Great article in the AP ... enjoy!
Alabama trying to do the pushing around this time
By JOHN ZENOR, AP Sports Writer
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP)—Apparently, Alabama players got the message.
The Crimson Tide’s coaches spent plenty of time in the preseason talking to them about being physical and tough becoming the football equivalent of the neighborhood bully.
“We’re not going to let anybody do anything to us that we don’t want them to,” offensive lineman Mike Johnson said. “Nobody is going to push us around.”
That mentality carried over into the season with a bullying defensive front, a pounding running game and the resulting dominant win over preseason No. 9 Clemson that sent the Crimson Tide soaring to No. 13 in the polls.
For all the things Alabama did right in that game—and it did enough to vault 11 spots in the rankings—it started with physical play that caught the attention of everyone from Georgia coach Mark Richt to the Tulane players who visit the Tide Saturday night.
“They’re a hard-nosed team,” Green Wave offensive tackle Troy Kropog said. “They out-physicalled their opponent in that game tremendously and they played hard. They’re aggressive and they play hard. They’re the kind of team that poses the most problems because they play to the whistle.”
“It was impressive to see,” center Michael Parenton said.
The results were impressive, too: Outrushing Clemson and its heralded backfield of James Davis and C.J. Spiller 239-0 and racking up three sacks without allowing any.
It was impressive enough that Johnson and 6-foot-5, 365-pound noseguard Terrence Cody claimed the Southeastern Conference’s offensive and defensive lineman of the week honors.
Richt was on hand for the Tide’s performance at Atlanta’s Georgia Dome.
“I just saw a team that had a mentality they were going to play physical, and they did it,” said Richt, whose son Jon is a Clemson freshman. “Clemson didn’t have any answers on that day.”
Alabama’s offensive line could be without its star against Tulane, playing in its opener. Left tackle Andre Smith is listed as doubtful after starting the first 27 games of his college career.
Johnson would move from guard to tackle, and sophomore David Ross would fill Johnson’s spot. Even after Smith went down against Clemson, Alabama mounted a scoring drive that consumed nearly 9 minutes.
“We didn’t miss a beat,” Johnson said. “We pushed the ball down the field with (Ross) in there. We drug out the clock in the fourth quarter with him in there.”
Tulane had Conference USA’s top run defense last season but must replace starting linemen Avery Williams and Antonio Harris. ‘Bama also has to prove it can keep it up after finishing eighth in the SEC in rushing offense last season.
“I think it’s the identity that we’ve always tried to create, play physical, play with a lot of toughness, strike them, knock them back,” Tide coach Nick Saban said. “Be aggressive and relentless in your style of how you play and how you compete. I think we did a little better in this game. I think it goes back to the players kind of buying in and believing.”
The offensive line was already regarded as a strength of the team with four returning starters. The defensive front seven—linebackers and linemen—was more of a question mark.
Cody was a newcomer in the middle of the line and freshman Don’ta Hightower and converted safety Cory Reamer were making their first starts at linebacker.
The result? Reamer forced a fumble and Hightower recovered it.
“From the first play, we had guys getting in the backfield and disrupting everything they were trying to do,” Reamer said.
Cody gave the Tide a massive presence inside, drawing multiple blockers and freeing teammates to make plays.
“I didn’t see a play where they didn’t double-team him, triple-team him on a couple of occasions,” defensive end Lorenzo Washington said.
Like Johnson, Washington thinks the Tide approached the season with a different mentality than last year.
“We’re attacking. Last year with a lot of teams, we weren’t establishing our line of scrimmage,” he said. “We were letting them dictate what we do. This year our main focus is attacking the line of scrimmage and knocking them back so we control what they do.”
Friday, September 5, 2008
Thursday, September 4, 2008
BACK TO WORK!
Thanks to bamaonline.com for this great article by Chase Goodbread!
