SEC Undefeeateds Go Head-To-Head This Weekend: Both Alabama and Kentucky are undefeated. Although Kentucky has not completely destroyed the talent level of Alabama with easy wins over Clemson and Georgia, they are still undefeated and also beat Western Kentucky by a larger margin of victory than that of The Crimson Tide.
The Tide is For Real: Even die hard Auburn fans are saying that Alabama is very good -- don't worry Auburn, there is still a chance you will beat Alabama to keep your Alabama State Championship. Auburn can have the state championship, I have a feeling Alabama is going to be back in the Georgia Dome for at least one more game this year.
How About John Parker Wilson: It is amazing the difference one year make, or maybe I should say a new offense. It could be both. Alabama Offensive Coordinator, Jim McElwain's offense was publicized as being very quarterback friendly, but JP has also matured. He did not make one bad pass this weekend again the #3 Bulldogs during a black out.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Monday, September 22, 2008
Storylines For Upcoming Arkansas Game
Is This Alabama Team Ahead of Schedule in the Rebuilding Process: Many college football analysts have Alabama at least one more year away from being in the hunt for an SEC title. Although this Alabama team is young, playing 15 freshmen regularly, they play with a great deal of maturity. This weekend (A Blackout Between the Hedges) will give us a better picture of how good the Tide is this year.
What Will The Tide's Strategy Be On Defense: Alabama has been very reserved in both their offensive and defensive play calling, but expect this week to be different on the defensive side. With Alabama having the #1 ranked run defensive in the country, Georgia will try to beat the Tide through the air. Alabama will blitz more than they have all season to put pressure on Stafford. If the Tide Linebackers get to Stafford often, expect the Alabama Defensivebacks to have a field day.
Mark Ingram Overcomes Adversity: Not many people knew how a young man like Mark Ingram would play with his father recently being sentenced to seven years in prison. If Arkansas is any proof of his maturity, it is evident that he is able to leave his off-field issues exactly where they are, off the field. On a personal note, I must say that is incredibly mature of him.
If Need Be, Will The Tide Be Able To Throw On The Dawgs: With Alabama easily running the ball all over most of their opponents and wanting to take the air out of the ball to hold leads, opponents have not put Alabama in a position to have to throw the ball. Georgia might pack the box with eight or even nine guys in order to try to stop the running back duo (I refuse to call them thunder and lightening -- too many running back tandems are called that) of Mark Ingram and Glenn Coffee. If this is the case, they will test the young Tide receiving core by giving them one-on-one match-ups.
What Will The Tide's Strategy Be On Defense: Alabama has been very reserved in both their offensive and defensive play calling, but expect this week to be different on the defensive side. With Alabama having the #1 ranked run defensive in the country, Georgia will try to beat the Tide through the air. Alabama will blitz more than they have all season to put pressure on Stafford. If the Tide Linebackers get to Stafford often, expect the Alabama Defensivebacks to have a field day.
Mark Ingram Overcomes Adversity: Not many people knew how a young man like Mark Ingram would play with his father recently being sentenced to seven years in prison. If Arkansas is any proof of his maturity, it is evident that he is able to leave his off-field issues exactly where they are, off the field. On a personal note, I must say that is incredibly mature of him.
If Need Be, Will The Tide Be Able To Throw On The Dawgs: With Alabama easily running the ball all over most of their opponents and wanting to take the air out of the ball to hold leads, opponents have not put Alabama in a position to have to throw the ball. Georgia might pack the box with eight or even nine guys in order to try to stop the running back duo (I refuse to call them thunder and lightening -- too many running back tandems are called that) of Mark Ingram and Glenn Coffee. If this is the case, they will test the young Tide receiving core by giving them one-on-one match-ups.
Georgia's Back In Black
Mark Richt announced today that there will be a "blackout" at next weeks Alabama Georgia game. The last time they did this was against Auburn last year in which the Bulldogs went on to thump the Tigers 45-20. The fact that Georgia is taking the initiative to have the stadium dress in all black tells me that they are taking #8 Alabama very serious.
Alabama enters Athens 4-0 having just routed a very subpar Arkansas team 49-14. I was definitely surprised by the score, but I don't think the score really exemplifies how the Crimson Tide played. If it weren't for too poor decision passes by Casey Dick which turned out to be pick sixes (with all due respect to Justin Woodall and Javier Arenas, but my grandmother could have intercepted those passes), the score would have been 35-14. The score might have been even closer because the Razorbacks easily moved the ball on the Tide before they would shoot themselves in the foot.
Coach Nick Saban said he was happy about the game, but realizes that his team has a lot of work to do in order to prepare for the #3 Georgia Bulldogs. That is very True. Georgia is not Arkansas. They will not hang themselves when given a long leash. Two Arkansas scores came on fourth downs when The Crimson Tide secondary became confused and a Razorback receiver was left wide open. In order for Alabama to when a tough game between the hedges, their secondary is going to have to step up and start playing... Oh yeah, and it wouldn't hurt to have a long ball catch every-now-and-then.
If enough emphasis is not being put on this game already, Gameday is going to be on location for the matchup. Kickoff is at 6:45 CST.
