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It was in an earlier Alabama article on this very site that this writer stated: "If Alabama annihilates Western Carolina, then putting the team in the top 25 would be reasonable. Especially if it's a shutout, because that will demonstrate immediate defensive progression."

Well, a shutout didn't happen. But Alabama did annihilate Western Carolina, 52-6, in Bryant-Denny Stadium this past Saturday.

* Grant rushed for 134 yards on 18 carries and three touchdowns - all in the first half - in Alabama's 52-6 win against Western Carolina.
* In the Tide's first play from scrimmage against the Catamounts, Grant scored on a 47-yard run.
* The three rushing scores are the most for a Tide player since 2003 (Shaud Williams vs. Kentucky).
* Grant also caught two passes for 13 yards.

That's part of the identity Saban has frequently discussed and hopes his team continues to develop. Should he use another movie title to describe it, "The Fast and the Furious" would be a good choice.

"I think we took a big step toward finding one, because I don't think it can be found in one game, really," Castille said. "But I definitely think we're in the right direction of trying to be a relentless team, a team that dominates its opponent for 60 minutes and makes the other team not want to really play.

"I think we did a good job hitting those guys and everybody played with great effort."

"We did win 52-6, but if you were in the meeting room you wouldn't have felt like we won 52-6," cornerback Simeon Castille said Monday. "There's definitely always stuff that they'll find that we can improve on. They're not going to let us sit back and say, 'Oh well, we beat Western Carolina 52-6.' It's not like that."

What's it like? Well, let coach Nick Saban summarize.

"The good, the bad and the ugly," Saban said. "That's what I show them."

The offense racked up 575 yards, but failed to score twice on trips inside Western Carolina's 20-yard line.

The defense didn't allow a touchdown but gave up "a few too many big plays" because of missed tackles and mental mistakes, Saban said.

He also praised the team's effort and intensity. But after the game, he said the defensive front was too "soft" at the point of attack, and reiterated that point Monday.

"If you're going to be consistent in stopping the run you've got to be very aggressive," Saban said. "We try to attack the offense, and I think there were times in the game where we kind of caught the blocks instead of attacking the blocks. That's something that we can improve on and we'll work hard to improve on. We've just got to play a little more physical."

"The first few drives," defensive end Bobby Greenwood said, "it felt like my legs were cemented in the ground."

But quickly, during the Crimson Tide's opening 52-6 win over Western Carolina, something interesting happened. The junior Greenwood said "I got my legs back under me, got my second wind," and his teammates echoed the sentiment.

"Without a doubt," defensive end Wallace Gilberry, who had two tackles, one for a loss, and a quarterback hurry, said when asked whether he was prepared physically. "In the scorching heat, we've been going hard all summer. (Saturday) was kind of easy (condition-wise), to be honest with you."

"We didn't show a lot," Caldwell said. "Just basic plays that we worked on in fall camp that we knew really well, that's what we did."

"We need to focus on improvement," Saban said, "and we need to improve a lot. We play some good football teams coming up the next few weeks, starting at Vanderbilt. We'll need a significant amount of improvement to beat good Southeastern Conference teams."