Well, three out of four Bama Sports Report bloggers are in agreement.
In what is the most ridiculous coincidence ever, Ell, Crump and nxojkt all have identical polls. Glen differs.
Check out the full poll after the jump.
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It was a windy, chilly and slightly rainy afternoon in Tuscaloosa. Nick Saban donned a Nike sweatshirt on top of his usual Bama golf shirt during and after practice.
As usual, Tyler Love and Barrett Jones were in black jerseys. I know we’ve said it before, but barring some catastrophic injury situation, they both redshirt.
Alabama is 10-0. If you would have given me nine wins at the beginning of the season I would have taken it and ran. Now, here we are in control of our own destiny to earn a shot at a national title. It has been too long since that phrase was uttered (my freshman year at the Capstone to be exact - that’s right, I am OLD!) but this is a discussion better saved for a later date.
After taking the week off to engage in the acceptance speeches and military briefings and all of the other trappings that come with my new job, I am back and ready to honor some guys that don’t always get the props they deserve.
P J Fitzgerald
Coming in to the season this was probably our weakest position, at least in my opinion. Fitzgerald has shown some improvement this year and Saturday afternoon in Baton Rouge might just have been his finest day in an Alabama uniform.
It can no longer be said that this Alabama team has not been tested. Between Bama’s own early mistakes, the spirited play of a fired-up and talented LSU squad, and 92,000 home faithful that rivaled close-range jet airliner decibel levels, the question was thoroughly put to the undefeated Tide, both early and late.
But by the time that question was finally and conclusively answered on a John Parker Wilson sneak in overtime, the only high-decibel part of the stadium was the crimson-clad slice in the corner of one end zone. As they say, he who cheers last, cheers best.
It was back into full pads for the Tide today as they continue preparation for the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Sunday’s day off and Monday’s practice in shells seems to have the guys rested and ready to play what in recent years has been one of the more physical games of the season. Tuesday practices typically have more energy, as the guys tend to be more intense when they have the pads on, and this week was no different. There appears to be no danger of a letdown this weekend.
From the first day that Nick Saban was introduced as Alabama’s head football coach many football fans nationwide circled last Saturday’s date on their calendar. The return of Coach Saban to the place where he had won a national title was a story ripe with intrigue; afterall, no coach in NCAA had ever returned to the home staudium of a school at which they had won a national title and won a game. The fact that Coach Saban is a volatile character, and that LSU fans are among the nation’s worst (er… most passionate) fans, only added to the overall story.
On Monday of last week both Nick Saban and LSU’s current head coach Les Miles did everything that they could to do to deflect the story, asking people to focus on the players. The players, they both said, would be who determined the outcome of the game. And in a lot of ways they were right. But I don’t see how anyone could have watched that game and come away with anything other than Nick Saban is a far superior coach, and Alabama won that football game because of it.
The 2008 SEC Western Division Champion Crimson Tide hit the practice field today in preparation for the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Sylvester Croom’s bunch isn’t technically in last place in the SEC West, but only because they have played one less conference game than Arkansas. We’ve had them at the bottom of our SEC Power Poll for a while now, and most consider them to be the worst team in the conference.
So, with Bama coming off of a big emotional win, and next Saturday bringing an off weekend, this game screams of being a “trap” game… right? This Bama team spent the entire off season looking at two posters in their locker room, images of the final scoreboard for the Louisiana-Monroe and Mississippi State games. Nick Saban wasn’t making a comparision between those two schools. Instead, he deemed those to be the two games that it appeared as though Bama “quit”, and he wanted to send the players a daily reminder of what happens when you don’t FINISH!
After being named the National Defensive Player of the Week, it really isn’t a shock that Rashad Johnson has been named the SEC’s Defensive Player of the Week. His three interception game is a season high for the SEC in 2008.
Also earning an honor from the conference today was Julio Jones. For his seven receptions and 128 yards performance, Julio was named the SEC Freshman of the Week.
Glen Coffee was named in the SEC’s “Other Outstanding Performances” list for his 26 carry, 126 yard, and one touchdown game.
For a complete list of this week’s SEC honors, head on over to the SEC site.
The BCS Standings are out, and for the second consecutive week Alabama is the #1 team in the nation. The Tide is also at the top in the AP Poll, the ESPN/USA Today Poll, and the Harris Interactive Poll. The computer rankings used by the BCS have Bama in second place, based on strength of schedule, and Texas Tech’s recent run through top ten opponents.
Here’s how things break down: