this Saturday, but we can worry about that in a few days. Today is just about enjoying Alabama being one the premier teams in America again.

We're Back

2008-09-26T16:07:00.003-06:00

I apologize for the long absence and lack of post in the last few months. I am sure the lack of my Alabama athletic insight has made you feel like Terrance Cody at a salad bar...depressed. The only excuses I can give you are getting married, starting life in the real world, moving to a new city and working all the time....I know, they are all weak, but we are back...just like the Alabama football program (maybe). I look forward to providing you new post to laugh at from here on out.

In unrelated news, do any of you remember Lou Holtz's acting career?

Men's Golf Advances to NCAA Finals

2007-05-22T08:52:00.000-06:00

The Alabama men's golf team finished second at the NCAA Central Regional Tournament and will now advance to the NCAA Finals which will be held on May 29-June 2 in Williamsburg, VA. The Crimson Tide finished with a team score of 898 and Alabama’s Michael Thompson finished tied for fourth at 220 after firing a 2-under 70 on Saturday.

Tulsa won the regional at 31-over par 895. The 10 teams that advanced from the regional into the team finals were Tulsa (895), Alabama (898), Louisville (899), Lamar (900), Tennessee (904), Oklahoma State (906), Texas Tech (907), Michigan State (915), Texas (918) and Minnesota (918).

Alabama’s Matthew Swan finished with a 226, Mark Harrell had a 227, Gator Todd a 230 and Joseph Sykora a 235.

It is the second time coach Jay Seawell has taken Alabama to the finals. His 2005 team finished tied for sixth at the NCAA East Regional to advance and finished 28th overall in the NCAA finals at Caves Valley Club in Owings Mills, Md.

It will be the 10th time in school history that Alabama has been to the finals. Its best finish was a tie for third in 1975 when Jerry Pate was a player.

The 30 teams that will be competing for a national championship, 7 are from the SEC, are as follows:

Alabama, Arizona, Arizona State, Auburn, Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, Duke, East Tennessee State, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia State, Georgia Tech, Lamar, Louisville, Michigan State, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, South Carolina, Southern California, Stanford, Tennessee, Texas, Texas Tech, Tulsa, UCLA, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest.

SEC Baseball Tournament Bracket Announced

2007-05-21T08:29:00.000-06:00

The 2007 SEC Baseball Tournament is set to begin Wednesday morning at Regions Park (formerly the Hoover Met) in Hoover, AL with the 7th seeded Alabama Crimson Tide and 2nd seeded Arkansas Razorbacks playing in Game 1 at 10 AM. Alabama took two of three from Arkansas two weeks ago in Tuscaloosa and will probably face Roger Clemens Award nominee Nick Schmidt in game one. Alabama defeated Schmidt two weeks ago when he only lasted 3 plus innings making it his shortest outing of the year and giving him his first loss of the season. While Arkansas did earn the 2nd seed they have struggled down the stretch losing their last three SEC series to LSU, Alabama, and Ole Miss.

Alabama's game will be followed by 6th seeded Florida taking on 3rd seed South Carolina. Vanderbilt earned the league's top seed and will play in the third game on Wednesday against rival and 8th seeded Tennessee, who clinched a tournament berth on the last day of the season with a win over Florida. In the night cap, 4th seeded Mississippi State will meet rival and 5th seeded Ole Miss in the last game of the day.

Auburn, Georgia, LSU, and Kentucky were the four SEC teams that did not make the eight team field. It was the first time in 22 years that LSU failed to make the SEC Tournament.

The complete SEC Baseball Tournament bracket can be seen by clicking here: 2007 SEC Tourney

Tide Softball Wins Tuscaloosa Regional

2007-05-20T18:22:00.000-06:00

The 5th ranked and top seeded Alabama softball team had their backs against the wall this weekend after a day one loss to Tennessee Tech in the NCAA softball Tuscaloosa Regional. Alabama had to win 4 games in two days to continue their season and they did just that.

After defeating 2nd seeded Cal and 3rd seeded Florida State on Saturday, the Crimson Tide beat 4th seeded Tennessee Tech twice on Sunday to advance to a NCAA Super Regional. Alabama won Sunday's games 19-10 and 7-2 in front of 1,289 enthusiastic fans at the Alabama Softball Complex to advance in the NCAA Tournament.

Blair Potter was the star of the day as she pitched both games throwing 221 pitches, 146 of them strikes, striking out 16 batters in 12 2/3 innings. Potter allowed four earned runs on 12 hits with three walks to run her record to 20-2.

“If I had to throw a few more I think I could do it,” Potter said. “I didn’t expect to start again, but it’s nice to know the coaches think I can to it.

The Crimson Tide offense also pounded the same pitcher that held them to one run in the tournament's first game. Tennessee Tech’s Bonnie Bynum, who had baffled Alabama and California on the tournament’s first two days, gave up 11 runs (eight earned) on eight hits in eight innings with just one strikeout on the final day.

Alabama (54-8) will now travel approximately 2,645 miles to Seattle, WA to take on the PAC 10's Washington Huskies (38-17), who beat Georgia on Sunday to win the Lincoln (Neb.) Regional, for a best-of-three Super Regional. The NCAA is expected to announce today whether the Super Regional will be played Friday-Saturday or Saturday-Sunday in Seattle.

Baseball Wins Series at #20 Miss. State

2007-05-20T08:09:00.000-06:00

The Alabama baseball team entered the weekend hoping to play well enough to win at least one game and make the eight team SEC Tourny later this week. Might as well take a road series win over a top 20 team as well.

Alabama (31-24, 15-15) collected the series win over the #20 Mississippi State Bulldogs with a 9-7 win on Sunday in front of 7, 181 fans at Dudly-Noble Field in Starkville, MS.

Junior Will Stroup turned in another quality performance pitching eight plus innings giving up 7 runs surrendering 11 hits, no walks, and collecting five strikeouts.

“The score does not show how the game went," Stroup said after the 126-pitch outing. “I had a balk and we lost a few fly balls in the sun. We basically gave them five runs, but that is part of the game. Things like that happen in baseball. We settled down and got the job done."

Alabama took an early lead with two runs on three hits in the top of the first off MSU starter Josh Johnson. Salem started the inning with a single and stole second base before moving to third base on Belcher’s ground out. Avila and Matthes then followed with back-to-back RBI doubles as Alabama took a 2-0 lead.

The Tide put four runs on the board to knock out Johnson (2-3) in the third. Alex Avila drew a leadoff walk and scored on Bentley’s two-run home run to right-center field. It was the junior’s 12th home run of the season.

“We came out shining the bat from pitch one," Bentley said. “We are a really good team when we get the lead. This was a big win for us today. This gives us three good weekends the past month against three really good teams."

Alabama tied Florida for 6th place in the SEC standings but will enter the tournament as the 7th seed, as Florida owns the tie breaker over Alabama. Jim Wells' bunch will play in game 1 of the SEC Tournament against 2nd seeded Arkansas at 10AM on Wednesday from Regions Park in Hoover, AL.

Baseball Takes Series From # 6 Razorbacks

2007-05-14T10:00:00.000-06:00

The Alabama baseball team took down another top 10 opponent this weekend as they won 2 of 3 games from the 6th ranked Arkansas Razorbacks at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The series win puts the Crimson Tide (29-23, 13-14) in 7th place in the SEC, a half game up on Kentucky and LSU and 1 1/2 games up on Tennessee.

Alabama defeated Arkansas 9-5 in the rubber game on Sunday and was led by senior CF Emeel Salem, playing his final game at the Joe. Salem had four hits in the game including a two run homer to break a 4-4 tie in the 6th inning. Junior Will Stroup pitched a complete game for the Crimson Tide.

Arkansas (37-16, 17-10) won Saturday's game 12-5 and pounded out four homers in the contest. Alabama won Friday nights opening game 10-0 behind a dominant pitching performance from Tommy Hunter and big offensive days from Salem and sophomore 3B/DH Alex Avilla.

Alabama now heads to Starkville, MS to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs in a three game series this week. The games will be starting a day earlier than usual with game one on Thursday. Games 2 and 3 of the series will be played on Friday and Saturday.

A complete overview of SEC Baseball is provided here....The Road to Hoover

Stunned Softball Ready To Host Tuscaloosa Regional

2007-05-14T09:48:00.000-06:00

Most teams would be happy to host a NCAA Tournament Regional, but not when you get the 11 seed when you went into last week ranked # 1 in the country. The Alabama softball team was dealt a tough hand yesterday as the NCAA Softball Championship bracket was announced.

“Alabama could easily have been ranked higher," former UCLA and U.S. Olympic catcher Stacey Nuveman, a softball commentator for ESPN, said during the selection telecast. “The first thing I thought about was the SEC conference, and it really seems like they got raked over the coals."

Tide Head Coach Patrick Murphy agreed. “I think Stacey Nuveman said it best," he said. “You look at RPIs, you look at number of wins, the strength of the conference this year, I don’t think anybody saw this coming."

Alabama was not the only team in the SEC with a right to be upset. The Southeastern Conference had three teams rated in the top six at the end of the season, but only top-ranked Tennessee got a good enough seed to host through the super regional round if it advances, and the Lady Vols were seeded fifth despite being ranked No. 1 for much of the season. No. 6 LSU got the 10th seed and was shipped to a regional at Stanford, after they just won the SEC Tournament.

Whinning aside, Alabama can still play its way to Oklahoma City and show the NCAA they made a mistake in its selections by first winning its regional. Alabama, the top seed in the Tuscaloosa Regional, will host Tennessee Tech (48-17) at 6 p.m. in Friday’s first round in the double-elimination event, which runs through Sunday. California (33-30) and Florida State (44-23) will play in Friday’s other first-round game at 3:30 at the Alabama Softball Complex.

Baseball Looking to Roll Over Hogs

2007-05-11T15:04:00.000-06:00

The Alabama baseball team will take on another top 10 squad this weekend as they host the # 8 Arkansas Razorbacks in a three game series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium in the season's final home stand.

Arkansas (38-14, 16-8) is currently second overall in the SEC and first in the SEC West and will certainly provide stiff competition for the Tide. The Hogs are led by a stellar pitching staff which includes Friday nights starter, Nick Schmdit (9-1, 2. 69 ERA), Saturday starter Jess Todd, (7-2, 3.07), and Sunday's starter Duke Welker (5-2, 3.50). Offensively, Arkansas is led by Danny "The Hammer" Hamblin, who enters the series hitting .275 with 17 HR, and 51 RBIs and Logan Forsythe, who is hitting .345 with 6 HR, and 42 RBI.

Alabama (27-22, 11-13) enters the series fighting to reach the SEC Tournament. Alabama is currently in 8th place, which is the final spot as 8 out of the league's 12 teams make the tourny. If Alabama can close out the season strong they could shoot up the standings as the 3rd place through 10th place teams are only separated by 3 1/2 games.

Alabama is led offensively by senior CF Emeel Salem, who is hitting .347 with 6 HR and 29 RBIs. Sophomore Alex Avilla leads the Tide with 46 RBIs and 11 HR. The weekend rotation will see sophomore Tommy Hunter (5-4, 4.00 ERA) start on Friday night, sophomore Miers Quigley (4-5, 4.09) getting the ball on Saturday, and converted set up man Will Stroup (1-0, 4.01) starting on Sunday.

Alabama will need to play very well to win this series, as honestly, Arkansas is a better club. The Razorbacks are experienced, talented, and very good this year. While Alabama is much younger than the Hogs, a series win would put the Tide in good position to make the SEC Tournament later this month.

Softball Downs Georgia in SEC Tourney

2007-05-11T14:55:00.000-06:00

Alabama needed extra innings to down the #6 seed Georgia Bulldogs on Thursday afternoon in the first round of the SEC Softball Tournament, but got it done and defeated Georgia 3-2 in 9 innings.

Trailing 2-0 until the 6th, Alabama came back to tie the score at 2-2 in the bottom of the 9th inning when Sophomore Kelli Eubanks led off the inning with a double. Katie Johnson then moved pinch runner Mallory Benak to third with a sac bunt, and Brittany Rogers singled up the middle to score the game winning run.

Senior Blair Potter got the start for Alabama and pitched a solid five innings only surrendering two runs on five hits and collected three strikeouts. Chrissy Owens came on in the sixth and pitched three scoreless innings and collected the win. She improved to 24-3 on the season with the victory.

Alabama, the 3 seed, meets # 2 seed LSU today at 5pm in Auburn, AL.

#1 Ranked Softball Readies for SEC Tournament

2007-05-07T13:07:00.000-06:00

The #1 ranked Alabama softball team earned the # 3 seed in the SEC Tournament starting Thursday and will play the first game of the tournament against the 6th seed Georgia Bulldogs. Alabama was tied for 1st in the SEC last week, but fell to third after dropping two games to top seed Tennessee this past weekend.

The top eight teams make the tournament and this year Auburn, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky did not make the field. The tournament will be held at Jane B. Moore Field in Auburn, AL.

The Tournament bracket is as follows:

2007 SEC Softball Tournament:

Thursday, May 10
Game 1 - # 3 Alabama vs. # 6 Georgia 11 a.m. CT
Game 2 - # 2 LSU vs. # 7 South Carolina 1:30 p.m. CT
Game 3 - # 4 Florida vs. # 5 Mississippi State 5 p.m. CT
Game 4 - # 1 Tennessee vs. # 8 Ole Miss 7:30 p.m. CT

Friday, May 11
Game 5 - G1 winner vs. G2 winner 5 p.m. CT
Game 6 - G3 winner vs. G4 winner 7:30 p.m. CT

Saturday, May 12
Game 7 - G5 winner vs. G6 winner 12:00 p.m. [FSN South]

Baseball Rolls Past Gators on Sunday, Drops Series

2007-05-07T12:30:00.000-06:00

It took a little longer for Alabama to put Florida away on Sunday, but they finally got it done. After blowing a four run lead, the Crimson Tide avoided a three game sweep at the hands of the Gators with a extra inning 7-5 win. Tyler Odle hit his first career home run for the Tide in the 10th inning, on a two run blast that put Jim Wells club in front for good.

Odle had gone 0-4 on the afternoon with two strikeouts before the big blast. "I had not had a good day at the plate, so I was just looking for a good pitch to hit. It was a fastball, middle-in and I got a good swing on the ball. This was a big win." said Odle.

It certainly was a much needed win for Alabama after dropping Friday and Saturday's games to the Gators 6-2 and 9-3 respectively. With the win Alabama now finds itself eighth in the SEC standings with 6 games remaining in the regular season. Eight of the twelve SEC teams make the SEC Tournament later this month in Hoover, AL.

Alabama host the # 8 Arkansas Razorbacks this weekend. Arkansas is currently 36-14 overall and 16-8 in the SEC. A full preview of the series will be provided later in the week.

Alabama Heads to Gainesville to Meet Gators

2007-05-03T07:45:00.000-06:00

With nine SEC games remaining in the regular season, each one becomes crucial for teams trying to make it into the eight team SEC Tournament later this month. Every year a team either makes or misses the tournament by one game. With the exception of Arkansas and Vanderbilt (who have good enough records to relax) that leaves 10 teams fighting it out for 6 spots. That makes this weekend's three game series between the Alabama Crimson Tide and Florida Gators in Gainesville, FL a big one.

Alabama (26-20, 10-11) has won 4 of its last 6 games including last weekend's series win over #4 South Carolina. Alabama is also swinging the bats as well as they have all year scoring 45 runs in its last four wins with 23 of those coming in its last two games. The Tide pitching staff, now very thin with former Saturday starter Bernard Robert being booted off the club, has received a much needed week of rest. If Jim Wells stays with the same weekend rotation as he did against the Gamecocks that would send sophomore Tommy Hunter (5-3, 3.67 ERA) to the hill on Friday night, sophomore Miers Quigley (4-4, 3.72) to the hill on Saturday, and possibly Austin Hyatt (4-1, 3.53) or another Tide arm on Sunday.

Florida (23-23, 10-11) comes into the series with an identical SEC record with Alabama, but is headed in another direction as they were swept last weekend at Vandy. UF is led by senior star and Golden Spikes Award nominee Matt LaPorta. LaPorta currently has a 20 game hit streak and is hitting .472 with 12 HR, 29 RBI, and 16 walks. He is the SEC's version of Barry Bonds, and it seems like he has been at Florida since 1958. Florida is a team that jumped out of the gates early in conference play but is stumbling to the finish, primarily due to a shaky pitching staff. The Gators were blown out in each of their games last weekend at Vanderbilt. The Gators weekend rotation is projected to be Kyle Mullaney (2-1, 5.93 ERA) on Friday night. Bryan Augestein (4-5, 6.35) on Saturday, with Billy Bullock (2-5, 5.09) taking the hill for the Gators on Sunday.

This should be a very entertaining series, but for the Tide to win it they need good starting pitching. The Gators are always big and strong, play in a smaller park, and try to beat you with the long ball. If the Alabama pitching staff can run together multiple good starts and the bats continue to roll as they are, Alabama should win this series.

Florida's official athletic website has a preview of the game with a statistical breakdown here: Bama-UF Preview

Tide Rolls Over Delta Devils

2007-05-02T14:19:00.000-06:00

The bats continued to sizzle for the Alabama baseball team as they rolled to a blowout win over the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils, 12-1, on Tuesday night. The Crimson Tide has scored 45 runs in its last four games, 23 of those coming in its last two victories, as the Tide has won 4 out of its last 6 games.

Bama pounded out 18 hits in the game with ten different Alabama players had hits in the game, including three different players who hit home runs. One of those, sophomore walk-on catcher Brian Clark, recorded the first hit of his UA career with a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Patrick Kelly helped out the pitching staff by tossing six scoreless innings where he only allowed two hits and collected 8 strikeouts. Brian Griggs came on to finish off the Delta Devils giving up one run on one hit over the last three innings. The win allowed Jim Wells to save the rest of his pitching staff for this weekend's three game series at Florida.

Six Tide Players Sign NFL Free Agent Contracts

2007-05-01T18:22:00.000-06:00

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The day after the National Football League draft concluded, six University of Alabama football players signed free agent contracts with NFL teams on Monday.

After three Crimson Tide players were selected in the draft on Sunday, Tim Castille, Jeremy Clark, Jefferey Dukes, Chris Harris, Juwan Simpson and Kyle Tatum all joined the ranks of former Alabama players in the NFL.