By Chase Goodbread
The Alabama football team continued preparations for Saturday’s home game with Tulane on Wednesday with a full-pad practice at the Thomas-Drew Practice Facility. Here are a few observations from the media viewing period from BamaOnLine.com:
*** Left tackle Andre Smith (knee sprain) and wide receiver Earl Alexander (ankle sprain) were in black non-contact jerseys and riding stationary bikes for the third consecutive practice. UA coach Nick Saban will be asked to update the status on the two injured players later Wednesday at the post-practice press conference. Smith’s streak of 27 consecutive career starts is in jeopardy. Alexander played sparingly against Clemson but did not record a catch. On Monday, Saban said he was unsure if they would play Saturday against Tulane. Typically, players who can’t practice by Wednesday do not play the ensuing Saturday.
*** Offensive guard David Ross continued to work with the first group in place of Smith, although not at Smith’s position. Mike Johnson, normally the left guard, is practicing at left tackle while Ross fills in at Johnson’s spot.
*** Scout team update: Freshman linebacker Glenn Harbin wore the No. 90, that of Tulane’s Adam Kwentua, one of the Green Wave’s top players. Linebacker Michael DeJohn wore No. 34, that of Tulane senior LB Evan Lee.
*** There were no changes among the defensive groups in practice on Wednesday, including at linebacker, which has been in flux more than any other position since fall camp began. Look for a lineup against Tulane similar to that which took the field against Clemson.
By Chase Goodbread
The Alabama football team continued preparations for Saturday’s home game with Tulane on Wednesday with a full-pad practice at the Thomas-Drew Practice Facility. Here are a few observations from the media viewing period from BamaOnLine.com:
*** Left tackle Andre Smith (knee sprain) and wide receiver Earl Alexander (ankle sprain) were in black non-contact jerseys and riding stationary bikes for the third consecutive practice. UA coach Nick Saban will be asked to update the status on the two injured players later Wednesday at the post-practice press conference. Smith’s streak of 27 consecutive career starts is in jeopardy. Alexander played sparingly against Clemson but did not record a catch. On Monday, Saban said he was unsure if they would play Saturday against Tulane. Typically, players who can’t practice by Wednesday do not play the ensuing Saturday.
*** Offensive guard David Ross continued to work with the first group in place of Smith, although not at Smith’s position. Mike Johnson, normally the left guard, is practicing at left tackle while Ross fills in at Johnson’s spot.
*** Scout team update: Freshman linebacker Glenn Harbin wore the No. 90, that of Tulane’s Adam Kwentua, one of the Green Wave’s top players. Linebacker Michael DeJohn wore No. 34, that of Tulane senior LB Evan Lee.
*** There were no changes among the defensive groups in practice on Wednesday, including at linebacker, which has been in flux more than any other position since fall camp began. Look for a lineup against Tulane similar to that which took the field against Clemson.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
It was all over in 10 minutes......
Gotta love that Cecil Hurt of the Tuscaloosa News ... he really tells it like it is.
CECIL HURT: It was over in first 10 minutes
Published: Sunday, August 31, 2008 at 3:30 a.m.
ATLANTA The war of nerves started before the game did on Saturday night.
It didn’t last very long.
It started with the coin toss. The University of Alabama won that toss. It elected — maybe “demanded” would be a better word — to receive the football.
When it took the kickoff, Alabama ran the ball straight ahead on three consecutive plays, perhaps as much for the sheer pleasure of smacking Clemson in the mouth as for the yardage that it netted.
That drive ultimately ended with a long field goal, but it also sent a message that was worth a lot more than three points.
Clemson’s first drive sent the opposite message. The first play wasn’t a similar run, a play designed for big back James Davis to answer with some physicality. It was a fade pass that Tiger quarterback Cullen Harper couldn’t complete.
The next play, an overwhelmed freshman back named Jamie Harper fumbled the ball.
Clemson never again called plays as if it thought it could effectively block Alabama. It tried some misdirection, some direct snap trickery, but most of it accomplished little.
The game wasn’t 10 minutes old. But it was over.
Clemson had two highlights after that, one long catch-and-run by speedy Jacoby Ford that resulted in a field goal (Ford didn’t make it through the hard-hitting first half) and a nifty kickoff return by C.J. Spiller, who is so good and fast that he really should get to rush the ball more than two times in a game, blocking or not.
Alabama, as Nick Saban noted, didn’t pressure Clemson much. It played defense aggressively, but with an eye at containing Clemson’s package of bubble screens and other diversions.
