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Three SEC teams with the most to do this spring - SEC Blog - ESPN
No one knows who the starting quarterback will be. Derrick Henry is enormous and quite talented, but he's never had to be a feature back before. Absent Amari Cooper, it's hard to say what the receiving corps will look like. And that's just the offense, never mind a defense that's struggling to find its identity after ending last season on a poor note. The secondary is one giant mystery without Landon Collins and the linebackers are without their leader in veteran Trey DePriest. In all, 13 starters must be replaced. To get back to the national championship, it's going to take a new cast of characters and likely a new identity, one that must be forged early in the offseason so it has time to take root.
It's pretty clear that the media narrative surrounding the Alabama team will sound a little different this year. Hopefully the coaching staff can use it as fuel. This roster is as loaded as any in the country and can beat everyone if things come together. Plenty of questions have to be answered though.
Hate weekly College Football Playoff rankings? You might like this news - SBNation.com
Notably, the commissioners seemed content with a four-team field for now, despite calls for expansion from within the sport. The one change that seems likely for 2015 is a decrease in the number of televised rankings shows. The playoff selection committee released new rankings every week in the seven weeks leading up to the end of the 2014 season. Those rankings could be released every other week going forward, according to the report. Regardless of the frequency, most would agree that less is more.
Good news here. There never was any reason to have weekly rankings. Frankly, I'm not sure of the reason to have any rankings before the selection. Perhaps the basketball model should be followed here.
Alabama is searching for offensive tackles in the 2016 class and could get in on one recruit at Oklahoma's expense. Jean Delance, a 6-foot-5, 270-pound tackle from Mesquite, Texas, decommitted from Oklahoma after a racist frat video surfaced, resulting in the school's Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter being closed.
Fallout from a bad situation. It will be interesting to see if any others follow suit. Speaking of Oklahoma...
Barry Switzer: Oklahoma shouldn’t punish SAE for actions of select few | Dallas Morning News
Gilbow said she was "in shock" and also claims she never heard the chant before. When asked what the former members are saying to Gilbow, Switzer emotionally replied, "All I heard is how much they love you and how much they’ll miss you," KWTV says Switzer agrees with Boren’s action for the perpetrators, but he’s "sorry so many good kids have been hurt in this." "It hurts me because I have a vested interest in this. I am an SAE and I know the kids in this house," Switzer said. "I spend some time over here and I know what they’re like. Hey, I wouldn’t put up with that crap either and they don’t either and they don’t believe in it."
Don't know, Barry. This is going to be a tough sell.
Former Alabama QB Phillip Sims nearly re-joined Tide after leaving Virginia in 2013 | AL.com
Sims said he was then in contact with coach Nick Saban and former Alabama offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Doug Nussmeier in the two months leading up to his decision to join Winston-Salem State in late July. Sims was ineligible to play in 2013, which was McCarron's senior season with the Tide. However, Sims said he was told that he would have an opportunity to compete for the starting quarterback job heading into last season.
There was some speculation last year that Coker was in Tuscaloosa because Saban had been somewhat desperately searching for a veteran QB to come in and take the reins, suggesting that he really didn't want to have to play Blake Sims. Story went that Kiffin, who had recruited Blake while at Tennessee, sold Saban on the idea of starting him. This story would support that narrative and once again highlight the masterful job Kiffin did with Blake last season.
You may have quit on Anthony Grant, but his Alabama players clearly haven't | AL.com
Look at the could've-gone-either-way nature of so many of those defeats, and you pause. Isn't it reasonable to say that this team can compete with anyone at the SEC Tournament this week in Nashville outside of Kentucky? What will it mean if Grant and No. 9 seed Alabama can beat No. 8 Florida in Thursday's opener for his first win over mentor Billy Donovan and the Gators?
Well, what do you think? If Alabama beats Florida and wins a game or two in the NIT, should Grant get another year? Sounds like a poll.
Prescott, defensive lineman Torrey Dale and backup quarterback Damian Williams were on spring break in Panama City and watching a Waka Flocka concert when they were assaulted by an unknown group of people, according to Mississippi State assistant AD for media relations Bill Martin.
Thankfully no one was seriously hurt. Big time college football players are celebrities now and have to be careful whenever they are out and about. There will always be someone trying to provoke.
College football helmet bracket: Bowden Regional -- Round of 64 vote - CBSSports.com
To that end, we decided that the next best thing would be to have college football fans determine the best helmet in the sport. Why helmets? Because people love helmets! So, we chose the 64 best helmets out there, put them in a bracket, got our graphic designer to jump on board and now unleash upon you the ability to determine college football's best helmet.
This is soooo offseason.
Always involved in the University of Alabama community outreach efforts, Obasohan speaks to numerous high school kids in the Tuscaloosa area about staying in school and how to achieve your goals is "by sacrificing everything you are to become everything you desire." He mentors teenagers at Tuscaloosa Central High School talking about the importance of school in achieving success. In addition, he also reads books and speaks at numerous elementary and middle schools and is actively involved in Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Obasohan is a role model back in his hometown of Antwerp, Belgium, where he mentors younger kids at a boarding school and has also been involved in habitat for humanity for the last three years, among many other things.
One thing can be said about the Grant regime - he has recruited some fine young men who represent the University well.
Today's Baseball/Softball Action:
THIS WEEK: #4/5 ALABAMA VS. UAB
Tuscaloosa, Ala. - Rhoads Stadium Tuesday, March 10 - 6 p.m. CT
THE TIDE ON THE AIR TV (Online Only): SEC Network + (WatchESPN.com)
Play-by-play: Gary Harris, Color: Lauren Sewell
RADIO: 95.3 FM (953thebear.com)
Alabama returns home for a Tuesday doubleheader with Alabama A&M. The twinbill will be the Tide's final tune-up before conference play begins this weekend in Starkville. The first game of Tuesday's doubleheader is scheduled for a 2 p.m. first pitch. The second game of the afternoon is scheduled to start 30 minutes after the final out of game one. FOLLOW THE TIDE
Fans can watch/follow this weekend's games via the below outlets:
Gametracker: RollTide.com
Listen: 99.1 FM (Tuscaloosa) / 690 AM (Birmingham)
Web: SEC Network+ Twitter: @AlabamaBSB