Courtney Upshaw ready for NFL Scouting Combine, 40-yard dash - NFL - SI.com

After weeks of prep work, the Combine is finally here. All of the training, physical therapy and mock interviews I've done will be put to the test starting on Friday, when my fellow linebackers and I arrive at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. I'm more than ready to go. I'll be participating in all of the tests, performing all of the linebacker drills and sitting down to talk with several teams. I'm looking forward to many of the events, but I'm most focused on the 40-yard dash. I know how important 40 times are to a player's draft stock, and I'm determined to impress scouts and GMs with my performance. My goal is to run a 4.6-second 40. I've been practicing the 40 while training in Arizona and -- though the trainers won't tell me my time -- I know I'm in the 4.6 range.

Arkansas coach Mike Anderson applauds Alabama coach Anthony Grant's discipline | al.com

Anderson coached at Missouri for five seasons before leaving last year to come to Arkansas, where he had been a longtime assistant coach. In his second season at Missouri, Anderson suspended five players in connection with a bar fight. The Tigers lost to Nebraska. The players returned and Missouri defeated Kansas State. "You've got to set a precedent about your program and what it's going to be about," Anderson said. "When I made the decision to do what I did at Missouri, I thought it was a turning point ... because then everything else kind of seemed to take it up to the next level."

TideSports.com - HURT: Tide might still make NCAA Tournament

For at least one more game, the UA team, facing a crucial closing stretch in the Southeastern Conference race, will not be at its potential full strength. That potential strength no longer includes Tony Mitchell, at least not for this season, but it does include JaMychal Green, now back at practice but not, as Grant revealed on Tuesday, fully back in good graces. Alabama will be a little stronger than it was in Saturday's win over Tennessee, with Nick Jacobs coming back from injury. But Green has been missed, and he'll be missed at Arkansas on Thursday. The Crimson Tide won't concede, but Fayetteville is a tough place to play - last weekend's blowout loss to Florida was an anomaly - and Green would have helped. The question now is more mathematical than anything else.

No. 2 Softball Concludes Road Trip with 8-1 Win over UAB - rolltide.com

The No. 2 ranked Alabama softball team wrapped up its season opening road trip with an 8-1 victory over UAB, Tuesday evening at the UAB Softball Field. With the victory the Crimson Tide improve to 8-0 on the season while the Blazers drop to 5-6 overall. Alabama outhit UAB, 8-3, and were led at the plate by freshman Danae Hays, who batted 2-for-3 and drove in two runs. Junior Kayla Braud scored two runs, walked three times and stole three bases.

Tyren Jones: Georgia’s No. 1 RB commits to Alabama over UGA and Clemson (UPDATED) | AJC College Sports Recruiting

"He was very impressed with the Junior Day visit," said Derrik Allen, Tyren’s AAU track coach. "Alabama laid out what they liked about him. They told him about the academic programs, and the support for the athletes. He just felt like in his heart, Alabama was the place for him." Why did Jones commit on Tuesday? "He felt like he just wanted to go ahead and end the process," Allen said. "It was getting crazy. He found a program for him, and he wanted to calm down the recruiting craziness."

NFL.com news: Top five running backs entering NFL Scouting Combine

1. Trent Richardson, Alabama: Richardson is the most complete runner to enter the league since Adrian Peterson. He excels at grinding out tough yards between the tackles, but is also nifty enough to produce big runs on the perimeter. His dominant play in the SEC, college football's toughest conference, suggests that he is poised to make an immediate impact as a pro. At the NFL Scouting Combine, Richardson can make a strong case for inclusion within the top five picks with an impressive workout in front of evaluators.

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Tide will be shorthanded vs. Hogs | The Baxter Bulletin | baxterbulletin.com

However, minus Green and Mitchell, the Tide in Tuscaloosa, Ala., last Saturday defeated Tennessee, 62-50, with reserve 7-footers Moussa Geye and Carl Engstrom contributing significantly while guard Trevor Lacey scored a career high 18 points while Releford scored 13 and Steele 10, with a career high seven assists. "We obviously are three or four games since that happened," Grant said. "And I think our guys have moved on and prepared to play the opponents in front of us."

