Blog: Latest Bama News 11/30 pre game thru 12/1/2012 SECCG Edition

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
This is Where the football season never ends! Bama News first, and foremost,
interesting SEC news, and salient football news:

Run game vital for UA-TideSports


The University of Alabama needs to run the football Saturday against the Georgia Bulldogs to move the chains, to set a physical tone and to set up its play-action passing game. That, however, isn't the only role the Crimson Tide's running game will play. With Georgia averaging two sacks per game and more than six tackles in the backfield per outing, Alabama can also give the Bulldogs' defense pause if it can find traction on the Georgia Dome turf in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game. In particular, UA will need the running game to keep Jarvis Jones, who has 10.5 sacks, honest.
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
Walker said the University has not had discussions about reducing the number of tickets given to students and that the lower bowl does not let in more students than there are seats. "Alabama could play the Steelers in the Super Bowl at Bryant-Denny Stadium and the upper deck of the student section wouldn’t fill up," said Tommy Deas, sports editor of the Tuscaloosa News. "There are certainly enthusiastic football fans among the student body at Alabama. But there’s not as many of them as there are tickets, apparently." The lack of attendance is part of a general trend of apathy among UA students, which also includes leaving early during blowout games. For a school whose victories have come at an average margin of 31 points per game, it’s easy to see why students could become lethargic toward sitting through a blowout game. Still, a half-empty student section is not exactly aesthetically pleasing for outsiders, Deas said. "I thought for awhile that maybe the library was closing early so they were rushing to go get their studying in, but I’ve since decided that was not the case," he said. "You hear a different excuse every week. People were saying that [there weren’t enough exciting home games], and then undefeated Mississippi State comes in and the upper deck’s about half-filled or two-thirds-filled."
High Tide, low turnout | The Crimson White
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
First of the "edge" pieces:

Saturday’s SEC Championship will feature current and future NFL talent all over the field, as well as coaching star power. It’s been highly debated whether or not Georgia has more overall talent. Bacarri Rambo certainly thinks Georgia does, and it’s hard to argue with him. So, let’s take a gander at a comparison of each team’s units
below:


Alabama vs. Georgia: Who has the edge?-saturdaydownsouth

 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
With so many similarities between the two teams, the outcome could come down to quarterback play. Georgia’s Murray and Alabama’s McCarron are No. 1 and 2 in the nation in passing efficiency. Murray has thrown for 3,201 yards, 30 touchdowns and 7 interceptions, and McCarron has thrown for 2,507 yards, 25 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. Murray has the statistics, and McCarron has the hardware — a national championship. But who has the advantage? "McCarron has the edge, because he’s performed better than Murray on the big stage," said the "ESPN College Gameday" analyst Desmond Howard during a phone interview.

Georgia fans see urgency of the moment, but does Richt?-saturdaydownsouth

 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
ICYMI:

When you’re playing for Nick Saban, the future consists of the next play, the next practice, the next game. And basking in anything you’ve done previously is as foreign to him as snow plows are to folks in the Florida Keys. That said, the nine scholarship seniors on this Alabama football team understand unequivocally what’s at stake this Saturday against Georgia in the SEC championship game. Yes, it would be the Crimson Tide’s first SEC title since 2009 if they can win, but the real prize would come a little more than a month later -- a shot at their third national championship in the past four years. "Our goal was to accomplish something legendary that nobody else has, and we still have a chance to do that," said senior center Barrett Jones, whose versatility and team-first attitude has epitomized this senior class.
Alabama's seniors share unbreakable bond - SEC Blog - ESPN
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
Saturday’s SEC Championship, also this season’s only national semifinal, will come down to No. 2 Alabama and No. 3 Georgia, but there’s a deeper matchup. In a season that has seen Notre Dame return to relevance and could see a freshman win the Heisman Trophy, it has come down to Nick Saban-led Alabama versus history. If history holds, then Bowl Championship Series era, set to end with a four-team playoff starting in 2014, will escape without a repeat champion. If Alabama wins its next two games, which odds makers say the Crimson Tide will, then the BCS era won’t finish unbeaten. Also, if Alabama wins its next two games, then the Tide will do something in the Saban era that it didn’t do even under Bear Bryant — win three national titles in four years.
Anniston Star - Medley Tide to play Georgia but real clash is with history
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
McCarron was asked if he could relate to the situation Black is currently experiencing. "it’s hard to tell what it would have felt like because it didn’t happen," McCarron said, "but it would have been fun." McCarron said he's liked what he's seen from Black in practice this week. "Sometimes he’s not real sure, but I think that’s just getting in the motion of everything," McCarron said. "He looks good. He’s flying around, playing fast, which I like to see, and he’s giving 100 percent. That’s all you can ask."
Alabama's AJ McCarron reflects on how he was 1 play away from losing his redshirt season | al.com
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
Rinaldi asked Saban to divulge when he gets nervous. - "I do the most worrying, which I guess is a form of being nervous, when you're trying to solve all the problems, which is Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. Whether it's in the kicking game, whether it's on offense, whether it's on defense, whether it's coverage rules, whatever it is that you're trying to resolve. You never feel comfortable until you make the decisions about what you need to and then you teach the players and they understand the concepts of what you're trying to do and you feel comfortable that they're doing it. "I guess when you look at it that way, I'm worrying all the time."
Michael Jordan, pass rushing and more from Nick Saban's weekly radio appearance | al.com
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
"The guy is probably one of the best defensive players in the country in terms of his playmaking ability," Alabama coach Nick Saban said. "He's a really good rusher. He's physical. He's instinctive." This is the player on whom offensive game plans hinge. "You certainly have to have a plan to help the players that have to block him so that hopefully he can't just get in one-on-one situations where it's a difficult circumstance for somebody," Saban said.
Star linebacker Jarvis Jones is the 'Dawgs' big dog (SEC Championship 2012) | al.com
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
Burnette and center David Andrews probably will work together to block Jesse Williams, Alabama's 320-pound senior nose guard. "He's one of the tougher guys in the country I've seen to block one-on-one," Burnette said. "It's going to take a lot of technique, a lot of discipline and focus on my part." Burnette has not seen the YouTube clip of Williams bench-pressing 600 pounds last summer. "I heard about it," the 322-pound Burnette said. "That's impressive. I don't think I've ever witnessed somebody bench pressing 600 pounds before." It was noted that lifting 600 pounds would be like lifting two offensive linemen at once. "Hopefully he doesn't have a chance to pick up two offensive linemen in this game," Burnette said.
Georgia guard impressed with strength and discipline of Alabama's defensive line | al.com
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
No, when it comes right down to it, it's this simple fact that drives the emotion against Saban: We never saw the Saban that Alabama has saluted for the past six seasons. We're Cleveland to Bill Belichick. We're Atlanta to Joe Torre. We're the area that put up with the personal flaws many great talents have but never witnessed the great talent. Instead, we saw the frailty. The insecurity. The self-questioning of a man who, according to several sources, feared being fired by the Dolphins after his second season in 2006. So he returned to college, where he can win without a star quarterback. And he's won. And won. And by all accounts is expected to hold a national trophy up in Sun Life Stadium. That's why there's such mixed feelings for Saban. We saw the lout. We just never saw the lout who won enough to make his personality irrelevant.
Nick Saban one win from national title game - South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
Their guys have a real good prediction winning pct. for the season!!!

