When will my generation get to enjoy Alabama football?

SoldierForTide

All-American
Sep 28, 2006
2,429
0
0
Atlanta
First, let me start with some of my experiences from the game today. I was pumped as I always am going to a Bama game, and you could feel the staduim was pumped as well. However, my seats were carefully placed in the center of a "pocket of resistence", clad in orange and blue. My personal experiences with Aubs had been indifferent. Some of my friends are Aubs and we can all go back and forth with one another without hitting too many buttons. However, Aubs showed me a new low. Aubs, ranging in ages from mid-30s to late 40s, began to hurl ice from their cups at a young man with down syndrome. Appauling.


Then brings me to my post now...

I am a relatively young Bama fan, circa 1984. I have been a Bama fan since I can remember, heck, even since I can't remember. The first Bama game I ever went to was against LSU. I cannot remember the year, but I remember we lost the game and LSU began chanting "31-1", after they had snapped our long win streak.

That game set the tone for my natural life so far.

We have had a NC since I have been on this earth, but I barely remember it. I remember watching us play Miami, and can specifically remember certain plays and players on that NC team. Now it seems like a distant memory to me.

My Bear is Gene Stallings. The comparison will no doubt seem flawed and outrageous to some of you lucky enough to experience the Bear, but all I know about Bear Bryant is records, clips at the games, sound bites, quotes, and a museum on campus.

Beyond 92, success has been sporadic and inconsistent at best. This is not to say we haven't had great teams, games, or players, however, it still pales in comparison to the stories of teams, games, and players of old.

As a fan during this time frame, the dilemas range from probation, coaches, and tattle tales. While the older generations get to rant about how ND robbed Bama from a National Title.

Here we all are, patiently waiting. A team we are all taught is all powerful, has a trophy case full of National Titles, bowl games, conference champs, retired jerseys and stars cemented into the ground with names of great player, disappoints us. I love Alabama, and will always be a fan, but I refuse to be mediocre.

Not to mention losing to Aubie for nearly the last quarter of my life. Beating Aubie should be a requirement, not an accomplishment.
 

BamaSC

All-SEC
Oct 17, 1999
1,840
262
207
Chapin, SC
I don't know what to tell you. I doubt you'll ever see a 20-year span like we had in the 60's and 70's from any team ever again. I was around for the 70's and remember a good deal of it.

I believe we'll get back to competing for SEC championships on a regular basis sometime in the near future if things are done right. Things haven't been done right at Bama since you've been alive though. Perkins and Curry were terrible hires.

Stallings turned out to be a great choice, but he was not a popular choice at first. He had a very, shall we say, unspectacular record as a coach when he was hired. His departure always seemed forced to me and we follow that up by hiring Dubose (big mistake), then Fran. Fran was probably a good hire at the time, but you know that didn't work out. Then on to Price and Shula.

So our record for hiring head coaches has been very poor overall since Bear's last season, with only one real bright spot (which we managed to screw up). In essense, we've been our own worst enemy.

IF Shula is let go this year, we'll need to be very careful and diligent when selecting a new head coach. We cannot afford to take chances anymore. It's not too late to turn this around. But I don't know how long things can continue like this, making mistake after mistake, before "Alabama Football" is resigned to a footnote in sporting history; a program that built a beautiful monument to a glorious football past that sits mostly empty on autumn Saturdays.

A whole generation has grown up without really experiencing what Alabama football is all about. To me, that's more depressing than what I saw on the field this season. Hopefully the "powers that be" will get it right, quit shooting ourselves in the feet, and find a way to put Bama back on the path to greatness.
 

TideNFla

Scout Team
Aug 16, 2006
185
0
0
I've been around for seven of them and never had to go longer than 14 years (measuring from my birth) until this year. Now I wonder if I saw my final one in 1992. I hope not.
 

Bama_Dawg

1st Team
May 17, 2005
727
0
0
57
Trust the law of averages. Here are the top ten winningest programs since 1965 . . .

