Saban tried to calm freshman nerves before opener

September 02, 2008

Ken Rogers

Alabama certainly looked cool, calm and collected while whipping Clemson 34-10 Saturday night in the season opener.
But minutes before his team — including the touted newcomers — executed almost flawlessly, Nick Saban wasn’t sure how his freshmen would perform.
“We really emphasized the fact that who you’re playing really doesn’t matter — not to disrespect the other team, that’s not the point — but it’s all about them and who they are and what they need to focus on to play their best football,” Saban said Monday. “And they need to get all the other stuff out of their mind, the crowd, I even said it before the game to some of them because we were dropping balls in pre-game warmups and our guys were catching it like I’ve never seen them trying to catch it before.
“I said, ‘Look guys, you need to re-center here. What do you want to do and what do you need to do to do it? That’s the thing you should be thinking about. Not the crowd, not the environment here, not the fact that we’re playing on the road, on the turf, in Atlanta. None of its matters. And it really doesn’t matter who we’re playing relative to what you need to do to be an effective player. And that’s what you guys need to center on and that’s what you need to focus on.’
“I’m sure some of them were still nervous but that’s what we tried to emphasize with them so that they didn’t feel like they had to go out and accomplish something because of expectations or anything else.”

What’s not to like?

August 31, 2008

Ken Rogers

Tough to find fault with a season-opening 34-10 win over the No. 9 team in the nation.
Alabama outprepared Clemson and certainly outexecuted the Tigers.
While it’s easy to say questions were answered Saturday, its probably better to say anxiety was relieved. Alabama certainly showed improvement where things were up in the air coming into the season.
The inexperienced front seven was far faster and more physical than I expected. Mammoth Terrence Cody will require at least double-teams from anyone who watches tape of this game. That’s good news for ends Brandon Deaderick, Bobby Greenwood and Lorenzo Washington. It also should make things easier on the edge, not to mention keep an extra person off linebackers Rolando McClain and Don’ta Hightower.
Cory Reamer was very effective taking on blockers and disrupting off-tackle carries from Clemson’s C.J. Spiller and James Davis. I’m still at a loss to explain why Jamie Harper got the start at tailback and Thunder and Lightning were on the sidelines. Harper’s fumble on Clemson’s first possession handed Alabama three points.
As the lead grew and the Tigers became more one-dimensional, the threat of the running game disappeared and Alabama could rush quarterback Cullen Harper. Brandon Deaderick, Chavis Williams and Charlie Higgenbotham each recorded a sack. Rashad Johnson broke up a pass and barely missed on an interception. Marquis Johnson was the beneficiary of Rolando McClain’s deep drop and tipped pass. Marquis Johnson got the pick.
Offensively, the veteran line took the fight directly to Clemson, which seemed more comfortable running around blocks than taking them on.
I loved the no-huddle run package in which Mark Ingram was so effective. Glen Coffee is a load. Roy Upchurch did a nice job of running and catching the ball. Terry Grant ran four times for minus-3 yards. Alabama outrushed mightly Clemson 239 yards to 0. Yep, 0.
Tommy Bowden said he thought his team could start covering “No. 88 sometime by the end of next week.” Nick Walker was spectacular as a receiving tight end. The other tight end, Travis McCall, is a devastating lead blocker. As Saban said in camp, an athletic tight end is a tough guy to cover because tight ends are usually matched against either linebackers, who are too slow, or safeties, who are too small. Any opponent watching tape of this game is going to have to deal with these tight ends. That should make things better for either the line, which will have one fewer man to block, or the outside receivers like Mike McCoy or Julio Jones. Both of those scenarios are good news for John Parker Wilson. 
Two more observations: Any quarterback is more effective throwing when he wants to instead of throwing when he has to. And Alabama’s third-down conversions—11 of 17—were probably the most encouraging stat of the night.
It’s going to get tougher for Alabama, but the Crimson Tide sent a pretty powerful opening salvo that it will be ready to play 60 minutes in every game this season. That alone is an encouraging sign.

