I think Michigan is a good team, but they were nowhere near Bama's level of being physical in the game.   Milliner essentially throwing a WR out of bounds, I forgot who, but a WR clocking a LB.   Most of the team clocking somebody after Milliner's INT, etc...  I think by halftime, they were shell-shocked...

The other side of this, is I also think by halftime, we were approaching over confidence, which is something we will need to work on, to avoid 2010 again...

All that being said....wow, just wow, did Bama come out of the gate ready to kick butt or what ?!?!?!

So, a bit of both, yes, we are good, but there is room for improvement, pass coverage, pass completion percentage, gaining experience and so on...

On a related note, living up here in Ohio, you do run into a few Michigan fans, I have a friend who is one...he is still just dumbfounded...cannot believe the giant can-o-whupp-a$$ we opened on them...   

At home...not sure about refreshments or snacks as we will be returning from Mexico that day...if we don't have any travel delays, we can probably get a beer run in before the game...else, I might be playing catch-up using the DVR...

My phone will be on, so I can talk smack via text to my Michigan friends...  Somehow one of them thinks that Denard Robinson is just all there is to discuss about this game...uhhh...we gonna score too...dummy !!!!   

I don't know ALL of the details, and neither do the media types...but my guess is that it played out something like this.

1.  He knew he could be impacted by the number crunch.
2.  He chose to keep his focus on Bama, even though he knew it might not work out, because it was his dream.
3.  When it didn't work out, he was crushed.

All of this would be normal for a teenager.  So, I don't see anything overly unusual about how this played out...he saw a dream slipping away from him and it hurt, hell yeah, it hurt...and then he had to go out in front of a camera and deal with it...hey, no pressure there...

Everyone has had some sort of big thing in their life turn out in a disappointing manner.   I know I have...  However, most of us don't have to go through it while in front of a TV camera, and have it reported statewide, or even further after it happens.

So, the media types doing all the moral grandstanding on this should do the following;

1.  Stop promoting the widespread coverage and hype, yes, you are part of this
2.  When something like this crops up, engage that moral compass that you purport to have and turn the da#@ camera off !!!   How long did they keep the camera on him after he spoke and was just there fidgeting?   They knew quite well that he was uncomfortable.

As a secondary note, he could have gotten some better support from the adults around him, coach, parents, etc.   When he knew what was going down, somebody should have just had him NOT go to the big announcement show.   Then, in private, he could better evaluate the situation, and make a decision, not under duress...and not while overly emotional...

I bet at a later time, having the benefit of hindsight, he will realize that his decision to go to Arkansas was made hastily, and emotionally, and blocked out his long term dream, which was to go to Bama... 

And that sucks for everyone, except the media leaches, who got their big story...

OMG, thank you so much for this...not only is this good to make fun of Auburn, but I can also poke fun at my Mom and uncle, who both went to Woodlawn HS...even though it was back in the 50s...

Especially, my uncle, who carries on like it was Harvard or something...he gave us crap about going to a county school when we were younger...  So, this is some fine ammo for a long running, poking fun at each other, thing...   

Good documentary.  I enjoyed it, especially getting to see some of the old pics of Joe and CPBB.

Usually when I watch something like this, I pick up on a few nuggets of knowledge.   Like the part about his college entrance scores and not being able to get into Maryland...so the coach redirected him to Bama...   Wow, never knew that, but I was often curious how a kid from Beaver Falls, PA made his way to Bama in the 60s...

Hmmm...didn't know that, but good for him, good for Bama too !!!

Thanks for the info !!!   Roll Tide !!!

Great addition to the staff.  Someone who knows about Bama, knows about winning and knows about the pro game.   Good all the way around...

Funny thing though...in the article, there was this quote "they'll pay for me to finish my degree..."   So, is that his "pay", or does he get paid for coaching as well?  Article only mentions him as an assistant on the staff, doesn't specify grad asst, or regular coaching position.   Just seems like he probably made enough in the NFL to pay for finishing his degree...  but must be nice to work a deal like that if you can...   

Seems like it's pretty settled now...enrolled at ND today...

http://notredame.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1319715

Oh yeah, definitely recruiting in their turf.... DePriest is from Springfield, OH and the Buckeye fans were NOT happy when he signed with Bama.

There's another OL kid, Ryan Kelly, from West Chester, OH, northern suburb of Cincinnati that was in the signing class last year as well.   The Buckeyes wanted him as well...

There is even a guy on the roster from Dublin, OH, which is a western suburb of Columbus on the roster, though I haven't heard of him, Jerrod Bierbower...

