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Virginia Tech
2013 Virginia Tech Football: Alabama Game Guide - Gobbler Country
Hokies Win If: They play a perfect game in all phases. This team will be one of the best, if not the best, the Hokies have faced in program history.
Crimson Tide Win If: They play like they always play and do not beat themselves. Without serious help from the Tide, the Hokies will need a miraculous performance to knock off Alabama.
This sounds about right to me. If we don't beat ourselves by coughing up the football, 'Bama should walk away with a relatively easy win..
It seems, though, Coach Frank Beamer doesn’t want it any other way as the team gets ready for its season opener against defending national champion Alabama. "What we do against Alabama shouldn’t be public right now," Beamer said. "Our game plan vs. Alabama shouldn’t be a public thing right now."
BREAKING: Va Tech offensive game plan leaked!
Four years separating last Alabama, Va. Tech game might as well be an eternity for players, coaches | al.com
"I don't know if I was nervous because I probably knew I wasn't going to play," quarterback AJ McCarron said. "I was kind of just taking everything in, just looking around. I remember it being packed and loud." Defensive end Ed Stinson smiled while he recalled his first of four trips to Atlanta as an Alabama football player, but his memories were sparse. "I was too busy on the sideline having fun with the people that redshirted with me," Stinson said.
Alabama will give seven players their second trip to Atlanta to face Virginia Tech: McCarron, Stinson, wide receivers Kenny Bell and Kevin Norwood, right guard Anthony Steen, linebacker Tana Patrick and offensive lineman Kellen Williams. Virginia Tech has 11, a group that includes star quarterback Logan Thomas.
Alabama
This Alabama team might wipe the smile right off your face (Kevin Scarbinsky) | al.com
I asked Yeldon if he sets goals for the season. He said, "Be a better leader." I asked if he sets personal number goals but keeps them to himself. He said he doesn’t. OK then.
Not a fan of Scarbinsky and his take on the the attitude of the 'Bama players further proves my point. So Kevin you see it as a negative that the leaders of the Alabama football team are zoned in 5 days BEFORE the game? You don't like their simple answers? You whine because they don't give you "bullet board material"?
Well guess what? That's exactly how we like it. If you want sound bites go write for A&M.
Kouandjio brothers will start opener next to each other on the line | TuscaloosaNews.com
"It wasn’t a thought in my mind," Cyrus said when asked if he’d ever imagined starting next to his brother in college. "I didn’t know I could play college football. And me and my brother on the same team? It’s a blessing." And as the younger Cyrus has become a staple for Alabama, a starting job in college for Arie has proved to be a measure of perseverance.
Interesting that Cyrus didn't know (or possibly didn't think) he could play football in college. It wasn't grades because my understanding was Cyrus never had problems qualifying...Maybe he's talking about when he was younger? Doesn't matter cause he is a budding star and is likely the next 'Bama offensive lineman to go in the first round.
Side note: when was the last time Alabama had brothers playing together on the same offensive line?
"I haven’t found one yet," Beamer said if there’s a weakness to exploit. "The kickers are good, and the offensive personnel are good. They are like us with a couple new guys on the offensive line. But I don’t think they have a weakness. They are as solid as the day is long." Virginia Tech is rebuilding and a young team with 27 of the 71 players on its travel squad either redshirt freshmen or true freshmen.
Ugh. We have weaknesses, it's just that our weaknesses look like strengths to others. 'Bama has plenty of question marks at OL, CB, and NT. Most of that is just inexperience but they are far from perfect. ALABAMA HASN'T EVEN PLAYED A SNAP YET..
At Alabama, Fans Are Getting a Little Bored With All the Winning - WSJ.com
As other schools like Texas A&M, Oregon, Florida State and Southern California attract headlines about everything from lavish facilities and possible NCAA violations to uncertainty about who will be the starting quarterback, the only thing that approached controversial proportions during Alabama's preseason is who might take on the role of McCarron's backup.
Amid all of this prolonged dominance, there are signs that boredom, if not downright apathy, has started to creep in. The first offenders: Alabama students. The Crimson White, Alabama's school newspaper, reported in November that 30% of student tickets went unused by students last season.
Are you bored? I'm not. I love winning..If winning bores you, perhaps you picked the wrong team to follow.
The Crimson White | Alabama begins preparation for Virginia Tech
However, Alabama’s main focus for Saturday’s season opener is to shut down Virginia Tech quarterback Logan Thomas. Junior safety HaHa Clinton-Dix said he’s never been faced with the task of tackling a 6-foot-6-inch, 254-pound quarterback. "He’s a great quarterback, big, physical," Clinton-Dix said. "He can tuck the ball and run, so we’ve got to be ready for that. "Just keep him in the pocket. He can obviously get out of the pocket and run, and he’s going to be tough to tackle because that’s a big dude."
With Va Tech down to its 8th string running back, a WR who is coming off an injury and didn't play in 2012 (and who btw is 234 lbs) and having only ONE other WR with game experience (one game to be exact), their offense boils down to one man — Logan Thomas. Stop him and the rest will crumble.
Linkage
Warren St. John's profile of Alabama's Nick Saban now available online at GQ.com (link) | al.com
Alabama football to wear these helmet decals in memory of Mal Moore - SBNation.com
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