McClain did not sustain any major injuries, the paper reported, and he was wearing a helmet.

A Decatur General Hospital spokesperson listed him as "fine" and Willingham said, "He was joking around before I left (the hospital). He didn't break anything."

St. Paul's wide receiver Destin Hood will not enroll the first week of June with the majority of Alabama's 2008 signees. In fact, odds are that Hood won't attend UA at all this year.

A standout shortstop, Hood is leaning toward a professional baseball career instead of joining the Crimson Tide.

"If he's drafted right, he's probably going to play baseball," his father Dewayne Hood said earlier tonight.

Hendrix, Alabama's leading scorer and rebounder, missed last Saturday's game at Kentucky with a stomach virus. He returned to practice on Monday and a day later said he was "feeling good"

The Tide (13-11, 2-7) has lost seven of its last nine games, including a 62-52 defeat at Kentucky without Hendrix. The Rebels (17-5, 3-5) have lost four of their last five SEC games.

Hendrix's return comes in time for a matchup with the Rebels' Curtis, who is averaging 15.4 points and 9.2 rebounds. Curtis is the league's No. 2 rebounder.

The Dallas Morning News reported Monday that former Alabama defensive coordinator Joe Kines is the top candidate to be the DC at Texas A&M under new DC Mike Sherman.

Sherman lost his first DC, Reggie Herring, to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. And former Notre Dame coach Bob Davie turned down a job offer to replace Herring.

Valentine with Vulcan
Dessert & Champagne Reception
Thursday, February 14
8 - 11 pm

$40 couple / $20 individual

If sweet treats hold the key to your true love's heart, then Vulcan Park and Museum is the place to be this Valentine's Day. Join us for Valentine with Vulcan 2008, a dessert and champagne reception that will provide all the elements of a colossal Valentine's Day. Surprise your valentine with a romantic evening of live music, champagne, sweet confections, breathtaking views and more...under the stars at Vulcan Park and Museum. Enjoy...

Middleton served as Cutcliffe's special teams coordinator at Ole Miss from 1999-03. Cutcliffe, Tennessee's offensive coordinator the past two seasons, has made an effort to reassemble much of his former Rebels staff, and was reportedly given a purse in the $2 million range to do it.

Middleton is a significant loss for Alabama's staff. The Tide did not allow a special teams touchdown this season under his direction. He was also popular among the players.

Saban is expected to immediately begin searching for a replacement and will likely pursue a minority hire, according to one source. Middleton was one of three African-American coaches on Alabama's on-field staff.

Topping the list of names being mentioned is former Michigan State head coach Bobby Williams, who coached under Saban at MSU, LSU and with the NFL's Miami Dolphins.

Other possibilities are former Virginia Tech and Oakland Raiders assistant Lorenzo Ward, a Tide player in the late 1980s, and former South Carolina head coach and Alabama running backs coach Sparky Woods, who still resides in Tuscaloosa and interviewed with Saban during the coaching transition after Mike Shula was fired.

The Atlanta committee which organized the Chick-fil-A Bowl is expected to announce final plans on Friday for Clemson and Alabama to open the 2008 season in the Georgia Dome.

Atlanta Sports Council officials have been in negotiations with the schools for months to play the neutral-site game in Atlanta on Aug. 30, with tickets distributed evenly between the schools.

Chick-fil-A Bowl president Gary Stokan said last week plans for the game were put on hold while the committee focused on the bowl game, but he said talks would resume this week. A news conference has been scheduled for Friday afternoon.

No one denies that there were reasons for coach Mark Gottfried to proclaim that he is, "completely, 100 percent embarrassed."

But when Alabama (10-4) hosts independent Chicago State (5-12) today at 7 p.m., the goal is for the team to move on. This is the final game before the Southeastern Conference season begins at home Tuesday at 8 p.m. against defending, two-time national champion Florida in an ESPN game. During the past two days, the Crimson Tide has attempted to push the stumble against Clemson to the background.

"You can't live in it," Gottfried said. "We addressed it, we talked about it, but then we're going to move on from it. I think our guys responded well. We had a very sharp, very enthusiastic practice (Thursday) and that's the way I wanted to be."