These two traditional powers—Alabama and Georgia—will play for the first time in the SEC Championship Game and for only the fifth time overall since 1995. The stakes couldn’t be higher: The winner will play Notre Dame for the BCS National Championship and the loser likely will be squeezed out of the BCS mix. Much has been made about Georgia’s relatively soft SEC schedule, but it’s important to note that both Georgia and Alabama only played two of the other four SEC teams ranked in the top 10 of the latest BCS standings. Georgia beat No. 4 Florida and lost to No. 10 South Carolina, while Alabama beat No. 7 LSU and lost to No. 9 Texas A&M. Alabama did play Michigan out of conference, but the strength of these two teams’ schedules is about the same. It’s dangerous to compare results, but just for fun: Alabama and Georgia had four common opponents (Missouri, Tennessee, Ole Miss and Auburn); Alabama won all four games by a total score of 168–37, while Georgia won all four by a total score of 167–74. So who wins on Saturday? Good question.
SEC Championship Preview and Prediction: Alabama vs. Georgia | AthlonSports
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
It's the dirty little secret of what's supposed to be the crown jewel of SEC football. Everything about the SEC Championship Game - from the Georgia Dome venue to the Super Bowl atmosphere that peaks at kickoff - screams big-time sports spectacular. Everything but the game itself. The numbers don't lie. They've played 20 of these championship games, and only four of them have been decided by fewer than 10 points. Only one of those close games has been played in the last 14 years.LSU beat Tennessee 21-14 en route to the 2007 BCS championship. Otherwise, since Peyton Manning and UT inched by Dameyune Craig and Auburn 30-29 in 1997, 13 of the last 14 SEC Championship Games have been won by 10 or more points. In recent years, it's been a lot more. In fact, the last two years we've witnessed the largest margins in SEC Championship Game history.
Scarbinsky: Can Alabama and Georgia save the SEC Championship Game from itself?-al.com
 

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama

kyallie

FB Moderator
Staff member
Jan 17, 2010
201,276
8,240
237
78
Shakopee Minnesota, via Birmingham Alabama
The results show it isn't, either. In Saturday's 49-0 win over Auburn, Alabama put Williams into the game at fullback three times. All three times, Williams knocked his man several steps into the end zone and the Tide scored. Even without that, it's fun to see the 6-foot-4, 320-pound Australian charge onto the field, ready for a little action on offense. Wearing No. 54 and with white, black or red paint on his face, he sends off a different vibe than most in the backfield. "When they see me run out, the crowd goes crazy, and I'm not sure why," he said. "I don't get the ball." Alabama began working with Williams at fullback in the preseason, but the Tide didn't use it in a game until the third contest of the year. That came after running back Jalston Fowler, the Tide's top option at fullback, went down with a knee injury. Now as second-ranked Alabama prepares to face No. 3 Georgia in Saturday's SEC Championship Game, Williams has grown accustomed to getting called for fullback duty one to three times each contest.

Jesse Williams gives Tide a hard-charging, dependable fullback-Daily Bama Blog

 

Latest threads

TideFans.shop : 2024 Madness!

TideFans.shop - Get YOUR Bama Gear HERE!”></a>
<br />

<!--/ END TideFans.shop & item link \-->
<p style= Purchases made through our TideFans.shop and Amazon.com links may result in a commission being paid to TideFans.