Marcell Dareus Must Sit Two Games
by outsidethesidelines on Sep 2, 2010 7:15 PM CDT
in Football
46 comments
It's not exactly the end result we were looking for, but at least the uncertainty surrounding Marcell Dareus is now over. Per the Associated Press:
The NCAA has declared Alabama defensive end Marcell Dareus ineligible for two games for accepting improper benefits.
The ruling Thursday also ordered Dareus to repay $1,787 dollars to a charity of his choice before regaining eligibility. The Crimson Tide opens Saturday night against San Jose State and then hosts No. 19 Penn State.
Dareus was ruled ineligible for receiving preferential treatment and agent benefits, including airfare, lodging, meals and transportation during two trips to Miami, Fla.
Notice that there were two trips in question here, where as previously we were aware of only one. Who knows the details surrounding the second trip, but almost assuredly that played a role in the suspension.
For what it's worth, Dareus apparently handled the situation as he should have. UA compliance director Mike Ward says that Dareus did not intentionally violate NCAA rules, and that he was truthful throughout the entire investigation. Gentry Estes reports, as a result of mitigating factors like those, the suspension of Dareus was reduced from four games to two. You hate to see him forced to miss games, but at least Dareus seemingly did what he was supposed to do.
Regardless, while it's disappointing that Dareus will miss the Penn State game, at least this does bring a close to it all. Furthermore, even without Dareus, we've still got a great deal of talent on the defensive line, and we should be able to take advantage of Penn state's uncertain offensive line and true freshman quarterback. There's no use whining like a bunch of Texas fans, you play with the ones you have and we don't have Dareus for our game with the Nittany Lions. Deal with it, move on, and we should still be able to beat Penn State. If we don't, no excuses, no whining about what could have been.
The good news, though, is that Dareus will return for conference schedule. Given what happened here, this could have easily turned into something much, much worse, and while the two-game suspension is disheartening, we will have Dareus back for the Arkansas game, which in all honesty carries far more importance in the grand scheme of things than the Penn State game.
Editor's Note: hat tip to BamaBrian for breaking the news first in his fanshot.
Update I: Click here to read the official release from the NCAA.
Update II: Nick Saban said on his radio show tonight that Alabama would appeal. Given that the suspension was reduced from four games to two, however, I wouldn't hold my breath, especially considering it would require an expedited review at a time when the NCAA is very, very busy with other eligibility matters. Perhaps it's worth a short, but don't expect to see him until we head north to play Duke.
South Carolina v. Southern Miss Open Thread
by outsidethesidelines on Sep 2, 2010 5:40 PM CDT
in Football
337 comments
Praise Jesus, college football has returned at last. Sure it's Thursday night, and yes it's mainly snoozer match-ups, but it's still college football damnit!
The South Carolina v. Southern Miss game ought to be particularly interesting for Tide fans. We have to make the road trip to Columbia in five weeks, so it'll be interesting to see if South Carolina can finally make some noise in the SEC East this year.
Also, we've got major drama brewing in Columbia. Travis Henry is following the story, and it seems like a lot of key Gamecock players may miss this game, including guys like Marcus Lattimore, Chris Culliver, Ladi Abijoye, Akeem Auguste, and others. Some of it is apparently Hotel-gate, but others not, and of course we all knew Weslye Saunders wouldn't play in this game. Henry says it involves something like a dozen players. Apparently the NCAA was supposed to let them know one way or the other by 5:00, but that passed with no word and now the Carolina coaches aren't happy. For now the players are separated from the rest of the team in the weight room, awaiting a last minute ruling from the NCAA. I suppose Spurrier will keep these guys out of the game if they don't be cleared before kickoff, so they could be playing at a big disadvantage. Either way, they've got less than an hour to get the good news and get ready to go.
In any event, South Carolina and Southern Miss kicks off at 6:30 central time on ESPN. Chime in with all of your thoughts and comments on the this game here, as well as some other games from tonight, such as Pitt v. Utah and Lane Kiffin's USC debut in Hawai'i.
Nike Pro Combat Photo Gallery (Detailed Photos)
by Nico2.0 on Sep 2, 2010 4:25 PM CDT
in Reviews
33 comments
In the interest of full disclosure, Nike paid for our entire trip to New York. That doesn't mean our opinions and reviews of their products has to be all sunshine and rainbows, but it does mean that we should let you all know we wouldn't have had the exclusive opportunity otherwise.
Needless to say, there was a lot of attention given to the release of Alabama's Nike Pro Combat jersey yesterday in New York (as evidenced by the 25+K hits the site got on Wednesday.) This special jersey will be worn one time for the game against Mississippi State in November. You all saw it in the open thread here and then Todd mentioned it some more in today's Jumbo Package here. The photos we sent back yesterday were taken with a cameraphone under less than ideal circumstances. Given the hectic pace of the day and our need to catch a flight back to Birmingham, we didn't have time to upload the photos taken with a real camera until today (and they would've been up much earlier but I've had all sorts of computer issues this morning with my photo managing software.) So, even though you've seen the overall uniform already, I wanted to provide some more detailed shots for you to enjoy.