Offensively, Alabama just kept pounding. The Tide could throw whenever it wanted. If tight end Nick Walker slept with a blanket upon returning to Tuscaloosa on Saturday night, it was the first time all evening that he was covered.
Mainly, though, the Crimson Tide ran. And ran. And ran some more.
Clemson defensive coordinator Vic Koenning was left to wonder what the number of the Escalade that ran over his front seven might have been, and whether he should have devoted more time to coaching and less to comedy during the week.
“I think the last drive, to take the air out of it for seven minutes, is what you call finishing the game and I was pleased and proud that we were able to do that,” UA coach Nick Saban said.
The closest thing to a scary moment came when Spiller opened the second half with a lightning kickoff return. Last year’s Alabama team didn’t handle such adversity well.
“Those were the things that we would melt down on in the past,” Saban said. “People would flatten out. But we responded and I think when you respond to adversity, that’s the sign of a good competitor.”
The result was Alabama’s first win over a top-10 team since Florida in 2005 and its most notable regular-season non-conference win since a victory over Penn State in 1989. Coming as it does, at the start of the schedule, it will send Alabama fans into an excited frenzy. It should be a cause of celebration, but it should also come with a note of caution. The Atlantic Coast Conference portion of the Crimson Tide schedule is over. Before long, big-boy football – the SEC kind – will begin.
“This is just one game,” Saban said. “We’ve still got to find an identity.
“We’ve just made a ‘B’ on a midterm. Do we slack off and make a ‘D’ on the next one and have a ‘C’ average? Or do we try to make an ‘A’?”
There is no way to downplay the emotions of this win for Alabama fans.
It wasn’t just that the Crimson Tide beat a team that was favored, and had a big reputation, although that must have felt sweet. It was the way Alabama did it – with tough, physical football that has been the Saban trademark elsewhere – that was the most gratifying thing, the first fulfillment of Saban’s prediction upon his hiring. He stated then that Alabama would become a team that other teams hated to play.
Today, Clemson knows just what he was talking about.
CECIL HURT: It was over in first 10 minutes
Published: Sunday, August 31, 2008 at 3:30 a.m.
ATLANTA The war of nerves started before the game did on Saturday night.
It didn’t last very long.
It started with the coin toss. The University of Alabama won that toss. It elected — maybe “demanded” would be a better word — to receive the football.
When it took the kickoff, Alabama ran the ball straight ahead on three consecutive plays, perhaps as much for the sheer pleasure of smacking Clemson in the mouth as for the yardage that it netted.
That drive ultimately ended with a long field goal, but it also sent a message that was worth a lot more than three points.
Clemson’s first drive sent the opposite message. The first play wasn’t a similar run, a play designed for big back James Davis to answer with some physicality. It was a fade pass that Tiger quarterback Cullen Harper couldn’t complete.
The next play, an overwhelmed freshman back named Jamie Harper fumbled the ball.
Clemson never again called plays as if it thought it could effectively block Alabama. It tried some misdirection, some direct snap trickery, but most of it accomplished little.
The game wasn’t 10 minutes old. But it was over.
Clemson had two highlights after that, one long catch-and-run by speedy Jacoby Ford that resulted in a field goal (Ford didn’t make it through the hard-hitting first half) and a nifty kickoff return by C.J. Spiller, who is so good and fast that he really should get to rush the ball more than two times in a game, blocking or not.
Alabama, as Nick Saban noted, didn’t pressure Clemson much. It played defense aggressively, but with an eye at containing Clemson’s package of bubble screens and other diversions.
Offensively, Alabama just kept pounding. The Tide could throw whenever it wanted. If tight end Nick Walker slept with a blanket upon returning to Tuscaloosa on Saturday night, it was the first time all evening that he was covered.
Mainly, though, the Crimson Tide ran. And ran. And ran some more.
Clemson defensive coordinator Vic Koenning was left to wonder what the number of the Escalade that ran over his front seven might have been, and whether he should have devoted more time to coaching and less to comedy during the week.