Castille, a fullback from Birmingham, signed a contract with the Arizona Cardinals. He played in all 13 games in 2006 and led the team with six rushing touchdowns. He finished the year with 129 yards on 46 carries to go along with 15 receptions for 91 yards. In his career he recorded 21 rushing touchdowns and 533 yards on 161 rushing attempts. He caught 60 career passes for 380 yards.

“It has always been a dream of mine to play at the next level,” said Castille. “I am going to try to make the most of it and do what I need to do to make the team.”

Clark, a defensive lineman from Daphne, signed a contract with the Philadelphia Eagles. He started 12 games for the Tide last season and finished with 24 tackles and a fumble recovery. He finished his career with 86 tackles, 4.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

“I am thankful for the opportunity to work out with the Philadelphia Eagles,” said Clark. “I am going to make the most out of the opportunity and am not going to waste it because a lot of people never get this chance.”

Dukes, a safety from Oxford, Miss., signed a contract with the St. Louis Rams. He tied for the team lead with 86 tackles in a breakout 2006 season. He started all 13 games and recorded three interceptions with two pass breakups. He had 109 career tackles with four interceptions and two forced fumbles.

“It is something I have always dreamed about,” said Dukes. “Playing in the NFL is something I have always wanted to do and I am very excited to get started.”

Harris, a defensive lineman from Tuscaloosa, signed a contract with the Kansas City Chiefs. He played in 12 games last season for Alabama with 20 tackles and a forced fumble. He had 46 career tackles with three sacks, one interception and one forced fumble.

Simpson, an outside linebacker from Decatur, signed a contract with the Green Bay Packers. He tied for the team lead with 86 tackles last year to go along with one interception and two forced fumbles. For his career he tallied 243 tackles with 16.5 tackles for a loss, four sacks, three interceptions, three forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.

Tatum, an offensive tackle from Prattville, joined fellow teammate Le'Ron McClain when he signed a contract with the Baltimore Ravens. McClain was drafted in the fourth round on Sunday by the Ravens. Tatum played a total of 256 snaps in 12 games last season. He had 16 knockdown blocks for the Crimson Tide.

The six signees on Monday up the total of Alabama players in the NFL to 32. Nine players from last year’s squad will try to make their respective NFL teams as three players were drafted and six have signed NFL contracts.

Gymnast Wins 2 Individual NCAA Titles

2007-05-01T10:16:00.000-06:00

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – For Alabama gymnast Terin Humphrey, the time had come to reclaim what was hers, and for freshman Morgan Dennis it was the start of something special.

Humphrey, the 2004 U.S. Olympic Silver Medalist and 2005 NCAA Champion on the uneven bars reclaimed her NCAA title here Saturday night at the Huntsman Center with a near-perfect 9.95. Dennis scored a on the floor exercise 9.9625 with the most electrifying routine of the night to win her first NCAA crown.

“I'm speechless,” Humphrey said. “I'm just so excited. Especially with what happened this year, overcoming injuries and surgery and all that stuff, it's exciting. I was jumping up and down.”

“I have to say that I am so proud of Morgan,” Humphrey said. “To go against that many other routines as a freshman and pull it was amazing. She was amazing tonight.”

Humphrey bettered 2006 NCAA co-champions Kristina Baskett of Utah and Courtney Kupets of Georgia in the process. An Alabama gymnast has won at least one NCAA title every year since 2002 now. The two this year drives the Tide’s all-time total to 21.

A crowded floor kept Alabama head coach Sarah Patterson from watching the uneven bars from her usual vantage point, so she had to wait for the judges to know how good Humphrey, who had double elbow surgery in late October, was on this night.

“Usually I’m right on the side of the uneven bars and I can see handstands,” Patterson said. “Tonight I wasn’t able to see that and I had to wait for the judges’ scores. Once the score came up, I knew that it could hold up.”

Patterson’s view was clearer on the floor exercise.

“That was Morgan’s best routine this year,” Patterson said. “Without a doubt, it was a great, great routine.”

The sixth of eight competitors, Humphrey bettered the twin 9.9125s posted by UCLA’s Tasha Schwikert and Kupets who went first and second respectively and then waited to see what Basketts would do. The Utes’ score 9.9 wasn’t enough to catch Humphrey.

The ueneven bars field was certainly loaded. Kupets was Humphrey’s teammate on the U.S. team that took team silver at the Athens Olympiad. She also took the bronze medalist on the uneven bars at the Olympics. Schwikert was a member of the 2000 U.S. Olympic team and Georgia’s Katie Heehnan who tied for fifth place tonight, was the U.S. bars champion in 2004.

And while uneven bars competition was loaded, the floor exercise was crowded with 18 competitors. Dennis produced her best routine of the season, bringing the Hunstman crowd to its feet. With her score in the books, she had to wait for Kupets, up last on the floor, to see if she would win the title. Kupets came close, but her 9.95 was not enough to over take the Tide rookie.

Alabama finished a disspointing 9th in the team competition but with such a young squad this year, they figure to be one of the nation's best teams again next season.

# 2 Softball Wins 50th Game of Year, Potter Throws "No-No"

2007-05-01T09:50:00.000-06:00

Another weekend another sweep for the # 2 Alabama softball team, but this time there was a little something different...a no hitter and a 50 win season.

Senior pitcher Blair Potter no hit the Kentucky Wildcats in Sunday's 8-0 Tide win that only lasted 5 innings. Potter got the first batter of the game to ground out and then went on to strike out the next nine Kentucky batters. She had a perfect game until the 5th when a pitch got away from her and hit UK's Molly Johnson. It was the 12th no hitter in Alabama softball history.

"I really wasn't thinking about the no-hitter. I was on the mound and kept hearing their coach say "break it up!", but I didn't know what she was talking about. It was nice to go out there throwing and knowing you have a good defense behind you. With the offense it makes it easy to go out there and throw because you know they are going to score runs for you." Potter said after the game. Potter was also named SEC Pitcher of the Week on Monday for her weekend performance.

Alabama, now 50-4 overall, and 21-4 in the SEC, beat Kentucky 12-3 and 6-0 on Saturday in front of a record crowd of 2,035 fans. The stadium seats quickly filled up forcing Crimson Tide fans to sit on the hill outside of the outfield wall. "The crowd was incredible. I wish I could thank each of them individually for their support this year", Tide coach Patrick Murphy said.

Alabama now turns to the biggest weekend of the year as they travel to Knoxville, TN to take on the # 1 Tennessee Volunteers with the SEC Championship and the # 1 national ranking on the line. Alabama, LSU, and Tennessee all enter the weekend tied for 1st place in the SEC with identical 21-4 records.

3 Tide Football Players Selected in 2007 NFL Draft

2007-04-29T20:15:00.000-06:00

Better late than never I always say. Late was certainly the theme for the former Alabama football players who were looking to turn professional in this weekend's NFL Draft. Three former Tide stars were drafted this weekend: FB Le'Ron McClain, RB Ken Darby, and CB Ramzee Robinson.

McClain was the first Alabama player selected going in the 4th round to the Baltimore Ravens with the 137th pick, and became the 100th Alabama player drafted into the NFL since 1982. McClain now finds himself on a playoff team and will block for newly acquired RB Willis McGahee and lineup behind veteran QB Steve "Air" McNair.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Tide RB Ken Darby in the seventh round as the 246th overall pick. Darby joins former Auburn running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams and All-Pro fullback Mike Alsott in the Bucs backfield. Darby was projected to be a 1st or 2nd round pick after his junior season but a disappointing senior year and poor combine results caused Darby to slide to the last round.

Ramzee Robinson became famous as "Mr. Irrelevant" in this years draft, meaning he was the last player selected. He will now be invited to a week long list of activities known as "Irrelevant Week". Robinson was selected by the Detroit Lions.

Tim Castille, Jeremy Clark, and Juwan Simpson went undrafted this weekend and will probably sign free agent contracts later in the week and try to make a NFL roster during the upcoming season.

Tide Rallies From 8 Runs Down; Takes Series from # 4 Gamecocks

2007-04-29T18:40:00.000-06:00

TUSCALOOSA, AL| It looked very bleak for the Crimson Tide baseball team on Sunday afternoon. Jim Wells' crew trailed 7-0 after 1/2 an inning and 10-2 after 3 innings to the 4th ranked South Carolina Gamecocks in the rubber match of a three game set. That is the bad news.

The good news is that a baseball game last nine innings, and Alabama outscored South Carolina 9-0 in the later part of the game to shock the Gamecocks, 11-10 to win the series two games to one.

Sophomore 3B/DH Alex Avila hit two home runs and drove in a career high six runs to spark the Alabama comeback, but he was only one of the heroes on Sunday afternoon. After a dreadful start by Austin Hyatt, he lasted 2/3 of an inning giving up seven earned runs, Will Stroup entered the game and quieted the Carolina bats. Stroup, usually a 8th inning set up man for Alabama, pitched 7 2/3 innings limiting South Carolina to three runs, but more importantly working out of jams all afternoon to give the Tide a chance to comeback. Sidewinder Josh Copeland came on with runners on first and third with one out in the ninth to get out of the jam and collect the save for Alabama.

Alabama used a potent offense attack in Friday night's opening game and a huge eight run sixth inning to down the Gamecocks 10-5. New Friday starter and sophomore Tommy Hunter collected the win for the Tide. South Carolina won Saturday's game 4-1, scoring multiple runs late in the game to spoil starter Miers Quigley's quality start.