As suspension suspense ends, Alabama basketball team could stabilize | al.com

Mitchell was averaging 17.2 points after five games and was named the MVP of the Puerto Rico Classic after leading the Tide to convincing victories over Maryland, Wichita State and Purdue. His NBA stock was considered high, but his season began to turn the next game when he turned an ankle and scored only two points in eight minutes of a rout of Alabama A&M. The dynamic dunker scored only 25 points combined during a four-game losing streak, bottoming out against Vanderbilt. He played 31 minutes in a 69-59 loss at home but was held scoreless for the first time in 85 career games.

Tony Mitchell will not return to Alabama this season | The Dagger

Alabama has split its four games without Mitchell, beating Auburn and Tennessee and losing to LSU and Florida. For the Tide to feel secure about its NCAA tournament hopes before the SEC tournament, they may need to win three of their final four games, which will be no easy task considering their upcoming schedule. Up first is a visit to Arkansas, which had been undefeated at home before falling to Florida on Saturday. Then comes home games against Mississippi State and Auburn before a road finale at Ole Miss. Getting two or three wins out of that stretch would have been easier with Mitchell, but credit Grant for taking a stand at such a crucial time. Now it will be up to Mitchell's teammates to see if they can rally without him.

Undefeated Alabama gymnastics team tied for No. 3 in latest rankings | al.com

Only one team has a perfect record this season in women's intercollegiate gymnastics, but that team isn't ranked No. 1. The undefeated and untied Alabama Crimson Tide is tied for No. 3 with Georgia in the latest rankings that were released today. Florida is ranked No. 1, and Oklahoma is No. 2. Alabama defeated Georgia in its season-opening meet and later defeated Florida. The Crimson Tide will pay a March 2 visit to Oklahoma.

No. 2 Softball Continues Road Swing at UAB - rolltide.com

The No. 2 ranked Alabama softball team (7-0) will wrap up its road trip to start the season with a midweek contest against instate foe UAB (5-5). The Crimson Tide will meet the Blazers on Tuesday, Feb. 21, with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m., at the UAB Softball Field.

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Draft 2012: The Underrated - NFL Draft Preview - Rotoworld.com

8. Alabama NT Josh Chapman (6-0/310/5.02) - Possibly the least flashy player in the draft, Chapman is one of my favorites. He was the unheralded piece of a relentless 'Bama defense, plugging the middle to let others run free. Chapman plays within a two-yard radius, getting little penetration but displaying a rare anchor that rarely gets moved, even when facing double teams. With limited upfield ability, Chapman will be a two-down NFL player but he accomplishes his responsibility extraordinarily well. Despite playing with a torn ACL for the last eight games of the 2011 season, Chapman was the nation's top run defender.

No. 2 Softball Stays Perfect with 3-1 Win over No. 15 Oklahoma State - rolltide.com

Alabama sophomore pitcher Jackie Traina allowed one run on one hit to help lead the No. 2 ranked Crimson Tide to a 3-1 win over No. 15 Oklahoma State, Sunday morning at Jane B. Moore Field. Alabama finished the SEC/ACC/Big XII Challenge 3-0 and moves its season record to 7-0. Alabama outhit Oklahoma State (4-4) 12-1 and was led at the plate by the duo atop the lineup of Kayla Braud and Jazlyn Lunceford. The top two hitters in the lineup collected three hits apiece with Braud adding two stolen bases.

Marqui Hawkins: WR adds offer from Florida | AJC College Sports Recruiting

What would be his dream offer? "Alabama. I love Nick Saban, I love how the players treat the recruits when they visit for games, and I love how they always win national championships."

