McClain and Woodson Expected to Play, But at What Capacity?
With only one day left, we've pretty well entered the "calm before the storm" phase of preparations, but there is one concern going in and unfortunately for Alabama it's a big one. Both Rolando McClain and Rod Woodson have been ill with a stomach virus the past few days and, even though it's a minor ailment, it could come back to haunt us tomorrow night. The biggest concern is their ability to get properly hydrated before the game and then stay hydrated throughout. McClain, as a starter, is the bigger concern though Woodson has been a solid special teams contributor and considering the Longhorns' kick return abilities losing his speed and sure tackling would be a real detriment. Saban seems pretty confident that both will play, though:
"Those players are better today," Saban said. "If they continue to improve, they should be able to participate in the game."
Saban said McClain and Woodson will go through this afternoon's walk-through at the Rose Bowl stadium.
McClain didn't do much at practice yesterday, according to Saban, who added that "I think he's capable of recovering."
Again, the real concern is not "if" they will play, but how well. Recall that Patrick Peterson cramped up during the LSU game and, while on the sidelines trying to get rehydrated, Julio Jones burned the Tiger secondary for the go ahead score on a simple receiver screen. McClain played a pivotal role in the SEC Championship game by containing Tebow and keeping him from making plays when he did escape the pocket, and with a similarly mobile Colt McCoy having a diminished (or worse, absent) McClain could hurt the defense. Fingers crossed that both will be well enough to play to their full abilities tomorrow night.
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Thanks for the update.
I also have concerns about him being 100% mentally. Those kinds of bugs take a toll on all of one’s faculties and in his case we need the brains just as much as the brawn.
indeed
we’d be better off with him at 80% physically as long as he’s 100% mentally. he is the QB of our defense and the value of his leadership is immeasurable.
for the next five days there is nothing in my heart but hate. pure, untempered, ice-cold hate. fond memories are for saturday. - Kleph
As if my stomach
wasn’t in enough knots….
by BamaGirlinDallas on Jan 6, 2010 1:18 PM CST reply actions
no no no...
RO is going to be FINE. They all are. This is NOT going to happen to us. Please baby jesus make it so…
by Queen of the Universe on Jan 6, 2010 1:23 PM CST reply actions
don’t read too much into the lukewarm nature of saban’s comments. he is after all from the belichick coaching tree, which is all about injury gamesmanship. plus this appears to be the infamous 24 hour bug, in which case they’re already recuperating. it wouldn’t surprise me if they are putting both guys on an IV at least for a little while to ensure hydration.
RO will be good go.
it's times like these that make me glad to be agnostic and not athiest
cause you better believe i’m bustin out the chicken bones and lizard blood for this one!
for the next five days there is nothing in my heart but hate. pure, untempered, ice-cold hate. fond memories are for saturday. - Kleph
too easy
you have to really make an effort to get JoBu’s attention.

for the next five days there is nothing in my heart but hate. pure, untempered, ice-cold hate. fond memories are for saturday. - Kleph
by tempebamafan on Jan 6, 2010 11:12 PM CST up reply actions
Imodium AD
Stop’s the runs.Adrenaline will take over and alleviate this somewhat.You would have cut off Ro’s legs to keep him out of the game.May be his last game in Crimson and he will be fired up and ready.
Two of BON reasons they win
So called media lovefest with Bama,plus a hard fought victory over Nebraska.
A lot of the schools they played were spread oriented,and not a balls to the wall running game like the Tide.I think they underestimate the running game tremendously.
agreed. The whole “number 1 rushing defense” doesn’t hold much water when you realize they played almost exclusively pass-oriented teams.
UT's rushing ranking really has nothing to do with the level of rusihng offense they have played
The main reason why UT has allowed so few rushing yards is the fact they score often and force teams to become much more reliant on the pass in an attempt to catch up.
It is not hard to realize that once a team gets down by 2 or 3 scores in the second half that human nature takes over and teams begin to try to catch up with the pass and the big play and get away from the running game.
JD’s like, "you want some fucking pitching? Here’s all the pitching you can stand. Now choke on it, bitches!"- RCCook
oh sure, that has a definite impact.
but then you look at the teams texas played, and you see that few had any sort of rushing attack. You can see a good compilation of that here: http://bamasportsreport.com/2009-articles/december/texas-game-by-game.html. This is of course a breakdown of all the teams played by Texas. As you can see they played 8 teams 74th or lower in overall rushing, and four teams 100th or lower. To suggest that had nothing to do with the level of their run defense is laughable. It’s not necessarily the most integral feature. But it played a role.
This is not to say they are not a stellar run defense, nor that Bama will have success on the ground against them. After all, Bama’s running game was shut down by a mediocre Auburn squad, and Texas is much much better than that. This is only to say that statistic is skewed in part because the teams they played were pass-oriented.
Think Jordan winning with the flu.
The great ones find a way to play top notch ball even through physical setbacks. I’m not saying McClain is as great an athlete as Jordan, but I am saying that he has the potential to be, and if he’s everything we have come to believe he is for us, he will make a huge positive impact on Bama’s performance the game despite the illness. I’m optimistic, and ready to win this thing!
"Let's go be champions, boys!" - Greg McElroy
Saban said that Ro playing Thursday night...
is out of his hands. He has to be cleared by the medical staff.
You’re good to go, Ro !

Why yes, I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night, thanks for asking.
Got that winning feelin'
Lesson learned...
Don’t eat tacos in California. The best are in Texas!
Does my calendar really say January 7th?! I thought this day would NEVER get here. Good luck all, try not to go into cardiac before kickoff (looking into mirror), and here’s hoping McClain is healthy enough to be himself. College football is better with guys like him involved.
Hook ’em!
41-38 !!

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