Alabama will host Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday at 6:30 in a makeup game from March 20. Tickets from the earlier contest may be used for admission.

Women's RoundUp

2007-04-25T07:07:00.000-06:00

SOFTBALL

The 2nd ranked Alabama softball continues to steamroll their competition as they swept Ole Miss last weekend and defeated a quality team in the Troy Trojans 5-0 last night to improve their win streak to 18 straight games.

Although the Tide got the win, head coach Patrick Murphy did admit he was a little on edge last night. "When you are scoring eight to 12 runs a game, and look up and its 2-0 in the sixth, I get nervous. I have been spoiled by this team so far. There wasn't that sense of urgency with the hitters or the defense, but we got a win." Murphy said after the game.

Alabama improved to 47-4 with the win Tuesday night and is 18-4 in SEC play, Troy fell to 36-15. The Crimson Tide returns to the diamond this weekend as they host the Kentucky Wildcats in their final home stand of the season. Five Crimson Tide seniors will be honored.

GYMNASTICS

Another season, another appearance at the national championships for the Alabama gymnastics team in 2007. The 3rd ranked Crimson Tide travels to Salt Lake City, Utah tomorrow for the NCAA Championships. Twelve teams qualify for nationals and the SEC is well represented in the '07 field. The field is as follows: Alabama, Stanford, Georgia, Oregon State, Florida, Michigan, LSU, UCLA, Utah, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Denver.

For Alabama to win the national title they will need an all around good team performance and a great performance from two time Olympic silver medalist, Terin Humphrey. Humphrey is hurting however, as her surgically repaired elbows are causing her problems, and she will probably require another surgery after the season. While the last surgery has relieved some pain, it has not corrected the problem.

The Tide must also topple a few familiar SEC foes if they want to win the title, as Florida and Georgia are # 1 and # 2 in the country respectively. The Championships begin tomorrow and a full recap will be available on Inside the Tide following the event.

An A-Day For the Record Books

2007-04-21T20:31:00.000-06:00

TUSCALOOSA, AL| Saying that Alabama fans are passionate about their football team is like saying Phillip Fulmer likes to super size his value meal...everybody knows it. That said, what happened at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday had never been done before anywhere in the world.

Over 92,138 Crimson fans piled into the stadium to watch the Crimson Tide's spring football game and it could have been a much larger crowd. Alabama officials began turning away fans at the gate in the 2nd quarter of the game as all the seats were full and the University did not have the staff to accommodate such a crowd. The attendance shattered any other spring football game attendance record ever recorded across the nation.

According to Alabama, the next closest was Tennessee in their 1986 spring game when 73,000 Vol fans were in attendance. The record crowd was treated to a welcome sight as well, an Alabama team that was well disciplined, played smart, played hard, and most importantly played well.

The differences were noticeable to the all in attendance from the moment the team began to warm up. They looked organized, focused, and ready to perform. Senior WR D.J. Hall was named the game's MVP as he finished with 5 receptions for 87 yards, and 1 touchdown. Starting QB John Parker Wilson had a productive day as well as he finished 18-36, with 242 yards and two touchdowns.

Backup QB Greg McElroy turned a few heads as well as he finished 14-33, for 139 yards and a touchdown. While the team played well, the crowd was the real story and it did not go unappreciated by the players and their new coach.

"It shows the passion that people have for the University of Alabama, and it certainly makes me feel good about being here as head coach. What we did today sends a message that there's a lot of support and enthusiasm for what's happening here right now. I certainly appreciate it. It makes me and my family feel good about being here. God knows we went through a little bit to get here, but we're happy to be here." Saban said after the game.

QB John Parker Wilson agreed. "It was awesome, we were standing around there like, Man, there's a lot of people here. We didn't expect that many people. To see that kind of support just makes us feel good." Wilson stated.

There is no doubt that Saturday was a historic and all around great day for the Alabama football program. The only thing Tide fans can hope for now is that the good times continue to roll into the 2007 season.

Tide Travels to Plains to Battle Auburn

2007-04-20T16:40:00.000-06:00

The Alabama baseball team travels to Auburn, AL this weekend for a three game set against their in state rival, the Auburn Tigers. Both teams are in need of a series win as Auburn enters the series at 25-15 overall, but only 4-11 in the SEC, which puts them in the league cellar.

Alabama enters the series at 26-16 overall, and 7-8 in the SEC, which at the moment is good enough for 7th place overall in the league. The top 8 teams make it to the SEC Baseball Tournament in May.

A complete series preview is availabe at the following link: Bama-AU Series Preview

NATIONAL CHAMPS!!!!!!!

2007-04-18T09:37:00.000-06:00

The University of Alabama racquetball team brought home another championship recently. The Crimson Tide competed in the national tournament on March 27 on the Arizona State campus and won its third national team title in four years. The Tide also won the team title in 2004 and 2005.

The Alabama racquetball team has only been in existence since 2003 and has already won two national titles. The team was formed by Natalie Crockett. Before the team formed, she was in charge of a racquetball camp the University hosted every year in June, which brought in some of the best junior players in the country.

“The kids would come here every year to the University [for the camp] and they just got a nice feel for the place and a lot of them wanted to come here [to college]," Crockett said. “It just seemed like the natural thing to do."

Soon, these elite junior players expressed interest in forming a team. So Crockett organized a team and they started to compete. The first national tournament the team attended was in Los Angeles in 2004. The Tide won the overall national title in their first year.

They Tide won again in 2005 and barely lost the title last year, losing by just one match. This year the Tide won the title by approximately 1000 points. The last three years the tournament has been held on Arizona State University Campus in March with 44 colleges and universities attending.

The team consists of six men and six women players. Each player is seeded one through six and there are also three doubles teams for women and men. In the Tide’s recent national tournament, all six members on the men’s side advanced to the championship matches. Team members include nationally ranked players, as well as players recruited from The University.

We are sorry this story was not brought to you sooner, but we had no idea there was a national title for collegiate racquetball.

Tide Host Jags in Mid Week Showdown

2007-04-18T09:02:00.000-06:00

The Alabama baseball team hopes to build on its two game winning streak on Wednesday night as they host the South Alabama Jaguars in a mid-week game at 6:30 pm. South Alabama, a well respected, successful program over the years, has had an up and down season thus far and enters the game 18-16, after a 20-3 win over Nichols State on Tuesday night, snapping a three game losing streak.

Offense has not been the problem for the Jaguars this season as they entered Tuesday's game hitting .284 as a team, but the pitching staff entered the game with a team ERA of 5.19, with opponents hitting .301 against the Jags. South Alabama is led by 1B Jeff Cunningham, who is hitting .308 with 13 HRs, and 36 RBIs. David Doss, the third baseman, leads the team in hitting with a .366 average, with 4 HRs and 28 RBIs.

Alabama will send Casey Kebodeaux (3-2, 3.86) to the mound in the contest and needs a good outing from him to help protect the thin pitching staff. Coach Jim Wells on his pitching staff, "I hope Casey can go as long as possible. We'd like to rest our other pitchers, especially Tommy Hunter and Austin Hyatt as much as we can. But everyone will be available if necessary."

Alabama will travel to Auburn, AL for a three game series this weekend at Plainsman Park against their in state rival, the Auburn Tigers.

Women's Sports RoundUp

2007-04-18T08:14:00.000-06:00

Softball

The # 2 ranked Alabama softball team dominated the Mercer Bears on Tuesday night in a home away from home, in front of 1,400 in a ballpark designed to hold 200 in Oxford, AL winning 9-0. Alabama coach Patrick Murphy was blown away by the crowd, "Is this the World Series in Oklahoma City or Oxford? This is amazing. What a great night for us. It was a lot like the World Series, with all the distractions. There were all the fans behind us and a big crowd in front of us." Alabama hit back to back home runs in the 2nd inning to go up 4-0 and added two more runs in the third, and three runs in the fourth to bring the mercy rule into play with Dani Woods 2-run single to make it 9-0. Starting pitcher Blair Potter (12-0) cruised through four innings only giving up one hit and striking out six batters. Tide ace Chrissy Owens threw 10 pitches to get the final three outs for the Crimson Tide. Alabama improved to 43-4 as they head to Oxford, MS this weekend to take on the Ole Miss Rebels.

Gymastics

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama Gymnastics team, advancing to its 25th consecutive NCAA Championships, was informed today that it will compete in the afternoon session of the preliminary day of competition held next week in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Alabama, the NCAA Central Region Champions, will see plenty of familiar faces in the very tough afternoon session that will get underway at Thursday, April 26 at 1 p.m. MT. Southeastern Conference foes Florida and Georgia, ranked first and second at the end of the regular season, will join the Tide, ranked No. 3 nationally.

Oklahoma, which Alabama saw to open the season and at last Saturday’s Tuscaloosa-based regional will join the SEC trio. Nebraska, ranked sixth going into regionals, and Oregon State round out the afternoon session.

“I think when you get to the NCAA Championships, any draw that you get is going to be tough,” Alabama head coach Sarah Patterson said. “I told the ladies today that we don’t need to be looking over our shoulders because we’ve seen Georgia and Florida numerous times this year and we’ve seen Oklahoma twice.”

