Jersey Countdown to Gameday

7 days from today, the Tide will go to sleep and awake ready for battle.
Much like our 2 honorees, the Tide must play at a high level.
Dothan High recently hired former Alabama defensive back Keven Jackson, a graduate of rival Northview in Dothan Al., as its head football coach for the 2016 football season.
This is Jackson’s first head coaching job, but he possesses previous head coaching experience, leading the Tallahassee (Fla.) Titans of the now-defunct American Indoor Football League to a 9-2 record in 2007. He also served as a volunteer assistant at Alabama and as an assistant in the Arena Football League before moving to the high school ranks.
Jackson signed with Alabama in 1992, but instead ended up at a Mississippi junior college after starring at Northview. He later played his final two seasons at Alabama.
After the 1996 season, he was recognized as a unanimous All-American for his play as a member of the Crimson Tide. After going undrafted and signing briefly with the Arizona Cardinals Jackson also played professionally with both the Tampa Bay Storm and Buffalo Destroyers of the Arena Football League.
Kevin will no doubt, do a great job....
We also salute #7 Jay Barker...
Barker is currently an analyst for ESPN Radio, and an on-air personality for WJOX in Birmingham. Both he and Al Del Greco, a former Auburn placekicker, host the Opening Drive program on WJOX, along with Tony Kurre.
Barker attended Hewitt-Trussville High School in Trussville, Alabama, where his football career begin.
Barker played college football at the University of Alabama, under head coach Gene Stallings. In the final game of the 1992 season, Barker led the Crimson Tide to a national championship by defeating the #1 Miami Hurricanes, 34–13, in the 1993 Sugar Bowl. In the 1994 season, Barker won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and finished fifth in the voting for the Heisman Trophy. Barker led the Crimson Tide to a 35–2–1 record as their starting quarterback; the official NCAA record book reflects a 27–11 mark due to later forfeiture of games during the 1993 season.
Barker was drafted in the 1995 NFL Draft in the fifth round by the Green Bay Packers. During his NFL career, he also played for the New England Patriots and the Carolina Panthers.
In 1998, the Toronto Argonauts signed Barker, bringing him to the Canadian Football League.
After three seasons with the Argonauts, Barker left to join the Birmingham Thunderbolts in the XFL. Jay was inducted to the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame this past May.

Jay has many business venture of interest. If you're headed to see a game at high schools including Hoover, Spain Park, Hewitt-Trussville, Mountain Brook or Homewood, there's no need to wait in long lines or have cash on hand for the whole family. You can buy your tickets in advance through Preptix.com.

The site, founded by Jay Barker and partner Patrick Noles, offers online ticketing for all games for 15 schools in the greater Birmingham area. Additionally, tickets for any playoff game in the state can be purchased on the site, as part of a partnership with the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA).
Barker has a partnership with the Birmingham-based residential housekeeping company, Two Maids & A Mop.
In 2008, Barker married American country musician Sara Evans.
As proof that beauty can stem from pain, Evans and Barker connected because of their separate. These days, Sara Evans declares she’s the happiest she’s ever been in her life, and it definitely shows. A few years ago, Evans’ world was rocked with a messy divorce, but the mother of three found love again with Alabama football star-turned-sportscaster Jay Barker.

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6 Days to go…and we honor two guys that wore the #6 at the same time, on the same team.

#6 Blake Sims was the Crimson Tide's starting quarterback in 2014. Sims attended Gainesville High School in Gainesville, Georgia, where he played football and ran track. He led Gainesville to a 14–1 record and a state runner-up finish. Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com