In a sad, sullen locker room on Tuesday night, Hollinger quieted down his teammates and delivered a message.

Remember that the team had recently been on a six-game winning streak, he told them. Remember the improvement that had been made. Remember the way the team played during the game's first 25 minutes.

"Don't dwell on that," Hollinger said. "We can't let this make us go on a three-game losing streak. Go to the next game and go back on our winning streak."

"I'm just glad to see him out there practicing," Crimson Tide coach Mark Gottfried said. "I think it's helped his psyche just being out there. He feels a lot better about things. His conditioning is pretty far behind, which is expected. He's just taking a little more time to get in shape and all those type things, but it's been good from him, and I think for our team. The rest of the guys feel good about seeing him out there practicing."

"I am completely, 100 percent embarrassed at how my team competed in the second half," Gottfried said. "That hasn't been the case for one minute of one game this year."

All-Southeastern Conference forward Richard Hendrix had 14 points and seven rebounds, though he was victimized on the defensive end. Forward Alonzo Gee had 17 points and six rebounds, but guard Mykal Riley missed all eight 3-point attempts.

Alabama (10-4) was outscored 47-26 in the final 20 minutes.

No Alabama team has lost so badly to an out-of-conference team since Pittsburgh defeated the Tide by 24 in the 1988 Red Lobster Classic in Orlando. And it was the worst nonconference loss in Tuscaloosa since 1969 when Ohio State won 96-68.

The staff received today and Tuesday off, but are due back in their offices on Wednesday for a three-day review of the season. Saban will solicit opinions from everyone.

"We will certainly do a lot of evaluation, relative to quality control," Saban said. "We will give most people in the organization the opportunity to give some feedback on how we can do any part of our program better. We will start to put it in action when we get back and get rolling again."

The Wilson dichotomy is currently being aired in every ESPN bowl game, as they promote the four "Pontiac Game-Changing Performance" finalists of the year. You see the good John Parker Wilson first, hitting Matt Caddell with the dramatic game-winning touchdown pass against Arkansas. Then, you are immediately switched to the other aspect, as Wilson's end-zone interception at the end of the first half at Mississippi State is the next "highlight" on the list. It was that inconsistency that perplexed Alabama fans. It could happen almost as quickly on the field of play as it does in the ESPN commercial, too. Wilson could appear to be in a groove and one play would seem to turn it around for him. The Independence Bowl was an example of that.

What about next season? Well, there are two legitimate reasons to think Wilson could be operating at a higher level. The first is the probability of individual improvement as he grows more and more familiar with the Crimson Tide offense under Major Applewhite.

The second, and more overlooked, possibility is that he will improve as the team improves around him. At times, this simple analogy seemed appropriate. Suppose you have someone who can lift 400 pounds. Lifting that much weight is impressive, and if you ask that person to lift 350 pounds, he will look smooth doing it. But if you ask him to lift 500 pounds, he will strain and struggle and not always be successful. There were times this season when Wilson was asked to shoulder a 500-pound load for the UA offense this season. The running game wasn't consistent. The offensive line was shuffled by textbook issues and injuries. If those areas improve, Wilson won't be asked to carry so much of the burden and he will look better because of it.

But whether he looks better, or the same, Alabama fans will be looking at him this spring -- and looking very closely.

The place is teeming with restaurants, both locally owned ones we natives like as well as those familiar name brands you trust with your palate. Shopping? Got that aplenty, from the Louisiana Boardwalk to a couple malls and a nexus of commercialism down state Highway 1 South.

Said Saban, "One of the things (recruits) need to evaluate is, 'Do I feel comfortable with the players they have on the team?' They are going to be their teammates, so certainly that's something I think is important.

"It helps those guys feel more comfortable. And the more the guys they meet and know and feel comfortable with, it only helps our chances with having success with getting them here."

To further contrast the programs, which will play in Sunday's Independence Bowl, Colorado has won one national title compared to Alabama's 12, the Buffaloes are 12-15 in bowl games while the Crimson Tide has an NCAA-leading 55 appearances and 30 wins, and Hawkins' contract of five years, $4.25 million is slightly more than what Alabama coach Nick Saban averages per season.