As Todd mentioned earlier, a few Nike reps approached us and told us that they knew our fans wanted a jersey as traditional as possible and that they worked hard with the school to maintain the traditional look (which is obvious when compared with the radical departures other schools went with.) I told one of them, "It's not that we as Alabama fans don't like a lot of the more radical things y'all come up with for other teams, it's just that we wouldn't like them for us. They're great, they're just not great for Alabama."
With that said, here's some detailed images of the Alabama jersey as well as shots of the other teams' unis (with a little bit of commentary too.) Enjoy...
More after the jump...
A Few Words for (and about) New Members
by Todd on Sep 2, 2010 12:22 PM CDT
90 comments
Ok everyone, as much as I've resisted doing it I've just instituted a 24 hour probationary period for new members. All that means is new members will have to wait a day before they can comment or post fanposts/fanshots. I've done this for two reasons:
1. This gives new members a chance to look around and get a feel for the site.
If you've just signed up for an account, do both me and yourself a favor by getting a good handle on what goes on around here and the best way to get involved in the community. (Hint: posting a story that has already been covered or asking questions that you could have found the answer to simply by scrolling down the main page are not the way to go.) Read the comments, check out the featured stories and fanposts, and get a good idea of what the community considers appropriate. After the probationary period is over and you still feel like you want to post, feel free. Just make sure it's appropriate to the site, (reasonably) well written, and not something that has already been covered. If it isn't, have a thick skin ready 'cause the regulars expect a certain level of quality in the discourse and if you ain't meeting it, they'll let you know. With that in mind...
2. Y'all's mean.
Folks, the n00b hazing is getting a little out of hand. Let's tone it down a notch. If someone still feels the need to ignore the above guidelines on new member postings, then flag it, point them to this post or to the new member thread, and leave it be.
90 comments | 1 recs |
Getting to Know Chavis Williams
by outsidethesidelines on Sep 2, 2010 9:00 AM CDT
in Football
34 comments
In one of the biggest surprises of fall camp, Chavis Williams was named the starting Sam linebacker Monday afternoon by head coach Nick Saban. Considering that Williams may be a bit of an unknown commodity, here's a bit of a primer in advance of the season opener this upcoming Saturday:
Chavis Williams is a product of Dora High School, where he starred on both sides of the ball, who signed with Alabama in Nick Saban's first recruiting class. He first started to make waves as a junior in high school, where he recorded 81 tackles and 9 sacks at defensive end despite only playing in nine games. The following year in his senior campaign, however, he really took off. As a senior he notched 123 tackles and 11 sacks as a defensive end, and added nearly 400 yards receiving and 6 touchdowns as a tight end on the offensive side of the ball. He helped lead Dora deep into the state playoffs, and for his effort he was named a first-team all-state player by Alabama sportswriters. Moreover, Williams didn't feast on the typically low level of Walker County competition (more on that later), he was in 4A, didn't play many teams from within the county, and faced some decent opponents. He was a kid with a long frame and a lot of quickness, all of which made blocking him a difficult task.
Yet, for the most part, no one made a serious play for him, and he didn't pick up any early offers. Arkansas actually found him first before anyone else, and thinking he'd found a diamond in the rough, Houston Nutt quickly extended an offer. Williams quickly accepted and originally committed to the Hogs on Halloween of 2006. Alabama and Auburn quickly jumped in with offers after that, but he stayed with Arkansas. When Nick Saban took over in Tuscaloosa in January of 2007, he put a renewed emphasis on Williams, and he finally convinced Williams to flip to Alabama in early February, mere days before National Signing Day.
For their part, the self-proclaimed recruiting "experts" never became convinced. None of the major recruiting services even had a basic profile of him prior to his commitment to Arkansas, even though they routinely "evaluate" in excess of 5,000 prep prospects per year. In the end, Rivals had him as a middling three-star, Scout.com had him as a two-star, and neither had him as one of the top twenty prospects in the state. The recruiting services spent their time focusing on two similar prospects high on Alabama, Alex Watkins and Kourtnei Brown, both of which have been busts to this point in their respective collegiate careers.
The Jumbo Package: 09-02-10
by Todd on Sep 2, 2010 6:41 AM CDT
33 comments
Quick and dirty this morning, folks, 'cause the last two days of travel have really put me behind.
Nike unveils new uniforms | TideSports.com
Nico will be along in a little while with some good detailed shots and more impressions from the trip, but I have to say that we came out really well in this, much better than I was expecting. One of the Nike reps told us afterwards that they were the most worried about our fanbase's reaction to the changes, but thankfully the university had plenty of say in the design and several of the changes (like the shield at the collar and the A on the hip) I wouldn't mind keeping on a permanent basis. Marty Lyons summed it up well:
"They are very subtle," Lyons said of the changes. "It’s not like they took the white pants and made them all houndstooth. That’s not the tradition. That’s not Alabama. I wouldn’t be in favor of that. But to look at what they’ve done and the professionalism of the people who designed it, I think Nike took the rich tradition of the university and the people who have contributed to that tradition and done a good job."
