Clemson wrap-up: How Bama recovers – or doesn’t – will determine much of program’s future
Whether you’re an optimist (“We still have Nick Saban!”) or a pessimist (“This was the beginning of the end!”) about Alabama football probably hinges on how many total points you thought swung about on two poor decisions and throws from QB Tua Tagovailoa, and Alabama’s response to it.
Clemson preview: Is this Tiger team more Clemson ’16 or Clemson ’17?
January 4, 2019 Comments Off on Clemson preview: Is this Tiger team more Clemson ’16 or Clemson ’17?
This year, Alabama gets a Clemson team that is somewhere in between the last two versions. The question is how much like Clemson ’17 can Alabama make Clemson ’18 look.
Continue reading …Clemson wrap-up: Tigers were less dynamic, and Bama made them pay for it
January 2, 2018 Comments Off on Clemson wrap-up: Tigers were less dynamic, and Bama made them pay for it
Bama in the National Championship! Lost in the month of hand-wringing over whether Alabama QB Jalen Hurts was capable of leading the Crimson Tide past Clemson, was the fact that the Clemson Tigers of 2017 weren’t the Clemson Tigers of the past two years.
Continue reading …Clemson preview: On paper, this should be a defensive showcase
December 27, 2017 Comments Off on Clemson preview: On paper, this should be a defensive showcase
For the third straight year, Alabama and Clemson will meet in the College Football Playoff. For the third straight year, however, TideFans.com will not pick Alabama to win by a score of 23-17.
Continue reading …Pruitt’s departure for UT could have long-term consequences
December 7, 2017 Comments Off on Pruitt’s departure for UT could have long-term consequences
One of these days, Alabama fans will have to confront the reality that Nick Saban can’t coach the Alabama Crimson Tide forever.
Continue reading …Clemson wrap-up: Tide loses a heartbreaker on 2 controversial TDs
January 10, 2017 Comments Off on Clemson wrap-up: Tide loses a heartbreaker on 2 controversial TDs
Alabama’s bid to win a second straight national championship fell short thanks to a combination of injuries, a lack of depth on its defensive line that finally came to a head and the struggles of a true freshman quarterback who seemed to run out of gas a bit down the season’s stretch.
Continue reading …Championship wrap-up: Bama defied doubters to bring home title No. 16
January 12, 2016 Comments Off on Championship wrap-up: Bama defied doubters to bring home title No. 16
There have been other Nick Saban-coached teams in Tuscaloosa that were expected to win championships; some did, some didn’t. Until it became obvious to everyone just how talented Alabama’s defensive front seven really was, the 2015 Crimson Tide weren’t really considered a title favorite in the preseason. This was going to be a blue-collar team with a lot of flaws. It might still be, but now, it is also champions.
Continue reading …Clemson preview: Quick start a must as Bama tries to tame emotional Tigers
January 8, 2016 Comments Off on Clemson preview: Quick start a must as Bama tries to tame emotional Tigers
The Alabama Crimson Tide is set to play for a national title for the fourth time in the last seven years.
Although that has little to do with the current matchup, such a feat demands to be paid attention. It has been 30 years almost since the Miami Hurricanes appeared ready to run off a similar streak of domination. Nebraska had a brief spike of similar play in the 1990s. But surely, all thought, the days of a handful of teams laying waste to the rest of the competition had come and gone.
Instead, Nick Saban returned to college football after a brief stint in the NFL, and everything old is new again – namely, an Alabama program that once dominated college football in the 1960s and 1970s is again making everyone else hate the program passionately – out of envy.
Continue reading …Smart to UGA may affect Bama’s succession plan
December 18, 2015 Comments Off on Smart to UGA may affect Bama’s succession plan
Operating from the assumption that all successful businesses invest time in developing a succession plan, the hiring of Kirby Smart at Georgia made a royal foul-up of what was most likely Alabama’s end game regarding Nick Saban’s eventual retirement.
Continue reading …