TEAM PCT W L T
1 Nebraska 0.808 400 93 5
2 Michigan 0.758 362 113 8
3 Ohio State 0.757 357 112 8
4 Penn State 0.745 359 122 3
5 Oklahoma 0.737 352 123 8
6 Alabama 0.724 353 133 5
7 Tennessee 0.719 345 131 13
8 Texas 0.717 342 133 6
9 Southern Cal 0.716 341 131 15
10 Florida State 0.715 343 134 8

. . . we will be back in the next 10 years. That doesn't mean changes shouldn't be made now. But it's not as hopeless as some make it out. The foundation is there. Based on our winning percentage, the "average" Alabama team finishes 8-3. Pretty good.
 
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AdamMc2003

1st Team
Dec 14, 2005
795
0
0
38
Maybe he'll come back? :biggrin:
we aren't that lucky, maybe we'll go out and hire someone who's daddy knows a guy who played for the Bear :rolleyes:

see i'm the kind of fan "kool-aiders" as they become known hate, i've grown up my whole life hearing stories of the bear, and they were and still are great, HOWEVER, I am 21 years old and the LAST time we won a National Championship, I was 7... Now I still vaguely remember it, however, i'd LIKE to be able to tell my kids about Championships Bama won in MY lifetime, not their grand dads... i'm not in anyway downing our history, its just TIME TO MAKE SOME NEW HISTORY! i'm sorry guys, honestly I really couldn't care less about our OTHER 12 National Championships, we've had one in my life and until we get number 13, all I know Bama for is a program with a few good teams in the past 15 years.. That is just sad, my dad used to wear some really thick crimson glasses and the program couldn't do anywrong, however the loss to Mississippi State was the boiling point for him, I haven't heard him use these words since the last year of Dubose: "He has got to go or we won't win again"(in reference to Shula)... Honestly this loss today didn't make me upset, I expected it, it was one more nail in the coffin and I HONESTLY, SADLY believe a vast majority of the people feel the same way, I honestly DON'T think Shula should be replaced, I don't want it, but then again he has pretty much let it be KNOWN he isn't up for any personnel changes, and I also HONESTLY BELIEVE the current system doesn't work and WON'T work no matter WHAT caliber of players we have... So if Shula isn't up for changes, than I think his departure is the only thing that can happen, i hope he comes to his senses, makes some major changes and shows us that he can win, but I just dont see him changing his ways, he didn't at Tampa and it cost him his job, I honestly believe his little "buddy" system will get the best of him in Tuscaloosa as well. Now don't get me wrong we could go 0-12 for the next 10 years and I'll still be a fan, this is just part of it... However, i'm sick of people trying to ignore that we have a MAJOR problem in Tuscaloosa, people can say the players aren't motivated(who's fault is that?), people can say players are missing assignments and not executing plays(but once again, WHO'S FAULT is that?), or people can face reality and realize our playcalling INSIDE THE 10 in non-existant(we all know is at fault there)... I'm sorry but when you can't "punch it in" 3 times in a row 2 YEARS IN A ROW!!! its time to try a different game plan inside the 10...

don't look now but Darby just ran up the middle on 1st and 10

Fact is, for us young fans, we can't live off the bear, I wasn't even alive before he died, so I don't know how great he was, what I do know is this isn't 1960 or 1970 and its quite embarrassing to have to argue about National Championships won 15 years before you were born and ignore that you haven't beaten Auburn in the last 5 tries...
 
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Bamafanman

All-SEC
Oct 12, 1999
1,252
1
0
38
Pensacola, FL
First, let me start with some of my experiences from the game today. I was pumped as I always am going to a Bama game, and you could feel the staduim was pumped as well. However, my seats were carefully placed in the center of a "pocket of resistence", clad in orange and blue. My personal experiences with Aubs had been indifferent. Some of my friends are Aubs and we can all go back and forth with one another without hitting too many buttons. However, Aubs showed me a new low. Aubs, ranging in ages from mid-30s to late 40s, began to hurl ice from their cups at a young man with down syndrome. Appauling.


Then brings me to my post now...