College athletes' rights: NCAA requires health insurance, but schools decide what to pay | al.com

The flexibility that universities have to determine what they cover is evident in medical policies The Birmingham News obtained from Alabama, Auburn and UAB through open-records requests. Alabama provided a coverage plan that's identical to the NCAA's catastrophic injury insurance program. The plan covers medical, dental, rehabilitation and custodial care expenses for injuries at an official team activity, conditioning or practice session. Auburn's plan describes its insurance as the secondary carrier in all claims. The document says if any portion is not covered by the athlete's family insurance, the balance will be paid by Auburn's plan. Also, if athletes are uninsured, that athlete goes on Auburn's primary medical coverage.

State of our basketball union in Alabama is murky | al.com

The Crimson Tide, sitting in a four-way tie for fourth place in the SEC, would likely be in the 68-team field if the season ended today. Alabama's strength of schedule and Ratings Percentage Index are much stronger than a year ago. But the season doesn't end yet, of course. Alabama badly needed the win over Tennessee to stem the slide as Anthony Grant continues to send the right message by sitting leading scorers Tony Mitchell and JaMychal Green. According to WarrenNolan.com, the Crimson Tide has a No. 37 RPI and is 1-5 against top-50 teams (the win coming over Wichita State). Four regular-season games remain, at Arkansas and Ole Miss and home against Mississippi State and Auburn. Right now, none of those teams reside in the top 50.

Tide crushes Arkansas to stay perfect on season | The Crimson White

"It was just a night of celebration," head coach Sarah Patterson said. "There was great athletic competition, but when you watch those 18 [breast cancer survivors] that walked out [before the meet], that was just so humbling, such a special moment. You really can’t ask for a better night than this." With campus glowing pink all week in support of breast cancer awareness, the energy in Coleman Coliseum was present from the start, and the Tide rode it to their second-highest team score of the season. "Seeing all the pink just set the stage for the night," senior Ashley Priess said. "As we walked out with our survivors on our arm, it was so inspiring to see them and what they’ve endured."

Alabama Coach Uses Off-Court Issues as Teaching Moment - NYTimes.com

"Mistakes are made, but you have to learn about accountability and you have to learn about sacrifice," Grant said, adding: "We wouldn’t have a program if we didn’t teach those lessons. It’s a moving target with young men, always a moving target. "We’re trying to establish what we are trying to be as a program."

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Men's Basketball Beats Tennessee, 62-50 - ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE - University of Alabama Official Athletic Site

The Alabama men's basketball team improved to 17-9 and 6-6 in Southeastern Conference play with a 62-50 win over Tennessee in front of 12,988 fans in Coleman Coliseum Saturday. "It was great for the team to be locked in to our game plan and complete the task at hand," UA head coach Anthony Grant said. "They put in a lot of hard work this week. We had a great week of preparation." Freshman guard Trevor Lacey scored 18 points, including a career-high nine made free throws, to go with four steals to lead the Crimson Tide. Sophomore point guard Trevor Releford added 13 points and five steals while junior guard Andrew Steele totaled 10 points along with career-high seven assists and five steals. Sophomore center Carl Engstrom notched career-highs in points (7), rebounds (7) and minutes (23).

TideSports.com - UA picks Vols' pockets

The Crimson Tide, playing without three starters, two suspended and one ailing, stifled Tennessee at Coleman Coliseum, taking a 62-50 win that was constructed primarily from desire and defense. "It was a tremendous effort (today), but the guys have been tremendous all week in practice," Alabama (17-9, 6-6 Southeastern Conference) coach Anthony Grant said. "I told them that I wanted them to be aggressive and they were. It wasn't a perfect game, but we were able to play through any mistakes. I was very proud."

TideSports.com - Win shows progress being made

But even with the same players, Alabama wasn't always the same team - see South Carolina - and for the last few weeks, there has been mystery in every pregame introduction and an identity crisis in almost every game. That was no different Saturday, but give Anthony Grant credit. Given a reasonable four-day stretch of practice time, instead of the two-suspension Saturday/Tuesday whirlwind that preceded it, Grant and the Crimson Tide staff remade the Crimson Tide yet again, fielding a team that didn't exactly resemble the early-season expectations, but did play hard. What's more, the Tide was something it has not been very often this year: fun to watch. On top of that, UA won, beating a hot Tennessee team. That sort of remaking-on-the-fly isn't always easy, or successful. (Seen "Two And A Half Men" lately?)

