The Jumbo Package | 11.19.14

Your daily dose of Crimson Tide news and notes.

By Slice of Life Nov 19, 2014, 9:19am CST

College Football Playoff Rankings: Alabama new No. 1 - CBSSports.com

After beating the Bulldogs 25-20 at home Saturday, the Crimson Tide moved up to No. 1 while Mississippi State slipped to No. 4 after occupying the top spot in the first three sets of rankings. Oregon, at No. 2, remained in front of Florida State with both programs leapfrogged by Alabama.

"The committee felt Alabama had been right around the top four. With what we considered a decisive win over No. 1 Mississippi State, we really think that combined with their body of work put them into the No. 1 position," said Jeff Long, the CFP committee chairman and Arkansas athletic director. "We feel like Alabama really is the most complete team right now -- offense, defense and kicking game. We put all those things together and felt like Alabama was clearly No. 1 now."

Roll Tide.

College Football playoff tracker: Nov. 18 - ESPN

Beyond the top four, there were some perplexing moves made by the committee. Among the more eyebrow-raising decisions:

Undefeated Marshall is still unranked after its biggest win of the season, yet No. 25 Minnesota, which just lost at home, is still No. 25.

Louisville, USC, Missouri and Oklahoma -- all unranked a week ago -- are ranked again.

USC climbed to No. 19 on the back of a home win over 5-5 California.

Clemson, in spite of a convincing 28-6 loss to Georgia Tech in which it was held to 190 total yards and had three turnovers, only dropped three spots.

Utah jumped from No. 23 to No. 17 after a double-overtime win against five-loss Stanford, and still has a home loss to Washington State on its resume.

Alabama practice report: The latest on Altee Tenpenny, T.J. Yeldon and more | AL.com

WR DeAndrew White (hamstring) was a lot like Yeldon: dressed out but not participating. Redshirt freshman ArDarius Stewart could be the biggest benefactor if White can't play. He was third in line behind Amari Cooper and Christion Jones in early drills.

K Adam Griffith (unspecified injury) was on the scene but he wasn't doing anything. Neither were the other specialists, so predicting his status is pretty much impossible.

LB Reggie Ragland continues to wrap his broken hand with heavy tape for practice. He doesn't wear the club in games.

LB Dillon Lee looked to be fine after suffering an injury against Mississippi State.

Young Alabama speedsters Tyren Jones, ArDarius Stewart poised for more opportunities | AL.com

"ArDarius Stewart is a fast, explosive guy who got to play a little bit more in this game, and we've been trying to play him all year long," Saban said. "He is a guy to me that can make explosive plays, and hopefully the experience that he gets and that he is getting is going to help him realize the importance of paying attention to detail, doing the little things right that he needs to do to be able to have success as a player.

"He certainly can be a guy that could make plays for us and be a great complement to some of the other players that we have who are making plays for us."

Jones will be one step closer to significant carries if T.J. Yeldon doesn't see the field against Western Carolina. Yeldon continues to deal with an ankle sprain and wasn't participating during Tuesday's viewing session.

Jones wore a scout team jersey at practices last week but was in his normal No. 20 on Tuesday. Suspended for an unspecified violation of team rules during the bye week, Jones is fourth on the team with 123 rushing yards and a touchdown. That total could jump if he's the No. 2 option behind Derrick Henry.

SEC Heisman watch: Week 12 -- Alabama dashed hopes of Dak Prescott - ESPN

Then there's Cooper. He's arguably the nation's best wide receiver, and even though he hasn't hit 100 yards receiving in the last two games, he has scored at least one touchdown in his last four and has dipped below 83 yards in a game just once this season (two catches for 20 yards against Arkansas).

Honestly, Cooper has been the league's most consistent offensive player this year. He has registered at least 100 yards in six games. And by "at least 100 yards," I should really say "at least 130 yards" because that's the lowest amount he has hit once he gets into triple digits.

The problem Cooper faces is that he isn't a quarterback or a running back. For as flashy as receivers are, this is an award that covets QBs and RBs way more than any other position. No player other than a QB or RB has won the award since jack of all trades Charles Woodson took home the trophy in 1997. Desmond Howard is the last receiver to win it, and that happened in 1991.

So despite having 87 catches for 1,303 yards and 11 touchdowns, Cooper will need to put up even gaudier numbers in the next two weeks and then win over everyone with a magnificent showing in a potential SEC championship game that everyone will see.

Quarterback commit Blake Barnett could bring new element to Alabama Crimson Tide - College Football - SI.com

What does Barnett offer the Tide that previous quarterbacks have not? At 6-foot-5, 200 pounds, he brings a rare blend of passing proficiency and mobility. For a team that -- with the exception of Sims -- has largely subsisted on pocket-tethered, pro-style types under Saban, Barnett could bring a new dimension to the offense.

"With the quarterbacks that Alabama has had over the last 5-10 years, since Nick Saban has been in Tuscaloosa, you look back, you went from John Parker Wilson to Greg McElroy to A.J. McCarron -- those guys [are] more of your pocket passers, your pro-style quarterbacks," said Andrew Bone, a recruiting reporter for TideSports.com. "And Blake Barnett is a pro-style quarterback. But the biggest difference between him and those guys is he can run, sort of like what Blake Sims is able to do right now down in Tuscaloosa."

Oh my god, that stiff arm...

WATCH: Kevin Hart tells Jameis Winston to 'stop doing dumb s--t' - CBSSports.com

Actor and comedian Kevin Hart visited Florida State's football team this week, and he posed for a photo with the team and coach Jimbo Fisher during the stop in Tallahassee.

Kevin Hart confronted #FSU star QB Jameis Winston after his show in Tallahassee

A video posted by Juan Hustle (@juanhustle) on Nov 11, 2014 at 9:23am PST