, Sims was ranked as the No. 33 athlete in the nation.
After spending 2010 to 2013 as a running back and backup quarterback, Sims started his first career game during the opener of his senior season in 2014 after beating Jake Coker for the job. Sims broke the Alabama single season passing yards record which was held by AJ McCarron. In 14 starts, he passed for 3,487 yards, 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He lost in the semifinals to Ohio State, which later won the championship.
A year later, Alabama won the CFB Playoff national title game by beating top-seeded Clemson, 45-40, in Glendale, Ariz. Sims couldn’t be happier and prouder of the Tide.
“I’m not upset,” Sims said. “I’m not jealous they won a national championship. Hey, I got two back-to-back (2011 and 2012). I’m glad they got it.”
Sims, who led the Crimson Tide to a 12-2 season and No. 3 ranking in 2014, joined the Wollongong Devils in the first year of Australia’s National Gridiron League. Sims has found a new home in the Land Down Under. Please wish him well.
#6 Ha'Sean Treshon "Ha Ha" Clinton-Dix safety for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL) was drafted by the Packers in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft. A native of Eatonville, Florida, Clinton-Dix was nicknamed "Ha Ha" as an infant by his grandmother in response to "Ha'Sean" often being mispronounced (like "Shaun") instead of the intended (like "seen"). He prefers to go by "Ha Ha" and has stated that both he and his coaches love the moniker.
Worst part about being named HaHa Clinton-Dix? Turns out it's not just his first name that grabs jokesters' attention. "The whole President Clinton thing with Monica Lewinsky," he said with a smile. "I didn't know too much about that, but that's pretty much what it was."
Yes, Ha Ha Clinton Dix has heard that joke.
Not a day goes by that Ha Ha Clinton-Dix doesn’t think about how far he’s come from the Pop Warner fields of Eatonville, back in the days when he’d hide from his mom to avoid practice.
“When I was a kid, I remember I used to hide under the bed sometimes because I didn’t want to go to practice. Even when I didn’t want to go to practice, it could be pouring rain outside and I’d be like, ‘Yes, no practice today,’ and my mom would be there and we were still going and we’d have practice under the pavilion. My mom was always there. Even if she got off work late sometimes, I still went to practice, whether I was 30 minutes late, 45 minutes late … I was still going to practice.”
An All-American defensive back and kick returner at Dr. Phillips High School . Named a five-star recruit by Rivals.com

, Clinton-Dix was ranked the No. 1 defensive back in his class and sixth-rated player overall. During his senior football season, Clinton-Dix, teamed with All-American running back Dee Hart, led Dr. Phillips High School to a 14–1 season.
Clinton-Dix was one of seven true freshmen that had playing time in 2011 for the Alabama Crimson Tide football team. Alabama won the 2011 national championship as it shut out LSU 21–0. 2012, he led the team with five interceptions, and made seven tackles against Notre Dame in the 2012 championship game, one tackle less than C. J. Mosley. Alabama again won the BCS National Championship by blowing out Notre Dame 42–14.
“If you don’t love it, then it won’t love you back and you have to have a passion about it,” Clinton-Dix said. “Really, those 60 minutes when I am on the field is my time to enjoy myself and I don’t have to worry about anything, play the game that I love. If you love the game, you are going to do whatever it takes to play on that next Friday night [high school] or Saturday night [college] or Sunday [NFL.]“Every time I talk about it, I am amazed that I’ve made it this far from the Friday night lights. I remember being fresh out of high school and now I’m sitting in Green Bay getting ready for workouts in the morning. It’s so unreal. It’s a blessing and you have to take advantage of every opportunity you have, thank God and continue to live in the moment.”
Now that he’s made it, however, he’s not content. Clinton-Dix wants Super Bowl rings and he wants to be considered one of the best safeties in the NFL. He wants to play in the Pro Bowl. He’s well on his way.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy has said Clinton-Dix is one of the best second-year players he’s ever had after this past season, during which he led Green Bay in tackles with 116 (89 solo) and had three interceptions and three sacks.
“Everyone wants to dream about playing on Sundays, but does everyone want to work to get there?” Clinton-Dix asked. “And once you get there are you thankful or are you just happy to be there? What’s your next step? What’s your next plan?
“Me? I want to be great. I want to continue to work hard to better myself. That’s the next step. It’s been a long journey and took a lot of hard work to get here. … It’s really hard, but to just continue working hard and to have faith has always been a really big thing for me.”

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BamaHoHo said:

Worst part about being named HaHa Clinton-Dix? Turns out it's not just his first name that grabs jokesters' attention. "The whole President Clinton thing with Monica Lewinsky," he said with a smile. "I didn't know too much about that, but that's pretty much what it was."
Yes, Ha Ha Clinton Dix has heard that joke.