I am a relatively young Bama fan, circa 1984. I have been a Bama fan since I can remember, heck, even since I can't remember. The first Bama game I ever went to was against LSU. I cannot remember the year, but I remember we lost the game and LSU began chanting "31-1", after they had snapped our long win streak.

That game set the tone for my natural life so far.

We have had a NC since I have been on this earth, but I barely remember it. I remember watching us play Miami, and can specifically remember certain plays and players on that NC team. Now it seems like a distant memory to me.

My Bear is Gene Stallings. The comparison will no doubt seem flawed and outrageous to some of you lucky enough to experience the Bear, but all I know about Bear Bryant is records, clips at the games, sound bites, quotes, and a museum on campus.

Beyond 92, success has been sporadic and inconsistent at best. This is not to say we haven't had great teams, games, or players, however, it still pales in comparison to the stories of teams, games, and players of old.

As a fan during this time frame, the dilemas range from probation, coaches, and tattle tales. While the older generations get to rant about how ND robbed Bama from a National Title.

Here we all are, patiently waiting. A team we are all taught is all powerful, has a trophy case full of National Titles, bowl games, conference champs, retired jerseys and stars cemented into the ground with names of great player, disappoints us. I love Alabama, and will always be a fan, but I refuse to be mediocre.

Not to mention losing to Aubie for nearly the last quarter of my life. Beating Aubie should be a requirement, not an accomplishment.
Never apparently. I'm 21 and I had the same discussion with my dad today. I said, well it must be nice growing up and watching Bama win all the time, but I doubt they have a winning record since I've been alive.
 

BamaMoon

Hall of Fame
Apr 1, 2004
20,937
15,940
282
Boone, NC
I'm not all that old, but apparently, alot older than some of you. I was born into a Bama family, but the Tide became my team in the late 70's when I watched them Roll to national championships as a young boy. The Bear was larger than life and I'm thankful I had the opportunity to see him lean against the goal post in my youth.

When will this generation be able to enjoy Alabama football? If you mean like the 60's and 70's, probably never because of parity. However, there is no reason Alabama can't and shouldn't be back in the elite level of college football. Unfortunately, I don't think we will get there until some major changes are made in T-town.
 

Proxigean Tide

All-SEC
Oct 13, 1999
1,472
0
0
61
Dover, DE
The legacy of Bear Bryant is both a blessing and a curse. It is a curse that sends a school looking for another larger than life icon that doesn't exist. Gene Stallings made it worse because he was so similar to the legend and won with basically the same formula. Is Bama football really a cult that falls apart without its enigmatic leader? What do you have when a program thats all about winning doesn't win?

I think Bama football will only be back when the right man is found to lead it. Its been 10 years now and the school is still looking. Hopefully they'll find him.
 

JD95

All-American
Oct 18, 1999
2,002
15
162
55
Birmingham, AL
With the advantages Alabama has -- history, facilities, fan support in a football-crazy state -- the program over time will win more than it loses. As others have said, no team is likely to dominate the way Alabama did in the Bryant years, but we have a right to expect better performance than we've seen in the last 10 years. Mike Dubose was the single greatest disaster the program has experienced in the last 50 years, and the current problems all result from the harsh probation that resulted when the "lunatics ran the asylum" from 1997 to 2000. We are still recovering.

Talent and depth are returning, but what's been lost is a certain confidence and determination -- that intangible thing that let's players, coaches, and fans KNOW that we'll find a way to win, even in the toughest of circumstances. For the last 4 years, we've instead found ways to lose big games when we've played well enough to win. This is something that will be hard to turn around, and it takes a great teacher, leader, and motivator at the top. That's why it's time for a change: Everyone agrees Shula is a great guy and loves Alabama, but he simply doesn't have the tools for the job at hand.
 

NYBamaFan

Suspended
Feb 2, 2002
23,320
14
0
Blairstown, NJ
I watched the game yesterday with someone that wrestled for the Tide from 76-80. He was so lucky to have been at Alabama through that period. His expectations are much higher for it. The younger fans don't set the bar as high as the older fans simply because they have no direct recollection of the period in Bama's history that demanded excellence - even of a proven HC in CPB.