3 points the morning after Alabama's 62-50 victory over Tennessee | al.com

1. Mismatches. Without Green and Mitchell, Alabama was no match inside for LSU and Florida. Tennessee had a size advantage, too, but Alabama went with a four-guard lineup and gave the Vols matchup problems. Quickness can counteract height and bulk. Four guards won't work against every opponent, but it will work again. A full-court press with four guards was quite effective Saturday. The Tide had 15 steals and forced 17 turnovers overall.

UT AD Dave Hart: Don't doubt Anthony Grant | al.com

We talked Friday, and Hart delivered a particularly strong endorsement of Grant. The support wasn't unexpected, considering that Hart was the point man on the Alabama search team that hired him, but the sincerity was clear. Hart said he "didn't blink" when he read that Grant had suspended four players last week, all of them regulars, and that leading scorers and rebounders JaMychal Green and Tony Mitchell have remained suspended. "I don't know what happened, but I know Anthony," Hart said. "He's not going to take any shortcuts."

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Alabama vs. Tennessee: How they compare | al.com

At one point early in the season, Tennessee lost six nonconference games in a seven-game stretch. The Vols looked as if they were going nowhere. But they defeated No. 11 Connecticut 60-57 on Jan. 21, beginning a turnaround. With six victories in their past eight games, they will show up for a 12:30 p.m. game today at Coleman Coliseum (SEC Network) as one of the hottest teams in the Southeastern Conference. What do they have now that they didn't have early in the season? A 6-foot-8, 250-pound freshman forward. Jarnell Stokes is a blue-chip player who graduated early from Southwind High School in Memphis. The Vols are 6-4 since he joined the team. He has started six of the nine games he has played in and is averaging 23 minutes, 8.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.

Tennessee at Alabama Preview - Rocky Top Talk

Tennessee is on a roll: four straight wins, three blowouts and a W in Gainesville. Alabama is a mystery, with the status of JaMychal Green and Tony Mitchell - their two leading scorers - still up in the air. Playing at home against Florida with Trevor Releford and Andrew Steele back, the Tide were even at halftime but fell apart in the second half when they discovered one of Tennessee's old problems: a flat-line at the worst possible time, nine minutes without a made shot as the Gators pulled away for a nine point win. That leaves Alabama at 16-9 but just 5-6 in the SEC, now behind the Vols in the standings. And since Vanderbilt just tattooed Ole Miss 102-76 - in Oxford, no less, almost certainly crushing their NCAA hopes - Tennessee now finds themselves sharing fourth place in the league with only Mississippi State.

TRips: Three questions for UA-UT

Is there a better example of teams headed in opposite directions than the Crimson Tide and Volunteers? Picked in the preseason by the media to finish 11th in the SEC, the Volunteers have reeled off four straight league wins to move into a tie for fourth in the conference standings. Meanwhile, Alabama has dropped two straight league contests, marking its second conference losing streak of the season. While the Vols added a capable player in true freshman power forward Jarnell Stokes (10 points and four boards in UT's midweek thrashing of Arkansas) at midseason, the Crimson Tide has endured suspensions and injuries while fielding a piecemeal squad for much of conference play. And yet it's Alabama who enters Saturday's game with a far better RPI (UA 32, UT 110) and in control (on paper, at least) of its at-large bid fate. At this point, though, UA's RPI resembles a lifeboat on the Titanic.

No. 2 Softball Wins Slugfest Against No. 20 Georgia Tech, 12-9 - rolltide.com

The Alabama softball team slugged its way to a 12-9 victory over No. 20 ranked Georgia Tech to open the SEC/ACC/Big XII Challenge, Friday night at Jane B. Moore Field. After the win the Crimson Tide move to 5-0 on the young season. The two teams went back-and-forth all game long as each team collected 13 hits in a game that lasted nearly three and half hours. Seniors Jennifer Fenton and Cassie Reilly-Boccia paced the Crimson Tide attack with four hits each. Fenton scored three runs and drove in three with a stolen base while Reilly-Boccia drove in three runs and drew a walk. The four hits tied a career high for Fenton and set one for Reilly-Boccia.

