Blog: Latest Bama News 7/5/2016 Thru 7/7/2016

[kyallie]

Lingering punishments could impact Week 1 in the SEC - SEC Blog- ESPN/rbr

Ole Miss in the Monday opener. Breeland Speaks, who many believe will replace Robert Nkemdiche in the starting lineup at defensive tackle, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence in March, and coach Hugh Freeze has been mum on whether he’ll take the field in Orlando. The same goes for Rod Taylor, a key cog in the offensive line who appeared in 10 games last year, and was arrested on suspicion of shoplifting in April.
Auburn, meanwhile, has the opportunity of a lifetime with defending Orange Bowl champs Clemson at home for their season-opener, yet they could very well be without two of their best young players in cornerback Carlton Davis and pass-rusher Byron Cowart. They, along with wideout Ryan Davis and defensive back, Jeremiah Dinson, were arrested in May on misdemeanor marijuana charges. Assistant coach Kodi Burns told Al.com that “we’ve already addressed everything,” but what exactly that means is open to interpretation. Gus Malzahn certainly hasn’t been definitive.
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Great writeup by ESPN's Aschoff breaking down all of the potential suspensions and players on every team known to be in trouble before the season even starts. I actually think it will be minimal: Cam and Hootie aren't going to ride the pine for possessing less than one joint's worth of weed between four dudes. And, well, we know how Auburn and Ole Miss handle business already.

 

[kyallie]

Tide leads nation with four on Bednarik watch list-bol

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Alabama led the nation with four players on the 22nd annual Chuck Bednarik Award watch list, the award announced Tuesday morning

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[kyallie]

Two Tide pass-catchers land on Maxwell watch list

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A pair of Alabama Crimson Tide pass-catchers landed on the 80th annual Maxwell Award, the award announced Tuesday morning

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[kyallie]

Alabama Football: Five Biggest Threats for 2016-bamahammer

 

[kyallie]

Elite SEC matchups: Leonard Fournette vs. Reuben Foster-espnbama

 

[kyallie]

Live Updates: The Opening Check-In QBs WRs, TEs-bol

 

[kyallie]

Alabama tops ESPN's 'College Football Future Power Rankings'-bol

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Alabama has been on top of the college football world since 2009, and ESPN doesn't see that changing anytime soon. The Crimson Tide are ranked No. 1 in ESPN's "future

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[kyallie]

Film Room: Can Damien Harris keep Alabama's ground game strong?-al.com

 

[kyallie]

Meet Alabama QB Blake Barnett's fiancée, professional surfer Maddie Peterson

 

[kyallie]

SEC has seven in future Power Rankings-espnbama

 

[kyallie]

Wednesday Morning Thoughts-bol

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Getting a Wednesday going with three more additions to our annual countdown of the Alabama football roster

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[kyallie]

The Opening Preview

Get a rundown of everything Alabama heading into The Opening this week in Oregon.

 

[kyallie]

[FONT=&quot]Alabama will see some of nation’s best football players at all positions - Alabama - Scout/rbr[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Have you ever wondered how college players get rated, thus making preseason all-star teams? Obviously, it is based in great part on how well they perceived the year before.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]But it is not the same for all positions. Skill position players – quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, defensive backs, kickers – have statistics, and those can be compared.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Some of it has to do with team success. A good player at Alabama has a better chance of being an all-star pick than does one at a school that has had less success (which, basically, is all of them).[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]Roll Tide to that.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Be a good player on Alabama's squad, and you're practically guaranteed national individual recognition. Now THAT is a recruiting plug. The best part is how much the rest of the nation complains about Alabama players being overrated. Were I a high schooler again, I would much rather be overrated and at the top of the media boards than to be underrated and unknown.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The rest of the article goes on to say that Ross Pierschbacher was named to an all-star watch list for centers, despite never playing the position before. The kid had a heck of a first season at guard, and hopefully he'll be able to translate that to center. With a new QB and RB, Alabama will need him.[/FONT]

 

[kyallie]

[FONT=&quot]Alabama Football: Just How Difficult Will It Be to Replace Derrick Henry? | Bleacher Report/rbr[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The Scarbrough-Harris combination amassed just 261 total rushing yards a year ago. The only other time Alabama's top two returning rushers combined for less than 1,000 rushing yards in the previous season under Saban's watch was in his first year, when Jimmy Johns and Roy Upchurch combined for just 330 under former head coach Mike Shula in 2006.[/FONT]
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rbr op[FONT=&quot]On the other hand, this running back situation worries me. The 2007 year was not a good one for the Tide's rushing attack. Not at all. Obviously, things are a little different now, but there is still no experience there (or many options). Bo Scarbrough has the hype and looks the part, but has never done anything in college other than tear an ACL and truck a couple of lifeless Michigan State defenders. Damien Harris, on the other hand, looked absolutely atrocious in game-time as a true freshman before showing some promise this spring.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Behind these guys are a couple of true freshmen (still assuming B.J. Emmons qualifies) and a few walk-ons. That is not exactly confidence-inspiring.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]On the bright side, the 2017 recruiting class already has the number one player in the nation, running back Najee Harris, committed, along with blue chip Tuscaloosa native Brian Robinson. Plus, Alabama is still very much in the mix for Cam Akers, Harris's chief competition for the nation's top running back.[/FONT]