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# 5 Chris Mohr, Efrum Thomas, Tony Johnson, Andrew Zow, Roy Upchurch, Jerrell Harris and Cyrus "The Virus" Jones....he'll run right through ya.
Take a moment to honor Andrew Zow and Chris Morh.
Andrew Zow played quarterback under coach Mike DuBose from 1998-2001, and led the Crimson Tide to an SEC Championship in 1999. Zow's career at Alabama had its fair share of ups and downs, but there's no question he has now found his calling as a high school football coach.
Zow left Montevallo to become the new head football coach at Calera. Last fall, Zow mentored the Bulldogs to a 9-3 record, including a run to the second round of the Class 4A playoffs. Montevallo earning the school’s first playoff win since 1998. Meanwhile, Zow earned ASWA 4A Coach of the Year honors.
Zow, in his first year at Calera High school 2-0, defeated a former Alabama teammate Kelvis White and the new Mae Jemison program on Friday.
The White brother: Laron White also a former Bama player and Kelvis White faced off as head coaches for first time last week. Mae Jemison (1-1) 48, Tanner (0-2) 28: Kelvis White wins first brother vs. brother coaching showdown.
Last fall, Zow mentored the Bulldogs to a 9-3 record, including a run to the second round of the Class 4A playoffs. Montevallo beat St. James 21-7 in the first round, earning the school’s first playoff win since 1998. Meanwhile, Zow earned ASWA 4A Coach of the Year honors.
As go through your Friday night lights this fall say hello to the former Bama players coaching at the high school level.
Christopher Garrett Mohr grew up in Thomson, Georgia, where he played football at Briarwood Academy, ironically the same town of former punter NFL great, Hall Of Famer Ray Guy.
He was recruited by the University of Alabama, where he was the team's starting punter for three years. After being named the Southeastern Conference's best punter his senior year, he spent the 1989 NFL season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He spent one season with the Montreal Machine of the World League before being signed by the Buffalo Bills. Mohr was with the Bills from 1991 to 2000, during which time he appeared in three Super Bowls with the team—Super Bowl XXVI,Super Bowl XXVII, and Super Bowl XXVIII.
He signed with the Atlanta Falcons before the 2001 NFL season, where he played for four years before being waived in 2005. He was signed by the Washington Redskins before the 2005 NFL season began, but was cut a few days later. He officially retired from the NFL in 2007 by signing a one-day contract with the Buffalo Bills.
Since retiring Chris has been active in Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and is an accomplished country songwriter.
Chris' wife Kim on having Chris around since retiring.
"It's been nice. We've enjoyed it," said Mohr's wife, Kim. "We've had a couple of vacations this summer, where as normally he would've been at camp, so it's been nice."
Mrs. Mohr said it was nice to have her husband around the house this summer to help with their four sons, Garrett, Harrison, Quinn, and Chapman. "I feel like I've done it this long, I can do it a couple of more years. It's kind of hard with him being gone and us being here, but it's only four months I guess. Depending on if they made it to the playoffs, which I always hope they would," she said.
Chris Mohr never will forget how he felt before attempting his first punt in the Buffalo Bills' 1991 AFC Championship Game against Denver.
His knees practically shook as he awaited the snap from Adam Lingner.
"I was probably more nervous then than I've ever been," Mohr recalled. "That was the first big championship game I had ever played in as a pro. In fact, I haven't been that nervous since. The Super Bowl didn't even seem as tough a game as far as my nerves went.
"It was the idea of getting there that was tough to handle."
Chris not only handled it the pressure but did it for 15 years to become Alabama's most successful punter.
Mohr, along with Casey Beathard, co-wrote "I See Me" for country singer Travis Tritt, which appeared on Tritt's album My Honky Tonk History.

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4 days from kickoff
The number 4 was as tough selecting a player to honor as any other number. Some of the names read like a Who’s Who celebration. Joey Jones, TJ Yeldon, Mark Barron, Marquis Maze, Tyrone Prothro, Darryl Thomas, Bill Smith, and Steve Stanley to name a few.
Let’s start with my cousin, Steve Stanley from Leighton Al. Steve, an All-State and state championship winning quarterback at Colbert County High School and standout linebacker for the Crimson Tide. Stanley was the Class 3A state player of the year in both his junior and senior seasons, and was named to the Alabama Sports Writers Association Super 12 team both of those years, and MVP of that team his senior year.
He accounted for more than 2,600 total yards in leading the Indians to the Class 3A state championship in 1991 and bettered that with 3,300 total yards and 37 touchdowns in his senior season. Stanley was also an All-State player in basketball, and set state records in the long jump and triple jump as a member of the Colbert County track team.
“The preparation we went through every week in getting ready for a game stuck with me,” Stanley said. “A lot of times during the week we would have tough practices, with the coach staying on us. But we were always prepared to play. I was able to take that with me, and still do. You won’t succeed at anything if you don’t prepare.”
My coaches would always say, “If you’re looking for sympathy, you can’t find it in the dictionary between .... and Syphilis but Success come by working through all of the crap.
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Joseph “Joey” Russell Jones currently serves as the head football coach at the University of South Alabama. Jones is a graduate of Mobile's Murphy High School. He was named All-SEC as a senior and chosen to participate in the Senior Bowl. He was a member of the University of Alabama’s All-Decade Team for the 1980s and played professionally with the Birmingham Stallions of the United States Football League and the National Football League’s Atlanta Falcons.
Jones took his first coaching job as an assistant coach on the Briarwood Christian School staff in Birmingham, Alabama. After two years at Briarwood, he took the job as head coach at Dora where he led his team to a 24–11 record over three seasons. In 1996, Jones was hired as the head coach at Mountain Brook High School. At Mountain Brook, he led his team to the 1996 Class 6A state championship game, four region titles, two semifinal appearances and three quarterfinal appearances. Jones went 101–27 over ten seasons in charge of the Spartans.
Jones was hired as the new head coach at Birmingham-Southern College where he led the team to a 1–7 record in its first season in Division III NCAA football in 2007. Jones was the first coach of the Panthers since 1939, when the football program was disbanded.
After only one season at BSC, Jones accepted the same position at the University of South Alabama. He compiled a 42–35 record in his seven seasons at South Alabama. "Some of my best days of football that I can remember," Jones said of playing park ball in Mobile. "I started at 7 years old. I remember playing barefooted my first year. I thought I was faster. I think the next year I realized after I put some cleats on, I could cut a little bit better."
“Joey was small in stature but a very gutsy and fast receiver,” former teammate Kurt Schmissrauter recalled
‘Like many coaches, Coach Bryant admired players who were determined not to let physical limitations stop them on a football field, so he naturally took a liking to Joey.” Joey Jones was definitely a favorite of Coach Bryant,” “I remember kidding Joey on many occasions about how Coach Bryant would refer to him on his football show each week.
“Coach would say, ‘Little Joey Jones from Mobile, Ala., he’s a fine youngster.’ I am sure Joey got sick of me saying that to him daily.
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Lastly, Tyrone Prothro was an all state selection as Junior (2001) and Senior (2002). As a Junior, Tyrone played in the 2001 AHSAA Super Six 4-A Championship in 2002 they lost to State Champion UMS-Wright. In 2002, his senior year, Tyrone led Cleburne County back to the 4-A Semi-Finals where they lost to the North Jackson Chiefs
Its 10 years and 11 surgeries later, Tyrone Prothro's leg 'as good as it's going to get. Looking at the field from the North Endzone, Prothro reflects on life a decade ago. Prothro shares that the two most significant plays of his Alabama career happened in that same end zone. Footsteps from the goal line and between the hash marks — the spot he made his memorable catch against Southern Mississippi.
He then points to an area around 10 yards to the left near the sideline in the end zone.
That's where Prothro's life was derailed against Florida weeks later on Oct. 1, 2005, where he suffered a compound fracture in his lower left leg that is possibly one of the most gruesome injuries in recent football history.
Prothro, who had 25 catches and three touchdowns during the first five games of that junior season in 2005 after being named second-team All-SEC as a returner in 2004. "I have a family. So right now, I'm just working like the next man and trying to provide for my family so that they don't ever have to worry about anything. As long as my family's taken care of, I'm happy."
In July 2016, Tyrone was hired by the Carolina Panthers as an intern coach for training camp, working with his former head coach and current offensive coordinator Mike Shula.

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