Host school Utah will be joined in the evening session, which gets underway at 7 p.m. MT on Thursday, by UCLA, Michigan, Stanford, LSU and Denver. The sessions were decided by a random draw, with three winners and three second place teams from the six regionals going into each session.

“I feel that we have seen the best teams in the country and we just have to go out the first day and focus on our own performance and not on anyone else,” Patterson said. “I think that will be key.”

The top three teams from both of Thursday’s sessions will advance to the NCAA Super Six Team Finals on Friday night.

Auburn junior Julie Dwyer will rotate with the Crimson Tide on Thursday after qualifying as an all-arounder.

Alabama also learned they will start on the floor exercise in the afternoon session and then advance to the vault before taking a bye. The Tide will finish up on the uneven bars and balance beam before sitting off the floor on a bye for the last rotation.

“Is there any other rotation for us at the national championships?” Patterson said with a laugh. “It seems like that’s all we every draw. We’ve done it a lot and we’ve done really well ending on beam. It’s just ironic that’s where we draw again.”

Alabama won its 22nd NCAA Regional Championship Saturday with a 196.700. The Tide’s 25 consecutive NCAA Championship appearances is matched only by Utah, which has been to all 26 NCAA Championships. The Crimson Tide has won four NCAA titles – 2002, 1996, 1991 and 1988. The Tide’s first title, in 1988, came in Salt Lake City, Utah.

A Little Hokie Love

2007-04-18T07:55:00.000-06:00

As a native of the Commonwealth of Virginia and having numerous friends that attend Virginia Tech, I just wanted to send my condolences to those affected by the tragedy on Tech's campus Monday. The University of Alabama has you in our thoughts and prayers and wishes Virginia Tech only the best in the near future.

Also, a very classy move by the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night sporting VT lids in their game against the Atlanta Braves. While the Nats roster reminds us of the one in "Major League" (you have never heard of most of them), and they are almost certain to finish in last place, it was a very classy move on their part. Go Nats.

For those reading this article in Richmond, VA, Disco Sports will be selling T-shirts that read "Hokie Nation" for $10 later this week with all the proceeds going to a fund set up in the honor of the victims at Virginia Tech.

Tide Downs Dawgs 5-3, Wins Series 2-1

2007-04-16T08:32:00.000-06:00

It was a series that Alabama needed to win to keep pace in the SEC standings and the Crimson Tide got it done as they defeated Georgia in the rubber game of a 3 game series Sunday, 5-3. After dropping the series opener 4-1 on Friday night, Alabama responded with a bottom of the 9th comeback win on Saturday,7-6, and did just enough to defeat Georgia on Sunday. Winning close games is a welcome sight for Jim Wells' club.

“Finding a way to win the close games is huge," said Crimson Tide reliever Tommy Hunter, who came on in the eighth inning in relief of starer Austin Hyatt. “We hadn’t been doing that all year and now in the last four games, we’ve won like three close games so maybe that will be a trend."

Alabama fell behind immediately as Georgia’s Ryan Paisel led off the game with a single and Bulldog shortstop Gordon Beckham followed with a home run off Hyatt that put Georgia up 2-0.
“Everything [Hyatt] was throwing early was up and [Beckham] got a ball up in the wind," Wells said. “But Austin settled down, just like he did last weekend and really pitched well." Hyatt worked into the seventh inning and didn’t allow Georgia another run, as Alabama came back gradually.

The Crimson Tide scored one run in the bottom of the first inning as Emeel Salem led off with a double, then scored on Brandon May’s single. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Alabama took the lead with two more runs against Georgia starter Dean Weaver. Brandon Belcher had a sacrifice fly for one of the RBIs in the inning, while Greg Paiml delivered a two-out RBI single to give Alabama a lead it would not subsequently relinquish.

Alabama appeared to have the opportunity to blow the game open in the seventh inning, when it loaded the bases with no outs. Alex Avila then singled in two runs, giving UA a 5-2 lead, but the rally stopped there.

It appeared that Alabama might regret not getting the insurance runs when Georgia loaded the bases with one out in the top of the eighth inning. But Alabama reliever Lane Shoup coaxed a ground ball to the mound out of Georgia’s Myles Starr, retiring the runner at the plate on a fielder’s choice. Hunter then came on and retired Paisel to end the inning.

In the ninth inning, Hunter struck out Beckham but then gave up a single, a walk and an RBI single by Matt Olson. An error by Tide third baseman Jake Smith resulted in a bases-loaded, one-out situation, but Hunter struck out Georgia’s Luke Stewart and Joey Lewis to end the game. Hyatt (4-1) was credited with the decision.

The win moved the Alabama to 7-8 in Southeastern Conference play, good for seventh place in the league standings midway through the conference race. UA is 22-15 overall. Georgia fell to 13-23 overall and 5-10 in SEC play.

Alabama will be back in action on Wednesday, hosting South Alabama.

Bama Takes Sunday Game, Drops Series to # 1 Vandy

2007-04-09T11:33:00.000-06:00

NASHVILLE, TN| After dropping a pair of pitching duels to the nation's top ranked team, the Alabama baseball team rebounded to defeat Vanderbilt, 5-3, in 10 innings on Sunday by stealing home. With runners at first and third and two outs against Vandy closer Casey Weathers, Matt Bentley, the Tide's 6-3 220-pound first baseman, stole home on a straight steal in the top of the 10th inning to give the Tide a one-run lead, which proved to be enough for the win.

"It was a first and third force balk move" Bentley said. "We ran it the way you are suppose to against a left-handed pitcher, but not against the right-hander, but it worked out for us. That is the first time and probably the last time I will ever steal home again."

In Friday's opener, the teams entered the 8th inning in a 0-0 tie, but Commodore ace and possible # 1 overall pick in this year's MLB Draft, David Price, outlasted Miers Quigley and pitched a complete game in Vandy's 3-0 win.

On Saturday, Matt Meingasner had three hits and two RBI to lead No. 1 Vanderbilt past the University of Alabama, 4-2.

Alabama returns to action tomorrow night with a home game against Southeastern Louisiana at 6:30 pm and host SEC rival Georgia in a three game set this weekend starting at 6:30 pm on Friday night at "The Joe".

Robert Pitches Tide to Win, Series Tied 1-1

2007-04-01T09:16:00.000-06:00

One night after giving up a ninth inning three run home run to blow a two run lead, Tommy Hunter returned to a similar situation on Saturday night. This time Hunter worked out of a jam and collected the save as Alabama defeated LSU 5-2 to even the three game series at a game a piece. He pitched out of a nobody out, men on 2nd and 3rd situation in the eighth inning and a perfect ninth to secure Alabama's win over LSU.

LSU(16-12-1, 2-5-1 SEC) took a 1-0 lead with an unearned run off Robert in the first inning. Alabama tied the game at 1 in the bottom of the third inning as Greg Paiml hit a one-out double and eventually scored on Alex Avila’s sacrifice fly.

The Crimson Tide took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning, loading the bases with no outs but scoring only on a two-out infield single by Emeel Salem. LSU came back to tie the game on Blake Dean’s RBI single in the top of the fifth inning.

Alabama(18-11, 4-4 SEC) took a 4-2 lead in the sixth inning. Ryan Rhoden and Brandon Belcher led off with consecutive singles, then moved to second and third on Jeff Texada’s sacrifice. Greg Paiml struck out for the second out and the Tigers intentionally walked Salem to load the bases. Freshman Jake Smith then followed with a clutch two-out, two-run single off Jared Bradford -- his former high school teammate at Hueytown -- to give Alabama a two-run lead.

The series concludes Sunday afternoon at 2pm from Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

My Apologies

2007-04-01T09:05:00.000-06:00

To our loyal readers I must apologize for the lack of articles on the website recently. I have let my thesis work, job search, and wedding planning get in the way of this website and I apologize for that. I feel like I just took one in the face (see the picture).

Hopefully, in the near future my life will calm down and I will get back to getting you the Alabama sports coverage you deserve. By the way you haven't missed much, spring practice started for football, baseball is ranked #25 4-4 in the SEC and softball is ranked #4 in the country and dominating. There will be more articles soon.

Robert Tosses Gem As Bama Downs Vols 9-1

2007-03-18T09:58:00.000-06:00

Tide wins 1st SEC series of Year

Senior right-hander Bernard Robert gave the Crimson Tide its most impressive outing on the mound this season, tossing the University of Alabama’s first complete game of the 2007 season en route to a 9-1 win over the Tennessee Volunteers at Sewell-Thomas Stadium Saturday afternoon.

The Denham Springs, La., native took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and turned in his longest outing in an Alabama uniform. It was his 10th career complete game and second at Alabama. His other complete-game for the Tide came in a seven-inning win at No. 1 South Carolina in 2006. Robert went nine innings, giving up four hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts.

Alabama (15-7, 2-0) had more than enough offense to support Robert. Sophomores Kent Matthes and Jeff Texada and senior Greg Paiml had two hits each for the Crimson Tide. Freshman Jake Smith and junior first baseman Matt Bentley stroked two-run home runs in the Tide’s four-run eighth inning.

Coach Jim Wells was pleased with Saturday's performance. "Robert did what we needed him to do today, it was beautiful. That was the best game he has pitched since he has been here. His pitch count was down heading into the last two innings. We needed him to go deep into the game and he did it. This was a good team win, we had some key extra base hits, too. Everyone in the line-up had one or two hits, so we were putting pressure on them up and down the line-up and not with just one or two guys.”