Richardson ready to step into Ingram's void for Tide - Sporting News
With Ingram sidelined for at least one game, go ahead and get ready for the tsunami of "Trent Richardson is better" comments. Of course, Saban is having none of it:
Mark Ingram's knee injury doesn't spell doom for Alabama ... at least not yet - USATODAY.com
WARNING: this link leads to comments by Gary Danielson. Proceed at your own risk.
And speaking of liking and respecting each other:
Ingram has been praising Richardson throughout the preseason, talking about how the two make each other better in practice.
"I think he should be preseason All-SEC, All-American, All-Everything on every award, because he's a great player," Ingram told Don Kausler, Jr. of The Birmingham News. "He's explosive. He's dynamic. He's getting smarter as a student of the game every day."
Wait is over; Williams gets start at LB | TideSports.com
It's kind of hard to believe that he's been around so long, but Chavis Williams was part of Saban's very first signing class, spurning Arkansas and heading to Tuscaloosa after a sudden offer from Saban (and after no offer from Shula), and now's his time to shine:
"I was raised to never give up, and just to keep working until you get what you want to come out of it," said Williams, who has watched Ezekial Knight (2007) and Cory Reamer (2008, 2009) start ahead of him in the last three years. "Over the years, there has been a lot of competition at linebacker. Cory Reamer, guys like Rolando (McClain), and this year there has been a lot of competition. But I just speak for myself, try to go out and work hard and try to compete with those guys."
And if the staff's faith in Williams isn't enough to make you believe he can play, check out this quote from Hightower:
"He’s one of the veterans on the team. Even I’m out there sometimes and I’m like, ‘What do we check to?,’ Chavis is one of those guys other than Mark Barron who knows the defense so well."
The day after Alabama tailback Mark Ingram underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee brought positive news for his recovery.
"Mark is doing extremely well," Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban said after practice Wednesday. "He didn't have a lot of swelling, which is a good sign. That has a lot to do with how quickly he can come back."
Gentry Estes: Mark Ingram 'doing extremely well' so far in recovery
Relief. The ol' Nicktator doesn't exactly throw around the phrase "doing extremely well" very often. Hopefully this portends Ingram's return will be on the low end of the range thrown out there.
Robert Bolden Named Starting QB for Penn State
by outsidethesidelines on Sep 1, 2010 7:00 PM CDT
in Football
65 comments
It's no grand secret that Penn State has been having some issues replacing outgoing senior quarterback Darryll Clark. Four players were vying for the starting job, including two true freshmen, but throughout spring practice and fall camp no individual quarterback stepped up and differentiated himself from the competition.
For his part, up until now, Joe Paterno has been tight-lipped on things. Yesterday, in fact, Paterno refused to name a starter during his weekly news conference. Seems the beloved ol JoePa may have been hiding the truth a bit then, but even so Penn State officially named Robert Bolden starting quarterback:
Penn State just confirmed what The Patriot-News reported first earlier in the day: true freshman Robert Bolden will start at quarterback Saturday against Youngstown State at Beaver Stadium.
Two sources close to the Penn State program told The Patriot-News that Bolden beat out sophomore contenders Matt McGloin and Kevin Newsome for the job.One source told The Patriot-News the quarterbacks were informed of the decision prior to today and told to keep quiet.
And that is who should lead the Nittany Lions into Bryant-Denny Stadium next Saturday night. Believe it or not, it will be the first true freshman Joe Paterno has ever started at quarterback during his long coaching career.
Now, to be sure, Bolden isn't exactly some random scrub. He was one of the most highly-touted recruits in the country last year as per the self-proclaimed recruiting "experts", and at about 6'3 and 220 pounds, he's got raw size and athletic ability to boot. He wasn't exactly a prolific passer on the prep level -- as a junior he only threw for about 1,000 yards on the season, for example -- but again the raw tools are there, and if nothing else he has the requisite arm strength. In terms of a comparison you may be familiar with, think something along the lines of Jordan Jefferson of LSU.
With all of that said, though, consider the context. This is an 18-year old true freshman who will be, in his first meaningful collegiate game, leading his team into Bryant-Denny Stadium, filled with over 100,000 fans, to face the #1 team in the country and the defending national champions. Given our strength in the defensive front seven and the question marks of the Penn State game, anybody 'Bama observer that tells you he's not salivating at the thought of that is lying through his teeth.
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Crimson Tide Football Schedule
| San Jose St. | Sat 09/04 | 6:00 PM CDT |
Penn St.
|
Sat 09/11 | 6:00 PM CDT |
| @ Duke | Sat 09/18 | 2:30 PM CDT |
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@
Arkansas
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Sat 09/25 | TBA |
|
Florida
|
Sat 10/02 | TBA |
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@
South Carolina
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Sat 10/09 | TBA |
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Mississippi
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Sat 10/16 | TBA |
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@
Tennessee
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Sat 10/23 | TBA |
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@
LSU
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Sat 11/06 | 7:00 PM CDT |
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Mississippi St.
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Sat 11/13 | TBA |
| Georgia State | Thu 11/18 | 6:30 PM CST |
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Auburn
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Fri 11/26 | 1:30 PM CST |
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