ON PLAYING A TEAM WITH A REPUTATION LIKE ALABAMA--"I think it's certainly an attention grabber in that way, no question about that. I think we all know and understand the history of Alabama and have a tremendous amount of respect for the SEC. I think any time you get into a bowl game you always want to play the best possible team that you can play. Even though their record is just like us, not where they want it to be, they are a very formidable team. I think that definitely grabs your attention."

ON WHETHER ALABAMA'S WIN OVER TENNESSEE WAS THEIR MOST SIGNIFICANT WIN--"I don't know. I mean, clearly Tennessee finished up strong and had a great year and did a nice job. But you would have to ask them (Alabama). All coaches are very similar; I'm sure to them it's like 'OK, we won one of those game, but what about the other games?' I'm sure they feel the same way very much like we do."

ON THE SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE --"I definitely think that it is going around the country and playing different teams and different styles--I have always thought that the SEC is a little bigger, a little faster and more physical in every range--in general. Not taking anything away from the Big 10 or the Pac-10 or the Big 12 by any means. I just think that top to bottom, no matter who you're playing there is a physicality to the whole thing. I think you're starting to see with Steve Spurrier out at South Carolina he's starting to spread it out and teams are starting to do those types of things as well, but overall it's just the physicality of things."

ON WHY ALABAMA'S MASCOT IS AN ELEPHANT--"I don't know. Hey, if bear Bryant wants an elephant it's an elephant. That's all I know. It can be whatever he wants it to be."

An article printed in Friday's issue of The Daily Reveille, LSU's student newspaper, featured three students who purchased 60 houndstooth hats and decorated them with a purple band around the outside of the hat and a yellow feather through the band.

"There is no better idea than to put purple and gold on a Paul 'Bear' Bryant hat and have the whole student section wearing them," LSU junior Nathan Roy told The Daily Reveille.

"The houndstooth hats are clearly an Alabama tradition," said Sarah Shea, a freshman majoring in elementary education. "For [LSU] fans to be wearing them means they are having to use our tradition instead of having their own."

For LSU fans, Alabama is arguably their biggest rival, and Saban's hiring only fueled their resentment that much more. But the Tigers and Tide aren't actual "rivals," the way Ohio State and Michigan or USC and Notre Dame are rivals. Those rivalries are rooted as much in mutual respect as they are actual hatred.

To Alabama, LSU is no more a rival than the Cleveland Indians are to the New York Yankees. The hatred rests entirely on one side of the field, and it's almost entirely a byproduct of the other side's historical dominance.

One fan base thinks Saban is a god; the other believes he's the devil incarnate. Throw in the SEC West title stakes, LSU's quest for the national championship and Miles' preseason ramblings about "f-ing Alabama" and you've got the recipe for a street fight or 200 on The Strip before and after Saturday's game. You can see why (Tuscaloosa County Sheriff) Sexton didn't want to participate in any tongue-in-cheek interview with a newspaper. He's got bigger fish to fry.

Tide defenders actually seem excited about facing that kind of go-for-broke style in Saturday's game.

"I love it," safety Rashad Johnson said. "I hope they go for it and try to throw it up on us. I've got a lot of confidence in everybody in the secondary that we can make that play. We go out in practice every week and we practice on exactly that, the long ball drill. That's the most intercepted ball in football. I hope they do come out and try to do that on us."

Right now, Alabama officials and fans should be comforted by the fact that they have thus far gotten everything they could have realistically expected from Saban in his first season.

The Crimson Tide enters Saturday's game against No. 3 LSU with a No. 17 national ranking and a share of first place in the Southeastern Conference Western Division. The program that was supposed to be a year or two away from challenging for a division title seems to be well ahead of schedule.

"I think anytime you play a big SEC game like this it's big," Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson said. "I know we're playing LSU, but it's just like Tennessee or Auburn to us. We're not blowing this game up like everyone else is.

"I realize we have Coach Saban and he used to coach at LSU. But it's just the next SEC game to us. We're just going to face it like every other day."