Alabama looks for the series sweep today in the series finale which is scheduled for 2:06 CT from Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

Crimson Tide Rolls Over Vols In Game 1

2007-03-16T20:52:00.000-06:00

Tide Takes 1-0 Series Lead

Those who decided to come out to "The Joe" and take a break from watching the NCAA Tournament, and having Billy Packer scream at them, saw the Alabama Crimson Tide baseball team take game one of the three game series against the hated Tennessee Volunteers, 9-7. Alabama improves to 14-7 overall, 1-0 in the SEC as the Vols fall to 12-8 overall, and 0-1 in the SEC.

Miers Quigley provided another strong performance for Alabama pitching six solid inning giving up five runs, on nine hits, and tying a career high with nine strikeouts. Tommy Hunter picked up his first save of the season, closing out the game with two scoreless innings.

The Crimson Tide opened Southeastern Conference play with 17 hits. Jake Smith and Alex Avilla hit back-to-back home runs to begin the game and gave the Tide a 3-0 advantage. Smith was 4-4 on the day with a home run, double and three RBI.

Game 2 of the three game set is scheduled tomorrow at 4pm with the series finale to be played Sunday at 2 pm.

UMass Hits Buzzer Beater to Down Tide In OT

2007-03-13T22:32:00.000-06:00

Tide's Season Ends on Last Second Shot

What a heartbreaking way to end a season. The Alabama basketball team made some mistakes on Tuesday night, mostly turnovers and on the defensive end, but played hard enough to win. Unfortunately, it just didn't happen in a 89-87 loss in Amherst, MA on Tuesday night.

Mikhail Riley’s 3-point shot forced an overtime as regulation expired, but Massachusetts’ Chris Lowe hit a leaning jump shot with one second remaining in overtime to lift the Minutemen the win.

Alabama had tied the game with nine seconds remaining in overtime on a Demetrius Jemison putback but Lowe was able to drive into the lane and score the game-winner.

The Tide was led by Riley's 24 points, sophomore Brandon Hollinger's career high 19 points, and sophomore Alonzo Gee added 14 for Alabama. UMass was led by Stephane Lasme who finished with 21 points and 9 blocks on the night.

While Alabama ends a disappointing season with the record of 20-12, the good news is that Jermareo Davidson is the lone senior on the squad. Hopefully, with the abundance of young talent, next season will be more memorable than this one.

Alabama Draws UMass in NIT

2007-03-11T19:13:00.000-06:00

Even though Alabama's five year streak of playing in the NCAA Tournament came to an end this year, the Crimson Tide will play in the postseason, in the NIT. The Crimson Tide will travel to Amherst, MA on Tuesday night and take on the Massachusetts Minutemen in the NIT first round at 8:30 pm CT and the game can be seen nationally on ESPN.

UMass was 24-8 on the season and finished second in the Atlantic 10 with a 13-3 conference record. The Minutemen are led by Reshaun Freeman and his 15.2 points per game. Stephane Lasme (13.3), Gary Forbes (13.0), and James Life (11.2) all average in double figures for Travis Ford' s club. Lasme is also second in the nation in blocks, averaging five per game. Some of you SEC fans might recognize that name as Ford was a star for Kentucky in the early 1990s.

If Alabama were to win they would take on the winner of West Virgina and Delaware State. If West Virginia were to win, Alabama would travel to Morgantown, if Delaware State were to win, the game would be played in Tuscaloosa. Lets not look ahead though, that would require Alabama to win a road game...and I think they do.

Nicks Prediction: Alabama 79 UMass 72

The Complete NIT Bracket Can Be Seen By Clicking Here: NIT Bracket Link

The New #1 Team in America?

2007-03-11T14:25:00.000-06:00

#3 Crimson Tide Sweeps Miss. St., Moves to 24-0

The 3rd ranked Alabama softball team opened SEC play like it has so far this season...perfect. Alabama completed the sweep of Mississippi State on Sunday, winning 8-0, to improve to 24-0 on the season. Alabama is now the only undefeated team in America, as this week's number one team, Tennessee, split a double header with Florida on Saturday, while previously unbeaten Oklahoma and Arizona also lost games this week.

Alabama dominated Mississippi St. on Sunday behind pitcher Chrissy Owens throwing six scoreless innings and only allowing four hits, also striking out four. Owens improves to 12-0 on the season.

On Saturday the Crimson Tide, which went through its pre-conference schedule without ever trailing by more than one run, was down by two runs in both games, but stormed back to beat the Bulldogs 10-2 and 5-3 in front of a crowd of 1,576 at the Alabama Softball Complex. Spotting the Bulldogs early leads in both games the Alabama bats woke up in plenty of time to out score the Bulldogs 15-5 on the afternoon. Blair Potter got the win in game two pitching 5.1 innings giving up one earned run and striking out six. Potter improved to 5-0 on the year with the win.

Alabama returns to action on Wednesday as the travel to Gainesville, FL to take on the Florida Gators in a doubleheader.

Tide Drops Series to Huskers

2007-03-11T13:46:00.000-06:00

Tide Drops Pair of One Run Games

After opening the series with a dominating 8-0 win on Friday night, the Alabama baseball team lost a pair of one run games to the Nebraska Cornhuskers, 4-3, 6-5 on Saturday and Sunday. Alabama falls to 13-6 on the season while Nebraska improves to 8-5 on the year. Nebraska jumped out to an early 5-0 lead on Sunday and while Alabama fought back to make the game 6-5 with one out and a runner on 2nd in the 9th, both Kent Matthes and Matt Bentley struck out to end the game.

Bernard Robert pitched 5.1 innings for Alabama giving up five runs, six hits, giving up 3 walks, and striking out four. Josh Copeland, Will Stroup, and Kasey Kebedaux each saw action for the Crimson Tide on Sunday.

On Saturday, Nebraska's Jeff Tezak single handily defeated the Crimson Tide. Tezak finished the game 5 for 5 including a sole home run to tie the game in the 7th and the go ahead RBI single in the 9th inning. Tommy Hunter pitched 8 strong innings for Alabama giving up three runs while striking out a career high nine batters. Hunter did not factor into the decision as Austin Hyatt who gave up a the winning run in the 9th took the loss for Alabama.

Alabama returns to action on Wednesday night as they travel to Birmingham, AL to take on the Samford Bulldogs at 6:30 pm.

# 13 Bama Baseball Blanks #18 Nebraska 8-0 in Game 1 of Series

2007-03-09T21:51:00.000-06:00

Tide Takes 1-0 Series Lead Over Huskers

Coming off two straight losses, the 13th ranked Alabama baseball team responded with a great performance Friday night beating # 18 Nebraska 8-0 at "The Joe". It was the first time a Nebraska team has been shut out since 2003.

Miers Quigley pitched an absolute gem for the Crimson Tide lasting 7 innings and only surrendering 3 hits and striking out four. Josh Copeland continued the dominating performance for Alabama pitching 2 innings and only surrendering one hit and collected three strikeouts.

Alabama (13-4) pounded out 11 hits on the evening and was led offensively by Emeel Salem and Ryan Rhoden, who both went 2-4 and each hit home runs. Freshman Jake Smith also collected multiple hits, going 2-5 on the night.

Nebraska (6-5) ace Tony Watson struggled the entire night and lasted 5.1 innings giving up nine hits and five earned runs. Center fielder D.J. Belafonte collected two of the Huskers four hits. Nebraska used four different pitchers in the game.

The series continues tomorrow afternoon at 4pm CT as Kasey Kebedeaux will get the start for the Crimson Tide.

Baseball Preview: # 18 Nebraska Cornhuskers

2007-03-09T11:51:00.000-06:00

VS.

# 13 Crimson Tide Host #18 Cornhuskers in Weekend Set

While most of the students at Alabama are heading to the beach for Spring Break this weekend, the 13th ranked Alabama baseball team will be playing what could be its most pivotal series of the season. Alabama (12-4) is coming off two straight losses and searching for a team identity, takes on nationally ranked Nebraska this weekend at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. This is the last non-conference series before SEC play beings next weekend and a chance for Alabama to see how it stacks up against one of the top teams in college baseball.

Nebraska is 6-4 on the season after going 1-2 at the Stetson Invitational over the weekend. The Huskers dropped their first two games on Sunday, but bounced back with a 6-2 win over Stetson to begin the week. According to the their official website, Nebraska was able to practice outside on Wednesday for the first time since fall drills ended on October 13. I am not sure if not being able to practice outside will be an advantage for Alabama this weekend but it certainly can not hurt. Nebraska has also played all of their games on the road this season.

The Huskers are led offensively by DH/1B Thad Weber, who is hitting .389 on the season with 6 RBIs. Second baseman Jake Opitz leads Nebraska in RBI's with 10 and home runs with 2. He his hitting .343 on the season. Nebraska does not have great power numbers through the first 10 games of the season as they only have seven home runs as a team.

The strength of the team though lies in its starting pitching and they are led by Big 12 preseason Pitcher of the Year Tony Watson. Watson, who will start on Friday night, is considered to be one of the best pitchers in America and is 1-0 on the year with a 2.25 ERA in 12 innings pitched and has recorded nine strikeouts. Sophomore Charlie Shirek (1-2) will start on Saturday and junior Johnny Dorn (1-2) will start on Sunday for the Huskers.