I live up here, so I have heard about him from both sides...

He was a decent coach, excellent recruiter, but always choked in the big games.  He was actually 2-10-1 against Michigan, and 3 of those losses OSU was undefeated and in the top 5 rankings going in...   He also went 3-8 in bowl games while at the helm.  But he sent a LOT of talent to the NFL.

The Buckeye fans tired of his crap midway (or sooner) thru his tenure...and he didn't start off very good either.  His first TV commercial was recorded in front of the stadium, which he referred to as "Buckeye Stadium"....uh, John, it's Ohio Stadium...so, he was ruffling feathers right out of the gate up here.   I have friend of mine, who is OSU alumni, who each year, would send a 3-4 page letter to the president of the university after OSU would lose to Michigan.  He had quite a nice party after the finally fired Cooper.   I attended, he was elated that Cooper was finally gone, and somehow convinced that his letters had something to do with it...yeah, probably his and thousands of others.   

Funny about his comments about QBs as well.   About the most well known QB that played for Cooper would be Kirk Herbstreit, and that wasn't because of his QB prowess, but because of his ESPN visibility.

You guys ever listen to him talk....reminds me of Boonhower on the King of the Hill cartoon... 

Coach,

Thanks again for an excellent review of the game.   I have enjoyed these all season and have shared with other members of my family that aren't much interested in hitting forums...they have enjoyed as well !!!

One thing I thought that was awesome in the game was how the D stretched out the option plays and never really attacked it.  Instead they just kept pursuing Jefferson making him move more toward the sideline.  When the play got stretched out, JJ couldn't toss to the RB, no room...and the DBs had converged on the play.  The D stuffed that all night long !!!   Excellent game plan on that !!!

Also, thanks to all the players, coaches and other members of the staff that made this a truly unforgettable season !!!

Looking forward to next season !!!   Roll Tide !!!!

This meeting will be much like the first one, if we execute and don't screw up, we will win.   That's not what happened in November.   I expect that CNS will have the team ready to do both, as he has a pretty good track record on "payback" matchups, like against Florida in the 09 SECCG.

Like HSC, and everbody else, I do have concerns about the kicking game.   Specific to the first game, after Foster missed the second kick, they went to Shelley for the next one, which was out of his effective range.  I think that pretty much demoralized both kickers to a certain extent.  This time we need to play it smarter and stay within what is reasonable, otherwise, just punt the thing on an angle out of bounds and trap LSU deep in their own territory.   As far as punting goes, first, see above, beyond that, kick away from Mathieu when possible, then stay disciplined and in your coverage lanes.

The other big thing I would like to see that HSC hit on, was hitting TR out of the backfield.  It will slow down the blitz, plus TR with a head of steam would be awesome anyway.      I would also like to see us go downfield at least some to spread the LSU defense out.

So, if we stick to what we excel at, execute it well, and don't make mistakes (turnovers, untimely penalties), I fully expect that we will win.   Seems that CNS is thinking the same things, based on what he has been saying to the media.

I am totally pumped about the game, mostly just want it to get here and kinda bummed it's on a Monday night.   Already had to take my first vacation day today in order to watch the bowl games that should have been on yesterday... guess I will be going to work groggy next Tuesday.   


Happy New Year and Roll Tide !!!

Well, while we are on topic here, what do most of you expect for the overall OL lineup next season?

Assuming those who played this season, stay at their position, that would mean replacing the C and RG positions, with Vlachos and McCullough moving on.  So, with that being said, Jones at LT, perhaps Steen back at RG, since he played there until injuried, but who at C?

Since Jones' best performances were at G, if he moved back there, then we could see something like Cyrus K at LT, Warmack at LG, Steen at C, Jones at RG and Fluker at RT.  But that's just based on who has played the most.

What I am most curious about is who plays C, since Jones actually backed up Vlachos some this season...I wonder if that was just to do the usual "put the best players on the field" thing, or if it is a sign that we really haven't groomed the next C...

Since the C generally calls the blocking assignments, it's a pretty critical position, and I think that if whoever is next isn't completely ready, there could be some OL hiccups early in the season.

Thoughts?

Interesting...I live in SW Ohio and make the trip back home to Birmingham around 3-4 times a year...we go thru Louisville and then on down I-65, so I kinda know this route like the back of my hand. 

It was interesting to see it in a compressed format...

Also, first time poster, long time lurker...a big Roll Tide and Happy New Year to you all !!!