 

[kyallie]

[FONT=&quot]Maxwell Football Club/rbr[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The Chuck Bednarik Award watch list is headlined by two 2015 semifinalists, as Texas A&M junior Myles Garrett and LSU Senior Kendall Beckwith return for the 2016 campaign. Alabama checks in with a senior quartet of 4 Tide players;Jonathan Allen, Reuben Foster, Eddie Jackson and Tim Williams, making the cut. Six other schools, Clemson. Florida, LSU, Oklahoma, TCU and Texas A&M are all strongly represented by 3 candidates each.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Derrick Henry capped a brilliant college career at Alabama by becoming the second Crimson Tide player in school history to win the 2015 Maxwell Award. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans, and will attempt to make an immediate NFL impact this fall. 2015 Bednarik Award winner Tyler Matakevich of Temple has also moved on to the professional ranks and is now a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]The Tide starts off the season with 6 total players on the watch lists of the two most prestigious individual awards in college football not named the Heisman. The Bednarik award is represented by Jonathan Allen, Eddie Jackson, Reuben Foster, and Tim Williams. All four of these men will be invaluable pieces of the Tide defense, and a strong showing this season could go a long ways for the individual awards of any of these four.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]On offense, tight end O.J. Howard and receiver Calvin Ridley both made their way onto the Maxwell watch list. If the past few seasons under Lane Kiffin are any indication,Howard will once again be vastly underused, while Ridley is practically force-fed the ball throughout the season. Were I a betting man, I'd place all of my money on Ridley over Howard.[/FONT]

 

[kyallie]

Five people we hope to hear from at SEC media days-espn

 

[kyallie]

Film study: What the SEC can learn from defensive guru Derek Mason-sds

 

[kyallie]

Brother of Georgia RB Sony Michel opens up about 'freak accident'

ESPN power ranks the future of the SEC

SEC West's best dual-threat QBs (then and now)

 

[kyallie]

No that's scary! LOL

Photo: Les Miles dressed as police officer for upcoming film

 

[kyallie]

The Read Option
A daily college football newsletter by Peter Berkes

The Opening and Elite 11 finals get underway on Wednesday at Nike headquarters in Oregon, including a physical skills combine, a 7-on-7 championship, and various other competitions.
This is the biggest event of the recruiting calendar this side of National Signing Day, a culmination of weeks of regional camps around the country. The 2017 class' top 10 recruits listed on the roster, almost all of the top 25, and so on.
There are still seven months to go until February, but many have already committed. It's no surprise that Ohio State leads the way with 10 commits on Opening rosters. The Buckeyes have the current top class according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, loaded to the brim with nothing but blue-chip talent.
Now, if you were to guess which team had the second most commits behind Ohio State, you'd probably say Alabama. Good guess, but it's not correct! The Tide are rolling strong with seven in attendance, but Oklahoma has eight.
Here's a list of which schools have the most committed players at the event, along with current class rankings. It's still very early in the process, so this is just another way to briefly gauge how teams are doing.

	Commits at The Opening	Overall class ranking
Ohio State	10	1
Oklahoma	8	4
Alabama	7	2
Georgia	6	3
LSU	6	6
Florida State	5	10
Michigan	5	5
Clemson	4	9
Washington	3	30
Ole Miss	2	31
Stanford	2	63
Texas	2	42
UCLA	2	71
USC	2	24
TCU	2	44
Arizona	1	14
Duke	1	23
Maryland	1	29
Miami	1	11
Oklahoma State	1	22
Oregon	1	45
Penn State	1	41
Syracuse	1	47
Tennessee	1	12
Texas Tech	1	32
Wisconsin	1	37

For those of you keeping track, SEC teams have 22 commits here, followed by the Big Ten with 18, the Big 12 with 14, the ACC with 12, and the Pac-12 with 11.
These numbers will surely change over the next few days, with about eight attendees expected to commit (plus potential ratings changes based on the event and recruiting business continuing elsewhere around the country), but that's where we stand this morning.
SB Nation will have boots on the ground in Beaverton this week, so stay close. Wednesdayand Thursday are QB (Elite 11) days.

Elsewhere

The University of Tennessee reached a $2.48 million settlement for the sexual assault lawsuit filed by eight women who described sexually assaults by Tennessee athletes. The federal Title IX probe into the school is not necessarily over.
Georgia's red hot following Fourth of July weekend, landing two blue-chip commitments.
Weird, Alabama landed a four-star running back.
Bill C went double duty on team previews, dropping UCLA and USC on the same day. The Bruins have the talent to win the Pac-12, and just need sophomore quarterback Josh Rosen to take the reigns. The Trojans have a new coach and a new AD, but relying on the same old strategy to find them clouds the outlook for a talented team.
Football Study Hall gets granular on the "pseudo-dime defense" and the light, quick linebackers who counter spread offenses.
Wisconsin's newest commitment is the spectacularly-monikered Danny Vanden Boom.
Boston College will retire the jerseys of NFL rivals Luke Kuechly and Matt Ryan. Seems reasonable to me.
"The Big 12 could finally make a decision about expansion on July 19."
RIP to former Iowa lineman Kyle Calloway, gone too soon at 29 years old.
PREVIOUS: Netflix has a documentary series coming on a top Mississippi JUCO program. We got to review it and talk with the director.