Alabama will counter with a starting rotation of Miers Quigley (2-0, 1.48 ERA) on Friday night, Kasey Kebedeaux (2-1, 1.42 ERA) on Saturday, and Bernard Robert (2-0, 1.80 ERA) on Sunday. With the Crimson Tide having to play five games this week, they must get good outings from their starting pitchers to win the series. Coach Wells had to use multiple guys in the two mid week games and needs the starters to go deep into the games to rest his bullpen as much as possible.

If Alabama can beat Watson on Friday night the odds of winning this series will be in the Crimson Tide's favor. He is by far Nebraska's best pitcher and gives Nebraska the best chance to win. That said, Alabama must play better than it has in its last two games to win this series, or even to avoid a sweep. I think Alabama responds and takes the series.

Nicks Prediction: Alabama wins series 2-1.

Bama Drops SEC Tournament Opener to Kentucky

2007-03-08T13:53:00.000-06:00

NIT, Here We Come.

Alabama built an early 10 point lead in the first half, but could not hold on as Kentucky defeated Alabama, 79-67, on Wednesday in the opening round of the SEC Tournament. According to the experts, Alabama needed to win multiple games in the SEC Tournament to have a chance at a NCAA Tournament bid, and with the loss will now decide if it wants to accept a bid to the NIT Tournament.

Kentucky, who will play Mississippi State tomorrow in the second round, was led by juniors Randolph Morris' 18 points and Ramel Bradley's 17 points. Joe Crawford added 16 for the Wildcats. The key to the victory was Kentucky's defense which caused multiple minute long droughts in scoring for Alabama.

Alabama, was led by sophomore Richard Hendrix's 21 points and five rebounds. Sophomore Alonzo Gee added 15 for Alabama, with lone Tide senior Jermareo Davidson chipping in 12 points and 9 rebounds. Mykal Riley also had 12 points for the Tide. Turnovers once again plagued the Crimson Tide as they committed 13 on the afternoon, many that were just unforced, careless ball handling.

Stay tuned to Inside the Tide to see where the Tide ends up in the NIT Tournament.

Baseball Drops Game to Tennessee Tech

2007-03-08T13:43:00.000-06:00

Jim Well's club is having a tough week. After losing to Southern Miss on Tuesday night, the 13th ranked Crimson Tide returned home to take on Tennessee Tech, and did not bring their "A-game". Whether it was taking their opponent lightly, playing poorly, or both, Alabama lost, 8-6 on Wednesday night at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

Obviously, Coach Jim Wells was not pleased with the result or with his team. "I don't know of anything that we're doing well right now. All phases of the game lack in something" Wells said after the game.

Alabama (12-4) was led by sophomore Kent Matthes who hit his 5th home run of the season and collected three RBIs. Patrick Kelly got the start for Alabama and gave up 5 runs in only one inning of work, as he took the loss.

Alabama remains at home this weekend to host #17 Nebraska in a three game series starting Friday.

SEC Tournament Round 1 Preview: Kentucky

2007-03-07T14:03:00.000-06:00

Crimson Tide Takes on Wildcats in First Round

Before the season many expected Kentucky and Alabama to meet in the SEC Tournament, just not on the first day. Two teams with lofty preseason expectations come staggering into the tournament playing in Game 1 Wednesday, at 12 pm CT, in the Atlanta Georgia Dome.

The meeting will be between the SEC's two most successful conference tournament teams. Kentucky owns a 109-19 (.852) record in the conference tournament and has claimed 25 titles, five more than the rest of the league combined. Alabama is second to UK both in tournament wins (55) and titles (six).

Kentucky(20-10, 9-7) enters the game as the fourth seed from the Eastern Division and is coming off a 85-72 loss at Florida last Sunday. The Wildcats are led by junior center Randolph Morris and his 15.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Morris has totaled nine double-doubles this season. Tubby Smith starts three guards and both Ramel Bradley (14.1) and Joe Crawford (14) average in double figures per game.

Alabama (20-10, 7-9) needs a couple wins in the tournament to have a chance at an NCAA Tournament bid. If the Tide drops this match up to the Wildcats, the University can start selling tickets to our first round NIT game. Alabama is led by its two big men as sophomore Richard Hendrix is averaging 14. 6 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, while senior Jermareo Davidson is averaging 14.2 points and 8.2 rebounds. Preseason All American Ronald Steele is listed as questionable for the game as he is battling a knee problem that has affected him all season. If Steele is indeed healthy, he would be a tremendous help for the Tide against the 'Cats.

Alabama won the first meeting this season, 72-61, in Tuscaloosa and needs a similar effort to beat UK for the second time. By pounding the ball inside and trying to get Morris in foul trouble the Tide could exploit Kentucky's lack of depth inside. That said, if Alabama plays like it did in its season finale at Mississippi State, we have no shot. Hopefully, Alabama will come out with high energy and show some toughness, a trait that has been missing all year. This is the last chance to save the season and I think Alabama will take advantage.

Nicks Prediction: Alabama 72 Kentucky 68

#13 Tide Baseball Blanked by Southern Miss

2007-03-06T22:17:00.000-06:00

McInnis' Gem Leads Golden Eagles

The newly ranked Alabama baseball team dropped their first road game of the year to #28 Southern Miss in Pearl, MS on Tuesday night. The Crimson Tide could only muster two hits on the evening, one apiece by Emeel Salem and Ryan Rhoden in their worst offensive night of the season.

Bernard Robert (2-1) took the loss for the Crimson Tide pitching 4.2 innings and giving up three runs on six hits. Southern Miss (11-2) was led by starting pitcher Tood McInnis' dominant performance, pitching eight innings and only surrendering one hit and recording six strikeouts.

Alabama (12-3) can avenge the loss on Wednesday night as they host the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles at 6:30pm CT at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Tide also host nationally ranked Nebraska this weekend at home.

Nick Johnson Takes Inisde the Tide SEC Basketball Pick Em

2007-03-05T06:46:00.000-06:00

Nick Johnson, a 24 year old graduate student at the University of Alabama has won the Inside the Tide SEC Basketball Pick Em for the 2007 regular season with a picking record of 45-19. He was followed in the standings by Bama Pete, Coach Clay, and Hotty Toddy Matt.

We want to think all participants this year and are even discussing a SEC Baseball Pick Em which would occur every weekend when SEC play starts next weekend.

Mr. Johnson was awarded four new tires for his beautiful 1998 Toyota Tacoma truck PLUS a front end alignment for his victory/birthday present.

Baseball Mid Week Games Preview

2007-03-05T06:33:00.000-06:00

#16 Crimson Tide With Two Mid Week Games

It is Golden Eagles week as 16th ranked Crimson Tide baseball team has two midweek games this week, traveling to Trustmark Park in Pearl, MS on Tuesday night to take on the Southern Miss Golden Eagles and returning home on Wednesday night to take on the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles.

Southern Miss(10-2) is coming off a series win this past weekend against the Louisiana-Lafayette Rajun Cajuns. The Golden Eagles are led offensively by James Ewing and Trey Sutton hitting .344 and .340 respectively. Southern Miss is hitting .283 as a team this season.

Starting pitchers have not been announced for the game.

Tennessee Tech(5-6) is coming off a series win vs. Canisisus this weekend. The Golden Eagles are led offensively by Steve Stoper with a .417 batting average and seven RBIs. Josh Goodwin is also second on the team in batting with a .389 average but leads the team in home runs with three and RBIs with 16.

Starting pitchers have not been announced for the contest.

Both games are scheduled to start at 6:30pm CT.

#16 Bama Baseball Sweeps McNeese St.

2007-03-04T19:23:00.000-06:00

Tide Ends Homestand with Sweep of Cowboys

Freshman third baseman Jake Smith smashed an RBI single to left field in the bottom of the 11th inning to score senior center fielder Emeel Salem with the winning run as the 16th ranked University of Alabama baseball team posted a 4-3 win over McNeese State to complete a three-game sweep Sunday afternoon at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

Alabama (12-2) ended their 14 game homestand with the comeback win as the Crimson Tide trailed McNeese St. 3-1 in the 7th inning on Sunday. Tide starter Austin Hyatt took a shutout into the sixth inning. The Cowboys managed only a pair of two-out singles against Hyatt through six innings. Alabama senior Bernard Robert pitched a scoreless 10th inning to get the victory for Alabama and improved to 2-0 on the season.

On Saturday, Alabama used a dominant performance from Kasey Kebedeaux to down the Cowboys 9-1. Keboduex (2-0) throw 94 pitches and only allowed one run over eight innings of work for the win. The eight inning performance is the longest by an Alabama starter this season Alabama had 14 hits in the game and was led by sophomore Alex Avila's three hits, including two doubles. Freshman Brandon May and Jake Smith also added three hits apiece for Jim Wells' club.

Friday nights opening game saw Alabama collect 15 hits, all singles, to down the Cowboys 6-4. Starter Miers Quigley pitched a very solid seven innings giving up two runs on two hits and a career high nine strikeouts. Junior Josh Copeland used his new side arm motion to pitch a scoreless 9th inning for his third save of the season.

