In approximately twenty-four hours, the dawn of a new era of Alabama football will take place.
Considering that Nick Saban has quickly put his stamp on the Tide in just about every way possible, game day matters will probably be no exception.
So, how will things be different?
I don't know, but you can rest assured some things will change.
The field design itself could be a major possibility for change. At the A-Day game, the grass had the circular pattern imprinted into it. Rumblings out of Tuscaloosa -- and keep in mind I have no knowledge one way or the other -- point to the fact that the field will not have the circular pattern but will have alternate shades of green every five yards. Actually, that'd be a nice change of scenery. The alternating colors make viewing the field much easier when the play is going on, simply because it is easier to distinguish five-yard segments of the field. With one color, it can just all blend in a bit to where you really can't tell the difference.
Could we possibly change the actual aesthetic design in terms of logos and field painting? I suppose so, but I doubt it. The 175th Anniversary logos will be gone, but I think we may see the 75th SEC Anniversary logos. I wouldn't imagine there would be any other major changes, though.
The big thing to watch is going to be the pre-game video and introduction. You know what it is: the Bryant piece. I have really wondered for months about whether or not Saban has changed that, and I suppose it's a very good possibility. Rest assured, if it does happen, it will piss a lot of people off, but I won't be one of them. If Saban feels we need something else, so be it. Nevertheless, you'd have to give the guy credit for having the testicular fortitude to do something like that. Taking Paul Bryant out of the Alabama pre-game is only one notch below taking Jesus out of the Bible.
Either way, I'll be in attendance tomorrow, and when I get back, we'll have a pretty thorough breakdown of the whole thing, hopefully with some pictures, too.