"Whatever story you want to make of it is fine," Alabama wide receiver Matt Caddell said. "It's just a game to us. We want to beat LSU because we are tied for first place, not because it's LSU."

"I'm going to use bowl games as an example," he said. "My first five years as a coach at Michigan State we never won a bowl game because we always tried to carry the momentum of the end of the season into the bowl game. So we had six weeks of practice, six weeks of off-and-on conditioning, and by the time the game came everybody was sick and tired of practicing and getting ready for the game and they were not ready to play psychologically. So we changed that format at LSU [and] had a little bit more success in bowl games when you just said, `Guys, you've got down time. Start 14 days before a game and we'll go to work for the bowl game when it comes,' and not try to sustain that and carry it forward.

But most of the Tide players need no introduction to Dorsey, especially Britt, who pancaked him on a run and helped limit him to five tackles in last year’s 28-14 loss. Others helped with double-teams and Caldwell played at left guard for part of a series.

"What can you say about Dorsey? He’s arguably the best interior guy in college football," (Andre) Smith said. "He’s a great player, great person as far as I know. Great attitude on the field.

According to a police report, Michael Crawley, 39, grabbed the boy by his facemask and threw him to the ground, yelling profanities and threatening to kill him, after the boy performed a two-person block during practice.

Miles has been successful and amassed the kind of talent to continue a joyful ride as Tigers coach. But these past few games have shown sound evidence that he is no Saban.

Not even the best gambler can stay lucky for that long. Remember, there is a reason casinos are profitable ventures.

Miles will come to Tuscaloosa for one more game of roulette. Will this be the time he plays the wrong number?

If Miles leaves for Michigan, Tuberville has to be the LSU coach. He knows the league and he has his recruiting tentacles throughout the south. Recruiting analysts will tell you LSU will give borderline or below average high school kids a chance to succeed academically and that always helps a coach.

Who wouldn't you jump at the LSU job? The fans are nuts, the facilities are upgraded, and with 92,000 fans backing a winner they should be able to beat Tub's $2 million paycheck at Auburn. Miles is only making $1.8 million, which puts him in the middle of the SEC, but there is a serious upgrade due the position.

First, it's not Miles' fault that Saban is an outstanding recruiter. Nor should he be criticized for playing the amazing stable of talent that has been left behind. That to say nothing of the fact that those players have developed well in Saban's absence, which is to Miles' credit.

Second, being a second-tier coach is often all it takes to win a ton of football games. A coach doesn't need to be amazing in the off season and in the Fall to win conference or national titles. In fact, many a second-tier game-day coach has had great success with stunning talent levels (see, e.g., Tennessee circa 1998).

"I don't care what those people say," Ausberry said. "Nick was our coach and he put LSU back in the national spotlight. And Les has picked it up from there and made it continue on. I have a lot of respect for Nick and what he did for our program. We were losing for about 10 years before he came here."

"We hadn't won an SEC championship since I played before Nick got here," Ausberry said. "I don't understand the fans. Steve Spurrier (former national champion Florida coach) did about the same thing as Nick. He left Florida went to the NFL and came back to South Carolina. Florida doesn't hate him and he went to that school and won the Heisman there. He left, but he's in their ring of honor there."

"But I don't think anybody close to LSU should hate Nick Saban," Ausberry said. "We wouldn't be where we are today without Nick Saban. And that's not knock on Les at all. Les is doing great, but it was a build-up by Nick. This program was down for 10 years."

Dr. Stevenson said that noise level in stadiums should be kept low enough to make sure that the opposing team does not need to use hand signals on offense. He pointed out a Michigan-Ohio State game in which he was aghast that Ohio State incurred one false start after another on a drive because of fan noise. He thought this was horrible fan behavior.

Let's be clear on this, however: Barring a total collapse the rest of the way, nothing is going to happen this year. But it sets up next season as a crossroads in Fulmer's tenure at UT. Much repair work must be done.

But the bigger statement than even the game, was Alabama's willingness to suspend players before a big game for potential violations. It was the failure to act swiftly that began Alabama's decades of misery. Not this time. The administration and coaches made clear they want to win the right way.