Gymnastics Beats Arkansas, 197.650-196.125 - rolltide.com

The No. 6 Alabama gymnastics team (8-0 overall, 5-0 SEC) beat No. 5 Arkansas 197.650-196.125 in front of a sold-out crowd of 15,075 during the Crimson Tide's eighth annual Power of Pink meet. Friday marked the ninth time Alabama has sold out Coleman Coliseum and the eighth time in the past seven years. With the win, Alabama is now a perfect 17-0 in its pink leotards. In the midst of all things pink, for the third year in a row, prior to the meet, each Alabama gymnasts was introduced in tandem with a breast cancer survivor. "Seeing all of the pink just kind of set the stage for tonight," senior Geralen Stack-Eaton said. "As we walked out with our survivors on our arm, it was just so inspiring to see them and what they've endured and how much they've fought through. That to me, I just think it set the bar for tonight."

Baseball Drops Season Opener to FAU, 5-2 - rolltide.com

The Alabama baseball team opened its 2012 season with a 5-2 loss to the Florida Atlantic Owls on Friday night at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide is 0-1, while Florida Atlantic improves to 1-0. Alabama left-hander Taylor Guilbeau (0-1), who became the first true freshman to start a season-opener for the Tide since freshman were allowed to play Division-I baseball, allowed just one run on three hits, striking out four while walking two over five innings in his Crimson Tide debut. "I was very pleased with the start we got from Taylor Guilbeau in his five innings," UA head coach Mitch Gaspard said. "I was pleased with the way our guys threw the ball tonight. The sixth inning kind of got away from us. We made a big error there when we had a chance to get out of the inning. That led to what I believe were four unearned runs, and that was really the difference in the ballgame."

NCAA correctly -- and barely -- passes multiyear scholarship rule whose time has come | al.com

Auburn said it voted against the override and supports multiyear scholarships. Alabama and UAB didn't respond with their votes. Samford voted for the override. "It's a PR thing, that's all this is," Samford Athletics Director Martin Newton said. "It's a way for the NCAA to make themselves look like they have the student-athlete's best interest at heart."

Steve Spurrier, South Carolina officials to meet with NCAA - ESPN

South Carolina agreed in its response to the NCAA in December that major rules violations did take place. Spurrier bluntly summed up how he feels about the hearing when he said earlier this month: "Sometimes crap happens. You just have to deal with it."

NFL.com news: Physically gifted Upshaw working hard to refine technique

Four days after being named the Defensive MVP of the BCS Championship Game (his second national title in three years), Upshaw was on the brink of hiring an agent when he told Doug Hendrickson, who he'd eventually choose as his representation, that he had a very deliberate desire to improve his pass-rush ability. Hendrickson called Giants defensive end Justin Tuck, who jumped on the phone with Upshaw and told him all about Caldwell, the pass-rush specialist who has assisted Tuck for years. "I want him," Upshaw said. "Get him to Pensacola by Sunday." Yes, less than one week after dominating LSU, Upshaw's celebration was over. He had bigger aspirations. Namely, being great. "I just wanted to get into it," Upshaw said Wednesday in Phoenix. "The Senior Bowl was coming up, and I wanted to play in that game. I wanted to get back to work. I didn't want to slack. That was my whole mindset going into it. "It's what I've always wanted to do: Leave a mark. I want to be remembered."