“I think the last drive, to take the air out of it for seven minutes, is what you call finishing the game and I was pleased and proud that we were able to do that,” UA coach Nick Saban said.
The closest thing to a scary moment came when Spiller opened the second half with a lightning kickoff return. Last year’s Alabama team didn’t handle such adversity well.
“Those were the things that we would melt down on in the past,” Saban said. “People would flatten out. But we responded and I think when you respond to adversity, that’s the sign of a good competitor.”
The result was Alabama’s first win over a top-10 team since Florida in 2005 and its most notable regular-season non-conference win since a victory over Penn State in 1989. Coming as it does, at the start of the schedule, it will send Alabama fans into an excited frenzy. It should be a cause of celebration, but it should also come with a note of caution. The Atlantic Coast Conference portion of the Crimson Tide schedule is over. Before long, big-boy football – the SEC kind – will begin.
“This is just one game,” Saban said. “We’ve still got to find an identity.
“We’ve just made a ‘B’ on a midterm. Do we slack off and make a ‘D’ on the next one and have a ‘C’ average? Or do we try to make an ‘A’?”
There is no way to downplay the emotions of this win for Alabama fans.
It wasn’t just that the Crimson Tide beat a team that was favored, and had a big reputation, although that must have felt sweet. It was the way Alabama did it – with tough, physical football that has been the Saban trademark elsewhere – that was the most gratifying thing, the first fulfillment of Saban’s prediction upon his hiring. He stated then that Alabama would become a team that other teams hated to play.
Today, Clemson knows just what he was talking about.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Game Week Prep For Tulane
Well the tide took care of business Saturday night and now its time to get back to work for this week. Next up: Tulane Greenwave
Here are some details about their 2008 squad ... bear in mind they lost quite a few players to graduation & this is their OPENING game so no game last week to draw info from.
Scouting The Offense:
A new quarterback and new tailback have the benefit of a veteran offensive line that returns four starters, including Lombardi Trophy watch list member Michael Parenton (6-2, 287) at center. Offensive coordinator Dan Dodd says the team has a much better understanding of his intricate West Coast package than they did when it debuted last season.
Scouting The Defense:
Seven starters return under new defensive coordinator O’Neill Gilbert. Senior FS David Skehan had 66 tackles, four interceptions and 10 pass breakups and senior DE Reggie Scott registered four sacks, nine tackles for loss and three forced fumbles last year. Tulane ranked 37th nationally against the run (132.6 yards per game) and 113th against the pass (287.7).
Quote To Note:
“The thing he’s doing, as opposed to the other guys, is he’s not getting tackled. That sounds crazy, but a lot of the young guys get hit and they go down right away. I tell them they’re not tackled until both of your feet are up above your head.”—Tulane head coach Bob Toledo on junior tailback Andre Anderson.
Strategy And Personnel
THIS WEEK’S GAME: Tulane at Alabama, Sept. 6—The Green Wave hasn’t defeated the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa since Nov. 3, 1900. Alabama owns a 26-11-3 edge in the all-time series, but the programs haven’t met since 1994. The Crimson Tide is coming off a season-opening 34-10 thumping of Clemson.
Players To Watch:
QB Kevin Moore—The 6-5 sophomore completed 30-of-54 passes for 432 yards and two touchdowns in parts of eight games last season. He secured the starting spot during the offseason when Anthony Scelfo elected to pursue a baseball career full-time.
RB Andre Anderson—The junior carried 14 times for 91 yards and one touchdown last season and has the nearly impossible task of replacing record-setting rusher Matt Forte (2,127 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2007).
CB Josh Lumar—Tulane’s most experienced defensive back faces a tough challenge in the season opener. The 5-10 senior will likely spend a lot of time opposite Alabama’s 6-4 freshman phenom Julio Jones, who caught four passes for 28 yards and a touchdown in the win against Clemson.
Roster Report:
• Head coach Bob Toledo has suspended sophomore TE Tyler Helm (two games) and sophomore WR Alan Mitchell (three games) for unspecified violations of team policies.