Bowl atmosphere at the Georgia Dome

August 30, 2008

Ken Rogers

About 30 minutes from kickoff, and the Dome is filling rapidly.
This is a bowl atmosphere. Neutral field, rabid fans, two great traditions.
The 50-50 ticket split is evident. The press box side is nearly solid crimson; the far side is strictly orange.
The team videos were shown on the scoreboards as they came out for warmups. Really cool stuff. Both sides are jacked up. 

A couple things to look for in Bama-Clemson game

Ken Rogers

Hours before Saturday night’s kickoff, I feel like a kid standing in the queue for the giant roller-coaster he’s just now tall enough to ride.
This game is a little scary, but impossible to resist.
The big-picture key, of course, is not to let a win or a loss affect the next game. It’s the first of 12 games, and none of Alabama’s reasonable preseason goals will be eliminated with a loss..
But wouldn’t knocking off the No. 9 team in the country change the outlook on this season?
Here are a few things to look for early.
First, Alabama’s offensive line needs to get a push on running plays and protect John Parker Wilson. Clemson’s experienced secondary will have a lot less ground to cover if Wilson is throwing to his “hot” receivers in the wake of an effective pass rush.
Second, instead of relying on the touted freshman class, Alabama’s experienced players need to set a good example. Wilson, of course, and tight ends Travis McCall and Nick Walker, as well as that offensive line have been in these games.
Finally, if a freshman does step up and make a big play, Julio Jones and Mark Ingram are two good candidates on offense. Don’ta Hightower and Mark Barron are the playmakers on defense. But keep an eye on receiver B.J. Scott, who may benefit greatly from the attention Jones will get from that secondary. Scott is the freshman I’ll pick to deliver in the clutch tonight.

Tulane taking no chances (Can you blame it?)

August 29, 2008

Ken Rogers

Tulane’s football team’s visit to Tuscaloosa for next Saturday’s Alabama home opener has turned into a college road trip.
In advance of Tropical Storm Gustav, Tulane’s athletic department has evacuated its student-athletes, coaches and staff out of New Orleans.
The university closed at noon today and classes will resume on Thursday, Sept. 4.
The football team, which will play in Bryant-Denny Stadium next Saturday night at 6 p.m., will leave for Birmingham on Saturday and practice all week in the Magic City.
“We have an annually revised plan that assures the safety of our 280 student-athletes, which is our top priority,” Director of Athletics Rick Dickson said in a statement released by the university.  “It gives us the flexibility of determining the manner in which we evacuate.  We chose the option of sending two of our active teams—football and volleyball—to their competition sites earlier in light of the fact that classes are cancelled through next Wednesday. Additionally, an efficient model of tracking every out-of-season student-athlete will occur at the conclusion of classes on Friday. This tracking system is monitored by our athletic staff and coaches and assures that all our student-athletes reach safe harbor.”
The TU volleyball team flew out of New Orleans on Thursday for their season opener at the BYU Molten Classic in Provo, Utah, and will remain on a West Coast road trip. It will travel directly to its next tournament, the Paso Robles Marriott Invitational, Sept. 5-6, at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, Calif.
The Green Wave women’s golf and tennis teams, along with the men’s and women’s cross country teams, will relocate as well on Saturday, but to the campus of Jackson State University in Jackson, Miss.
Tulane has cancelled both the Green Wave Invitational cross country meet, which was scheduled for Friday afternoon at City Park, and the TU volleyball home opener against Florida A&M on Monday, Sept. 1.
Tulane was crippled in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. As Gustav gains strength in the Gulf of Mexico, school leaders clearly want to be as proactive as possible. Being reactive after Katrina simply didn’t work. Can’t blame them for thinking safety first. They’ve seen what can happen if you wait. Nobody wants to go through that again.