No. 6 Gymnastics Hosts No. 5 Arkansas in Power of Pink Meet Friday - rolltide.com

The No. 6 Alabama gymnastics team hosts No. 5 Arkansas Friday, Feb. 17 at 7:30 p.m. in Coleman Coliseum in the eighth annual Power of Pink meet. Head coach Sarah Patterson's Power of Pink initiative, sponsored by Tuscaloosa Toyota, helps raise awareness in the fight against breast cancer. "It's going to be a great meet and I fully expect it to come down, once again, to the last two athletes on each side on the last rotation," Patterson said. "But more than that, it's for a tremendous cause, one that this community has truly embraced." Both the Crimson Tide and the Razorbacks, who also competed in the 2008 Power of Pink meet, will put aside their school colors for the night and wear pink leotards. Fans are also encouraged to "Think Pink and Wear Pink" for the event.

Power of pink | The Crimson White

Alabama has come to embrace the pink. The Tide is 16-0 when wearing pink, including three wins against Florida, Arkansas and Auburn. The gymnasts say that, while it is just another meet, there is an extra element to competing for more than just their team. "For me, it’s an honor, as a female athlete, to be able to give back to this issue and to promote it through a gymnastics meet that we love to do already," junior Ashley Sledge said. "It really just takes the pressure off of us. It’s more of a joy that you get to compete for so many people who have survived such an illness. They give me a motivation." Senior Ashley Priess, echoed Sledge’s sentiments. "We always look forward to the pink meet because it’s so awesome to take the focus off ourselves and put it on the people who really deserve it," Priess said. "I feel very blessed to be an ambassador to inspire women."

TideSports.com - GYMNASTICS: Tide readies for No. 5 Arkansas

"Arkansas is having a great season, probably the best season that they've ever had in their program," junior Ashley Sledge said. "We're having a fantastic season as well, and we are definitely ready for the competition on Friday." Arkansas' gymnastics program is celebrating its 10-year anniversary. Alabama coach Sarah Patterson said that 11 years ago, a University of Arkansas plane brought athletic department officials to Tuscaloosa to see how Alabama's gymnastics program was run. "In 10 years, they built a program that can contend for an SEC and a national championship," Patterson said.

Arkansas emerging as gymnastics power | TuscaloosaNews.com

This is alumnae weekend, and while the "Power of Pink" meet and alumni weekend have coincided before, this year there’s something extra. This meet will also be a celebration of the 10-year anniversary of the 2002 national championship team. Newberry, who competed on beam and floor from 2002-05, is one of the alumnae who has returned for the celebration. While she has season tickets for gymnastics, alumnae weekend is a great chance for her to see all her old friends and her coach again. "The group of girls that I was close to have been emailing for months, talking about when are we getting in, where are we staying," she said. "So to come in and celebrate the 10th anniversary, which is just absolutely crazy, is really exciting. … It’s laid back. You don’t have the pressure of competing or performing. It’s literally they’re your family, and you’re coming back to hang out."

No. 2 Softball Heads to the SEC/ACC/Big XII Challenge - rolltide.com

The No. 2 ranked Alabama softball team returns to the diamond this weekend with four games in three days as part of the SEC/ACC/BIG XII Challenge in Auburn, Ala. The Crimson Tide will open tournament play on Friday evening against No. 23 Georgia Tech of the ACC at 5:30 p.m. On Saturday, the Tide will play two games, opening with ACC foe Virginia Tech at 10 a.m., and finishing the day against 2011 WCWS participant and fourth ranked Oklahoma of the Big XII at 12:30 p.m. Alabama will conclude tournament play on Sunday against another ranked Big XII foe and 2011 WCWS participant, No. 15 Oklahoma State at 9 a.m.

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A statue for Sarah Patterson? Bloggers say yes | al.com

In her 34 year coaching career, University of Alabama gymnastics coach Sarah Patterson has led the Crimson Tide to five NCAA Championships, seven SEC Championships, has won NCAA Coach of the Year honors four times and was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. Like many of the Crimson Tide's former football coaches who have been honored with bronze statues on campus, Patterson has dominated her sport like few other in its history. So does she deserve a statue on campus like her football counterparts? Some Alabama fans think so and have started a movement on social media to grow support for the idea.