• In the last week of August camp, Tulane moved offensive lineman Oscar Ponce de Leon back to defensive tackle. The 6-2, 302-pound sophomore played there exclusively as a freshman in 2006 before being moved to the offensive side and taking a redshirt year in 2007.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seems although they have some players of the future this team is in rebuilding mode. I could be wrong of course but I think this will be just another scrimmage type game for the tide offense & perhaps julio jone's coming out party. I hope the tide doesnt look past these guys but I dont expect this to be a dangerous game.
L8ter All
Here are some details about their 2008 squad ... bear in mind they lost quite a few players to graduation & this is their OPENING game so no game last week to draw info from.
Scouting The Offense:
A new quarterback and new tailback have the benefit of a veteran offensive line that returns four starters, including Lombardi Trophy watch list member Michael Parenton (6-2, 287) at center. Offensive coordinator Dan Dodd says the team has a much better understanding of his intricate West Coast package than they did when it debuted last season.
Scouting The Defense:
Seven starters return under new defensive coordinator O’Neill Gilbert. Senior FS David Skehan had 66 tackles, four interceptions and 10 pass breakups and senior DE Reggie Scott registered four sacks, nine tackles for loss and three forced fumbles last year. Tulane ranked 37th nationally against the run (132.6 yards per game) and 113th against the pass (287.7).
Quote To Note:
“The thing he’s doing, as opposed to the other guys, is he’s not getting tackled. That sounds crazy, but a lot of the young guys get hit and they go down right away. I tell them they’re not tackled until both of your feet are up above your head.”—Tulane head coach Bob Toledo on junior tailback Andre Anderson.
Strategy And Personnel
THIS WEEK’S GAME: Tulane at Alabama, Sept. 6—The Green Wave hasn’t defeated the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa since Nov. 3, 1900. Alabama owns a 26-11-3 edge in the all-time series, but the programs haven’t met since 1994. The Crimson Tide is coming off a season-opening 34-10 thumping of Clemson.
Players To Watch:
QB Kevin Moore—The 6-5 sophomore completed 30-of-54 passes for 432 yards and two touchdowns in parts of eight games last season. He secured the starting spot during the offseason when Anthony Scelfo elected to pursue a baseball career full-time.
RB Andre Anderson—The junior carried 14 times for 91 yards and one touchdown last season and has the nearly impossible task of replacing record-setting rusher Matt Forte (2,127 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2007).
CB Josh Lumar—Tulane’s most experienced defensive back faces a tough challenge in the season opener. The 5-10 senior will likely spend a lot of time opposite Alabama’s 6-4 freshman phenom Julio Jones, who caught four passes for 28 yards and a touchdown in the win against Clemson.
Roster Report:
• Head coach Bob Toledo has suspended sophomore TE Tyler Helm (two games) and sophomore WR Alan Mitchell (three games) for unspecified violations of team policies.
• In the last week of August camp, Tulane moved offensive lineman Oscar Ponce de Leon back to defensive tackle. The 6-2, 302-pound sophomore played there exclusively as a freshman in 2006 before being moved to the offensive side and taking a redshirt year in 2007.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seems although they have some players of the future this team is in rebuilding mode. I could be wrong of course but I think this will be just another scrimmage type game for the tide offense & perhaps julio jone's coming out party. I hope the tide doesnt look past these guys but I dont expect this to be a dangerous game.
L8ter All
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Week #1 = Big W .... ROLL TIDE!!!!!!
Completely Awesome game! If our defense can play like that against all of our opponnents this year who in the world could stop us? I never expected in my own wildest dreams that this years team would dominate BOTH offensive and defensive line play the way they did! GO FROSH'S GO ... Big ups to all the freshman & especially our new secret weapon ... YOU GO NICK!
Anyways .... Big ups as well to JPW for the 22 outta 30 with no INT's night .... great job & what else can we say about our RBS????? Look out SEC ... we are going to run over ALL OF YOU!
Here's the yahoo story on the game .... for those that wanna read what the professionals yap about.
================================================================
Sweet Dome, Alabama: Tide roll past Clemson
By PETE IACOBELLI, AP Sports Writer
ATLANTA, Ga. (AP)—Nick Saban’s plan to bring No. 24 Alabama back to prominence looks way ahead of schedule. As for No. 9 Clemson, another big game ended with the Tigers on the losing end.