Alabama has a busy week ahead as it heads to Pearl, MS on Tuesday to take on the Southern Miss Golden Eagles at 6:30 pm. The Tide then returns home to take on Tennessee Tech on Wednesday night, then host the 7th ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers for a three game series starting Friday night at "The Joe".

Tide Basketball Crushed in Starkville

2007-03-04T15:45:00.000-06:00

Alabama Run Out of Gym By Bulldogs

They had everything in the world to play for, a share of the SEC West title, vastly helping their chances of an NCAA Tournament bid, and a win over a rival. Instead, all Alabama got was a beating. Mississippi State dominated Alabama most of the afternoon to defeat the Crimson Tide 91-67 in Starkville on Sunday.

Mississippi State(17-12, 8-8) was led by Charles Rhodes 18 points and four blocks to give the Bulldogs their first SEC West title since 2004. Mississippi State had 11 steals and forced 21 turnovers. The Bulldogs are co-SEC West Champs with Ole Miss and both teams will receive a bye in the first round of the SEC Tournament.

Alabama(20-10, 6-8) went from a chance to be SEC West champs to finishing fifth in the division. Alabama center Jermareo Davidson lead the Tide with16 points in his final regular season game at Alabama.

The Tide will now will take on the Kentucky Wildcats in the first round of the SEC Tournament in Atlanta on Thursday at 1 pm ET. A link to the entire tournament bracket can be found by clicking here: http://secsports.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=3&url_article_id=8487&url_subchannel_id=&change_well_id=2

Tide Heads to Starkville With SEC West On The Line

2007-03-04T08:48:00.000-06:00

Alabama Travels to "The Hump" for Biggest Game of the Year

As disappointing as the season has been, it can end on a very positive note this afternoon as Alabama travels to Mississippi State to take on the Bulldogs at 1pm CT on Sunday in the regular season finale. With a win, Alabama will become co-SEC West champions with Ole Miss, who downed Auburn yesterday, and recieves a first round bye in the upcoming SEC Tournament. With a loss, Alabama will enter the SEC Tournament on Thursday as the 5th seed in the West, since Arkansas won yesterday, and play either Kentucky or Georgia in the opening round.

Not only is this game huge for positioning in the SEC standings, but Alabama also needs the win to bolster its NCAA Tournament chances. Alabama is currently 20-9 overall and 7-8 in the SEC. With a win, Alabama will bolster its chances by showing the committee it can win on the road, as the Tide's only SEC road win this season was at LSU. Mississippi State(16-12, 7-8) is led sophomore guard Jamont Gordon, who is averaging 16 ppg and 7.3 rpg. He also leads the team with 4.8 assists per game. Mississippi State is Bama’s oldest opponent in basketball, and was the first college team Alabama ever played. This will be the 177th meeting between the two teams. Alabama leads the series 110-66.

This by far the biggest game of the season for the Tide and it can make up for some of the disappointments this season with a huge road win. That said Alabama will have to play better to get it done. The Tide needed a spirited comeback against Mississippi State to win in Tuscaloosa and does not seem to match up well with the Bulldogs, particularly Jamont Gordon. I just don't have a good feeling about this game, but I really hope I'm wrong.

Nick's Prediction: Miss. St. 74 Alabama 68

Baseball Series Preview: McNeese St. Cowboys

2007-03-01T09:11:00.000-06:00

Crimson Tide Host Cowboys In Weekend Series

# 16 Alabama Crimson Tide host the pride of Lake Charles, LA, the McNeese St. Cowboys, in a three game weekend series starting Friday night at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

Alabama(9-2) is coming off a 16-0 thrashing of the UAB Blazers Wednesday night and is swinging the bats extremely well through the first 11 games. Alabama is hitting .343 as a team with 12 home runs and 90 RBIs. Sophomore Ryan Rhoden leads the team with a .421 batting average and tied a school record with hits in a game with his 5-5 performance Wednesday against UAB. Sophomore Kent Matthes(.419) and senior Emeel Salem (.405) are also hitting above the .400 make for Jim Wells' club.

McNeese State (2-10) has struggled so far this season with its lone wins coming against Le Moyne College in a series win last weekend. The Cowboys dropped a 8-6 decision to Louisiana-Monroe on Wednesday night. The Cowboys are in a peculiar situation having their head coach, Chad Clement, resign from the head coaching position on February 14th, saying his heart was not in coaching anymore. Leaving in the middle of the season has caused McNeese St. to rearrange its coaching staff in the middle of the year.

Starting pitchers have not been named yet for the series, but 'Bama coach Jim Wells has stated he would like to get All-American Tommy Hunter in the bullpen this weekend, if possible. Wells thinks Hunter would flourish in a closer role and feels a starting rotation of Brandon Belcher, Meirs Quigley, Kasey Kebadeuax and Bernard Robert can win games for the Tide, while using Hunter to shut the door on oppenents late in the game.

The first game is scheduled for Friday night at 6:30 pm CT, with Game 2 slated for Saturday at 4pm, and the series finale on Sunday at 2pm.

Tide Stays Alive With Win Over Rebels

2007-02-28T20:51:00.000-06:00

Alabama Keeps Tournament Hopes Alive With Win

Alabama came into this game knowing they had to win to keep pace in the SEC West race and keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive, and they responded with intensity and fire. They also made sure their lone senior, Jermareo Davidson, won his last game in Coleman Coliseum on Senior Night. Alabama moved into a tie with Ole Miss with a 69-58 win Wednesday night. Alabama also moves into a tie with Mississippi State for first place, as they lost to Arkansas tonight, and the Tide has a chance to win at least a share of the SEC Western Division with a win in Starkville on Sunday.

The Crimson Tide, who collected their 20th win of the year with the victory, was led by a balanced attack on offensive led by junior Mykal Riley's 13 points, and got 12 points apiece from Davidson, Alonzo Gee, and Richard Hendrix. Mikhail Torrance, filling in for the injured Ronald Steele, chipped in eight points for Alabama.

Ole Miss (18-11, 7-8) was led by Clearance Sander's 18 point performance with Dwayne Curtis adding 12 points for the Rebels from Oxford, MS. Both teams played tenacious defense and caused both teams to struggle offensively as the lead changed hands several times. In the second half, Alabama finally pulled away by creating points off turnovers and hitting clutch three pointers and its foul shots down the stretch.

Alabama travels to Starkville, MS to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Sunday with the SEC Western Division title on the line. The SEC West...mediocrity at its best.

# 16 Bama Baseball Dominates UAB 16-0

2007-02-28T18:10:00.000-06:00

Alabama Beats Blazers in Every Aspect

It was about as perfect as you are going to get in the game of baseball. The offense was potent and the pitching was dominant all day long. The 16th ranked Alabama Crimson Tide completely dominated the UAB Blazers, 16-0, Wednesday afternoon to improve to 9-2 on the year.

Offensively, Alabama pounded out 20 hits and was led by sophomore Ryan Rhoden who went a perfect 5-5 on the day, with 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored. Senior Emeel Salem went 2-2 in the game with multiple walks and sophomore Alex Avilla went 3-5 with a couple of RBIs. Sophomore Kent Matthes continued his RBI streak, now having at least 1 RBI in each of the teams 11 games this season, as he went 1-3 on the afternoon with a run batted in.

The pitching staff was equally as impressive as starter Bernard Robert improved to 1-0 on the season with 5 innings of shutout innings only giving up two hits on the day. Will Stroup tossed three scoreless innings only giving up one hit and striking out four. Brian Griggs tossed a perfect ninth inning to complete the team shutout.

Alabama (9-2) remains at home this weekend to take on the visiting McNeese State Cowboys with the series starting Friday night at 6:30pm CT.

Basketball Preview: Ole Miss

2007-02-28T07:42:00.000-06:00

Tide Has "Must Win" Tonight Against Rebels

Alabama has made the NCAA Tournament five straight years. If the Crimson Tide does not win tonight you can kiss any hope of six straight years goodbye. Alabama enters the game at 19-9 overall, 6-8 in the SEC. To have a realistic shot at making the NCAA tournament, Alabama needs to win tonight, at Miss State on Sunday, and a game or two in the SEC Tournament next week. Basically, Mark Gottfried's club has to turn it around starting tonight. One more loss and all hope is out the door, unless the Tide wins the SEC Tournament and we all know that is as likely as Britney Spears staying in rehab for more than 48 hours.

Ole Miss(18-10, 7-7) has won five of its last seven and is currently tied for first with Mississippi State in the SEC West, with the Alabama a game back. The Rebels are coming off a road loss at South Carolina on Saturday, 76-63, and like the rest of the SEC West teams, have struggled on the road. That said, the Rebels were predicted to finish last in the Western division this season and the job first year coach Andy Kennedy has done has been outstanding, and he should be considered for SEC Coach of the Year if the Rebels finish the season strong.

This game should follow a familiar script for the Crimson Tide, meaning if they feed the ball into the paint Ole Miss should not be able to guard Jermareo Davidson and Richard Hendrix. That said, the Tide has not done a great job of that the last few games. Alabama must pick it up on the defensive end to win this, or any game, the rest of the season. Auburn looked like they were running a practice drill on Saturday where there is no defense on the floor and frankly, Auburn is not a good team. Hopefully Alabama can pull this one out and keep its tournament hopes alive.

Nicks Prediction: Alabama 71 Ole Miss 64