Alabama coach Nick Saban first two-time recipient of the Bobby Bowden National Collegiate Coach of the Year Award | al.com

Nick Saban keeps on winning. Alabama's sixth-year coach was named this year's recipient of the Bobby Bowden National Collegiate Coach of the Year Award on Tuesday present by the Over the Mountain Touchdown Club. Saban was honored for leading Alabama to its 14th national title with a 21-0 win over LSU on Jan. 9 in the BCS National Championship Game in New Orleans. The game underscored a 12-1 season, including the Crimson Tide's second national championship in three seasons under Saban.

Conference realignment: Missouri, Texas A&M will regret leaving the Big 12 | NewsOK.com

Texas A&M: Regrets. The Aggies left the Big 12 for one reason. To get away from Texas. Except the Ags are going to realize, they didn't get away from the Longhorns. In the boardrooms and courtrooms and teacher lounges all across Texas, there will be Texas Exes, grinning at A&M's struggles to overcome Alabama or LSU or Auburn. And the only satisfaction A&M ever got in this bad-blood rivalry – beating Texas – now is gone.

Spring practices mark another college football season - ESPN

Can defending national champion Alabama replace most of its secondary? The Crimson Tide were hit by heavy personnel losses, especially in the secondary, where cornerbacks Dre Kirkpatrick and DeQuan Menzie and All-America safety Mark Barron left. Rising junior Dee Milliner is the only returning cornerback with any experience, so junior college transfers Deion Belue of Northeast Mississippi Community College and Travell Dixon of Eastern Arizona College -- who both enrolled at Alabama early -- will get long, hard looks this spring.

TideSports.com - HURT: Is Grant doing the right thing?

Let's be clear: If Tony Mitchell and JaMychal Green are playing to their capabilities, they are Alabama's best two players, guys with the size and athletic prowess to defend and score at a high level. So to judge Alabama's results without them, and compare those to preseason expectations that assumed they would be available, defeats the purpose. It proves a proposition that is obvious: Alabama is a diminished basketball team without them. But it also worth noting that, given their ever-changing moods, Alabama sometimes struggled with them. The anomaly of the season isn't that Alabama lost to LSU and Florida without them. It's that the Crimson Tide lost to lowly South Carolina, and got run out at home by Vanderbilt, with them. And then there is the tantalizing flip side, the old "little curl with a curl" adage in action - when they were good, they were very good in playing Kentucky to the final minute, or blowing out Auburn at Auburn (a game that Mitchell missed, though Green played and played well).

NBA scouts say Anthony Davis is surefire top draft pick; more analysis - Ben Glicksman - SI.com

8. Which player's stock has dropped the most this season?
The most significant drop belongs to Alabama's Tony Mitchell, who plummeted from a fringe lottery to a likely undrafted selection over the past two months. He averaged 15.2 points per game and garnered Puerto Rico Tip-Off tournament MVP honors during his stellar stretch through December, but averaged just 8.3 points in his last six games before being sentenced to an indefinite team suspension for unspecified reasons on Feb. 6. It's caused evaluators to question his maturity -- and dismiss his first round potential. "That's obviously a red flag for us," said an NBA scout. "If this discussion were Dec. 15, he'd have been in the first round. You don't like suspending your best player, so it must have been fairly egregious for that to have happened."

Softball Rankings: Week 1 - rolltide.com

The Alabama softball team checked in at No. 2 in both the USA Today/NFCA and ESPN.com/USA Softball polls, the organizations announced Tuesday. The Crimson Tide earned three first place votes in each poll. Alabama jumped up one spot in the NFCA poll and remained in the No. 2 spot in the USA Softball top 25. Florida jumped to No. 1 in the NFCA rankings while Cal claimed the top spot on ESPN.com. In the NFCA poll, The Gators, who went 5-0 last week, received 16 of 30 first-place votes and were followed in the poll by SEC rival Alabama (5-0), which received three. Moving up one spot from fourth to third was California (4-0), which finished the voting three points behind the Crimson Tide, despite notching 10 first-place votes. Oklahoma (5-0) also moved up a spot from fifth to fourth, while Arizona State, which received the remaining first-place vote, dropped four spots to fifth, rounding out the top five.