The Crimson Tide had little trouble rolling past Clemson 34-10 at the Georgia Dome on Saturday night, the biggest victory in coach Saban’s two seasons at Alabama.
Alabama’s defense held Clemson to zero yards rushing and John Parker Wilson threw two touchdown passes as Alabama beat a top-10 opponent for the first time since topping No. 5 Florida in 2005. That was part of the last hurrah for former coach Mike Shula, who followed that 10-2 season with a 6-7 campaign that ended his time with the Tide.
Alabama lured Saban from the NFL last season to lead the 12-time national champs back to glory. Based on the opener, Saban and the Tide are on their way.
“Nobody can be satisfied with a one-game performance,” Saban said. “This will be a challenge for our team and it’ll be interesting to see how they respond.”
Wilson finished 22-of-30 for 180 yards and, with his career total completions now at 500, surpassed Brodie Croyle’s old record of 488.
The Crimson Tide defense held the Tigers’ heralded “Thunder and Lightning” backfield of James Davis and C.J. Spiller to 20 yards combined.
The Tigers managed only 188 yards, way off their 403-yard average from last season.
Saban’s latest recruiting class included such high-profile prospects as receiver Julio Jones, an Internet sensation who fans have buzzed about for months. Still, Alabama didn’t figure to hang with the Tigers, an experienced bunch who entered the season with higher hopes than just their first Atlantic Coast Conference championship in 17 years.
Right from the start, though, Alabama showed it matched up fine with the ACC’s favorite.
The Tide ran the ball easily on Clemson’s defense, which was ninth in the country a season ago. At one point, Alabama had outgained the Tigers 114-1. By the time, tight end Nick Walker had slipped behind three defenders for a 4-yard TD catch, Alabama was ahead 20-3 midway through the second quarter.
Just for good measure, Jones collected his first college TD pass, a 4-yarder from Wilson that put Alabama up 31-10.
Leigh Tiffin added four field goals, including a 54-yard kick that was Alabama’s third longest of all time.
Clemson quarterback Cullen Harper, voted the favorite to win ACC player of the year, was continually pressured and off target throughout.
The Tigers, down 23-3 at the half, got a burst of life when Spiller broke for a 96-yard kickoff return TD to start the second half, then forced the Tide into their first punt of the night a series later.
Clemson could get little going.
“Maybe we needed a wake up call,” Harper said. “We’ll have to keep working hard this week and correct our mistakes.”
So, for the second time in eight months, left the Georgia Dome with more questions and answers.
The Tigers just can’t help but stumble whenever they close in on success.
They lost to a lightly regarded Maryland in 2006 at home, 13-12, when victory would’ve sent Clemson to the ACC title game.
Then last year, the Tigers were beaten 20-17 by Boston College in a showdown for a spot in the league’s championship game.
Clemson concluded the season with a 23-20 overtime loss to Auburn in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, missing out on its first 10-victory season since 1991.
This was the year, many thought, that Clemson and embattled coach Tommy Bowden would shake off their reputations for not winning the biggest games. Alabama was where it was supposed to start.
Instead, Bowden again must refocus a team filled with veterans and leaders running out of time.
Clemson’s loss also concluded a demoralizing day for the ACC. Earlier, defending league champion Virginia Tech fell to East Carolina, while Virginia was defeated at home by No. 3 Southern Cal 52-7.
For Alabama, it’s a win sure to fuel talk of Southeastern Conference success. The Tide don’t start down that road for three more games, the opener against SEC Western Division rival Arkansas following home games against Tulane and Western Kentucky.
The Crimson Tide have won 12 straight against Clemson, although the team’s hadn’t met since 1975 when the late Bear Bryant laid a 56-0 humiliation on the Tigers.
Maybe Alabama and Saban will soon have more in common with the Bear’s championship teams.
Anyways .... Big ups as well to JPW for the 22 outta 30 with no INT's night .... great job & what else can we say about our RBS????? Look out SEC ... we are going to run over ALL OF YOU!
Here's the yahoo story on the game .... for those that wanna read what the professionals yap about.