Younger fans read of Bama's past accomplishments, but are told that this type of year-in, year-out success is no longer possible, so don't even try to set the bar this high again.

I disagree. Look at what USC did (is doing). Look at what Miami did. Look at what Nebraska did. How about Florida State? Their successes in the past 20 years proves that a program can still dominate, even in the 25-85 scholly era. All that we need is the right coaching staff...
 

pcfixup

Suspended
Feb 2, 2005
936
0
35
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
I watched the game yesterday with someone that wrestled for the Tide from 76-80. He was so lucky to have been at Alabama through that period. His expectations are much higher for it. The younger fans don't set the bar as high as the older fans simply because they have no direct recollection of the period in Bama's history that demanded excellence - even of a proven HC in CPB.

Younger fans read of Bama's past accomplishments, but are told that this type of year-in, year-out success is no longer possible, so don't even try to set the bar this high again.

I disagree. Look at what USC did (is doing). Look at what Miami did. Look at what Nebraska did. How about Florida State? Their successes in the past 20 years proves that a program can still dominate, even in the 25-85 scholly era. All that we need is the right coaching staff...
  • USC: Largest Talent Base in College Football
  • FSU: Second Largest, greatest coach of his time, and his main rival was on probation for a lot of the early years
  • Nebraska: Steroids, and don't think they will ever be dominant again

If we could re-unite the University Community again, from the Board of Trustees to the Janitors, behind the football program, and get fresh, effective leadership in the Athletic Department and the Football Program; things might get better.
 

NYBamaFan

Suspended
Feb 2, 2002
23,320
14
0
Blairstown, NJ
  • USC: Largest Talent Base in College Football - Where were they before they found Pete? If the available talent were the deciding factor for USC, they would never have slipped into oblivion for 20+ years.
  • FSU: Second Largest, greatest coach of his time, and his main rival was on probation for a lot of the early years - What? They were ranked in the top 10 for 14 years in a row. That when Miami and FL were both winning national championships. They had no program to speak of before CBB was hired. CBB was the deciding factor.
  • Nebraska: Steroids, and don't think they will ever be dominant again - Yeah, when you can't compete, claim that the other team was cheating. They had one of the best coaches in the history of NCAA FB for 30+ years. If they get another great coach, they will become a great team again.
Storied programs go through ebbs and flows. Most of those ebbs and flows chart directly with coaching changes...
 

bamakeith

1st Team
Sep 21, 2005
506
0
0
44
Atlanta
When will my generation get to enjoy Alabama football?
Amen. I could not have posed this question any better.

Years attending UA: 1998-2002
Years as season ticket holder: 2003-present

Iron bowls attended: 1995, 1997, 1999*, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006

I begin to think maybe it's my fault. :rolleyes:
 

BamaFanOJ

2nd Team
Oct 19, 2006
317
0
0
Birmingham, AL
I've often wondered this myself. I was born in 1991 so I have no recollection of the 1992 championship save the tape that my dad has showed me of the game that he went to. I do believe that this time is near though. The talent is there, with some of the top recruits and all we need is some coaching. The high-ups at the University need to really consider the status of the program and make a change for the good. This can be done.

RTR forever!
 

Roll2vic

Scout Team
Oct 25, 2006
193
0
0
72
I do feel sorry for those younger than me who never experienced going to Alabama games knowing, I mean knowing, you would win. A loss, one loss, virtually destroyed you because it was going to make it harder to win the NC.Those were great days. I attended in 69-70 and they were lean times for the Bear. He only won 6 or 7 games in those years. What did he do? What did the most powerful coach in NCAA football, and a man with a legendary reputation for stubborness do? He completely changed everything he had been doing offensively. What he was doing didn't work, so he changed. There is a difference in complete dedication to principles and foolish stubborness tied to ego. Yes, Bear's gone. But, we can still learn a lot from Bama's glorious past.
Every young bama fan should read The Missing Ring.
 

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