Cassie Reilly-Boccia | Softball 2012 | Lowe's Senior CLASS Award

Reilly-Boccia participated in disaster relief and assisted displaced victims from the Tuscaloosa tornado. She assisted Notre Dame Student Athletes on their Rebuild Tuscaloosa trip and participated in Read Across America in Elementary Schools throughout Tuscaloosa. She is a member of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation (Softball team adopted a young girl who had suffered from a brain tumor). She volunteered for the Alabama Athletics Student Athlete Advisory Committee Halloween Extravaganza, the Crossing Points program at Recreational Center and the University of Alabama Stallings’s Center with RISE Program. She helped with the Beat Auburn, Beat Hunger (canned food drive), the Easter Seals Walk With Me, fundraiser, Project Angel Tree fundraiser for disadvantaged youths and families in Tuscaloosa and West Alabama and she spoke to and assisted with little league softball teams at their practices

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Men's Basketball Falls To Florida, 61-52 - rolltide.com

"In my opinion, we've got to play with more self-confidence and more team pride in terms of the way we approach every single game, no matter what goes into the game," UA head coach Anthony Grant said. "We've got to compete every single time we step out there. We've got some young guys right now that need to learn that, in terms of the consistency of what it takes to compete at this level and be the type of players we are capable of being."

ALABAMA vs. FLORIDA POSTGAME QUOTES - rolltide.com

What he was pleased with during the game:
"I have to go back and watch the film, but it's hard to say if there was anything I did like. Obviously we shot 28 percent from the field and had 18 turnovers for the game. It's hard to find something positive in that. Obviously, we have to get a lot better as a team and understand that we've got Tennessee coming in here on Saturday. It will be another tough, challenging SEC game. Tennessee isn't walking in here saying `we don't have to give as good of an effort now' because of this. We have to understand that it's night after night after night here in the SEC. If we don't come mentally and physically ready for that, then it is going to be tough for us to get wins."

Young’s 19 points leads No. 14 Florida past Alabama, 61-52 - The Washington Post

Patric Young took advantage of the Tide’s suspension-depleted frontcourt with 19 points. However, Florida coach Billy Donovan could only give his team so much credit for surviving without the injured Will Yeguete (concussion) and Mike Rosario (bruised hip) when the Tide didn’t have its top two scorers and rebounders for the second straight games, both hard-fought losses. "It was an ugly game in a lot of respects, but let’s also realize, too, that Alabama was playing without their two leading scorers," Donovan said. "We had two guys out, they had two guys out." The impacts clearly weren’t equal.

Tide can’t stop Gators - TimesDaily.com

Florida (20-6, 8-3) made things difficult by switching to a 2-3 zone in the second half after center Patric Young picked up two first-half fouls. "I basically told them, if we get a stop in the zone in the first possession, stay zone," Florida coach Billy Donovan said. "If we don’t we’re going to switch back to man." Alabama, it turns out, went five full minutes before Charles Hankerson’s two free throws ended the slide. Momentum was fleeting after that.

#12 Florida vs. Alabama - Men's College Basketball - Watch Basketball

Florida, coming off losses to Kentucky and Tennessee, heated up for the final 20 minutes by making half its shots. Alabama finished just 4 of 16 from 3-point range and 12 of 24 from the free throw line. Yet another teaching point for Grant. "That's just a lesson that you get in the SEC, that you cannot rely on how your offense is going to provide your energy," he said.

TideSports.com - Tide caught in Gators' trap

"Our emphasis at halftime was to come out with energy and effort," UA coach Anthony Grant said. "But they made some shots, we missed some shots and we've got to learn the lesson at you can't let your offense influence your energy." Alabama played without its two top scorers, Tony Mitchell and JaMychal Green, who are suspended indefinitely. "We've got some young guys that are getting indoctrinated into the SEC, and we've just got to get better," Grant said. "When adversity hit, we didn't respond the way you have to respond against a team like Florida, or to win in this league. (Our players) have to look in the mirror and say, 'I've got to get better.'"

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