================================================================
Sweet Dome, Alabama: Tide roll past Clemson
By PETE IACOBELLI, AP Sports Writer
ATLANTA, Ga. (AP)—Nick Saban’s plan to bring No. 24 Alabama back to prominence looks way ahead of schedule. As for No. 9 Clemson, another big game ended with the Tigers on the losing end.
The Crimson Tide had little trouble rolling past Clemson 34-10 at the Georgia Dome on Saturday night, the biggest victory in coach Saban’s two seasons at Alabama.
Alabama’s defense held Clemson to zero yards rushing and John Parker Wilson threw two touchdown passes as Alabama beat a top-10 opponent for the first time since topping No. 5 Florida in 2005. That was part of the last hurrah for former coach Mike Shula, who followed that 10-2 season with a 6-7 campaign that ended his time with the Tide.
Alabama lured Saban from the NFL last season to lead the 12-time national champs back to glory. Based on the opener, Saban and the Tide are on their way.
“Nobody can be satisfied with a one-game performance,” Saban said. “This will be a challenge for our team and it’ll be interesting to see how they respond.”
Wilson finished 22-of-30 for 180 yards and, with his career total completions now at 500, surpassed Brodie Croyle’s old record of 488.
The Crimson Tide defense held the Tigers’ heralded “Thunder and Lightning” backfield of James Davis and C.J. Spiller to 20 yards combined.
The Tigers managed only 188 yards, way off their 403-yard average from last season.
Saban’s latest recruiting class included such high-profile prospects as receiver Julio Jones, an Internet sensation who fans have buzzed about for months. Still, Alabama didn’t figure to hang with the Tigers, an experienced bunch who entered the season with higher hopes than just their first Atlantic Coast Conference championship in 17 years.
Right from the start, though, Alabama showed it matched up fine with the ACC’s favorite.
The Tide ran the ball easily on Clemson’s defense, which was ninth in the country a season ago. At one point, Alabama had outgained the Tigers 114-1. By the time, tight end Nick Walker had slipped behind three defenders for a 4-yard TD catch, Alabama was ahead 20-3 midway through the second quarter.
Just for good measure, Jones collected his first college TD pass, a 4-yarder from Wilson that put Alabama up 31-10.
Leigh Tiffin added four field goals, including a 54-yard kick that was Alabama’s third longest of all time.
Clemson quarterback Cullen Harper, voted the favorite to win ACC player of the year, was continually pressured and off target throughout.
The Tigers, down 23-3 at the half, got a burst of life when Spiller broke for a 96-yard kickoff return TD to start the second half, then forced the Tide into their first punt of the night a series later.
Clemson could get little going.
“Maybe we needed a wake up call,” Harper said. “We’ll have to keep working hard this week and correct our mistakes.”
So, for the second time in eight months, left the Georgia Dome with more questions and answers.
The Tigers just can’t help but stumble whenever they close in on success.
They lost to a lightly regarded Maryland in 2006 at home, 13-12, when victory would’ve sent Clemson to the ACC title game.
Then last year, the Tigers were beaten 20-17 by Boston College in a showdown for a spot in the league’s championship game.
Clemson concluded the season with a 23-20 overtime loss to Auburn in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, missing out on its first 10-victory season since 1991.
This was the year, many thought, that Clemson and embattled coach Tommy Bowden would shake off their reputations for not winning the biggest games. Alabama was where it was supposed to start.
Instead, Bowden again must refocus a team filled with veterans and leaders running out of time.
Clemson’s loss also concluded a demoralizing day for the ACC. Earlier, defending league champion Virginia Tech fell to East Carolina, while Virginia was defeated at home by No. 3 Southern Cal 52-7.
For Alabama, it’s a win sure to fuel talk of Southeastern Conference success. The Tide don’t start down that road for three more games, the opener against SEC Western Division rival Arkansas following home games against Tulane and Western Kentucky.
The Crimson Tide have won 12 straight against Clemson, although the team’s hadn’t met since 1975 when the late Bear Bryant laid a 56-0 humiliation on the Tigers.
Maybe Alabama and Saban will soon have more in common with the Bear’s championship teams.
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