Alabama enters Athens 4-0 having just routed a very subpar Arkansas team 49-14. I was definitely surprised by the score, but I don't think the score really exemplifies how the Crimson Tide played. If it weren't for too poor decision passes by Casey Dick which turned out to be pick sixes (with all due respect to Justin Woodall and Javier Arenas, but my grandmother could have intercepted those passes), the score would have been 35-14. The score might have been even closer because the Razorbacks easily moved the ball on the Tide before they would shoot themselves in the foot.
Coach Nick Saban said he was happy about the game, but realizes that his team has a lot of work to do in order to prepare for the #3 Georgia Bulldogs. That is very True. Georgia is not Arkansas. They will not hang themselves when given a long leash. Two Arkansas scores came on fourth downs when The Crimson Tide secondary became confused and a Razorback receiver was left wide open. In order for Alabama to when a tough game between the hedges, their secondary is going to have to step up and start playing... Oh yeah, and it wouldn't hurt to have a long ball catch every-now-and-then.
If enough emphasis is not being put on this game already, Gameday is going to be on location for the matchup. Kickoff is at 6:45 CST.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
How Good Is Terrance Cody?
We will find out how good Terrance Cody is this weekend when he goes against last year's Rimington Trophy Winner, Jonathan Luigs. Luigs gives up about 55 lbs. to Cody who has made an immediate impact since trasfering from a JUCO program to Alabama. There is talk of Luigs trying to block Cody one-on-one, but Cody showed his confidence by responding to a reporter who asked about that very situation by saying:
"If they do, it might be a mistake."
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Storylines For Upcoming Arkansas Game
I have decided to add a new section to Raw Meathead that list headlines and storylines that you will probably see a lot over that upcoming week. These are the topics you will see covered for the upcoming Arkansas game.
Leigh Tiffin Returns To Arkansas: It is Alabama's first time back to Fayetteville since Tiffin's freshman meltdown that included a missed extra point in overtime that opened the door for Arkansas to defeat the Tide. Tiffin did not see anymore playing time the rest of the year. Last year, Tiffin redeemed himself against Arkansas by kicking 23 and 41 yard field goals and did not miss an extra point. The meltdown in Arkansas two years ago was not just a turning point for Tiffin's freshman season, it was a trend for that season in which Alabama lost many games by 6 points or less.
Will Alabama Be Looking Past Arkansas: I strongly doubt Coach Saban will allow this to happen after the Tulane game, but The Georgia game will be getting some hype this week. If they do look past Arkansas, look for Alabama to have a very difficult time against a rested Razorback team.
The Razorbacks Have Nine Days To Prepare For Alabama: The cancelation of the showdown between Texas and Arkansas because of Hurricane Ike took away one of Alabama's biggest advantages. Arkansas struggled early in the season against Western Illinois and Louisiana-Monroe, winning by a combined total of five points, leading me to believe that the Arkansas would have had their hands full with the Longhorns. Like Tulane, Arkansas is getting an extra amount of time to prepare for the Tide. It is going to be interesting to see how a rested and prepared Arkansas team plays on their home field.
Has A Young Alabama Team Learned To Play Consistent: Inconsistency is the number one characteristic I see in young teams and Alabama is no exception. They played great against Clemson, struggled against Tulane and then played well against Western Kentucky. Tulane gave an Eastern Carolina team, which beat Virginia Tech and West Virginia, a run for their money, so maybe they are better than what most expected, but this game will go along way in showing how much a young Tide team has matured in such a short period of time. The Tide has shown they can run the ball, but it's time to turn on the passing game. This game will show whether the Tide has learned to play with a killer instinct no matter who the opponent. This game will be very important in showing the Tide's current season potential in the SEC west.
How Good Is The Tide's Defense: The Alabama Defense allowed their first touchdown against the Hilltoppers, but other than that one play, they have been dominant only allowing 16 points to be scored on them so far. Since Petrino took over the Arkansas program, the team has a different look from the usual running style they've had in the past. Quarterback Casey Dick has thrown for 641 yards and four touchdowns with only one interception. That's a pretty dramatic change from last year where Dick only had 1,695 yards passing the entire season.
Leigh Tiffin Returns To Arkansas: It is Alabama's first time back to Fayetteville since Tiffin's freshman meltdown that included a missed extra point in overtime that opened the door for Arkansas to defeat the Tide. Tiffin did not see anymore playing time the rest of the year. Last year, Tiffin redeemed himself against Arkansas by kicking 23 and 41 yard field goals and did not miss an extra point. The meltdown in Arkansas two years ago was not just a turning point for Tiffin's freshman season, it was a trend for that season in which Alabama lost many games by 6 points or less.
Will Alabama Be Looking Past Arkansas: I strongly doubt Coach Saban will allow this to happen after the Tulane game, but The Georgia game will be getting some hype this week. If they do look past Arkansas, look for Alabama to have a very difficult time against a rested Razorback team.
The Razorbacks Have Nine Days To Prepare For Alabama: The cancelation of the showdown between Texas and Arkansas because of Hurricane Ike took away one of Alabama's biggest advantages. Arkansas struggled early in the season against Western Illinois and Louisiana-Monroe, winning by a combined total of five points, leading me to believe that the Arkansas would have had their hands full with the Longhorns. Like Tulane, Arkansas is getting an extra amount of time to prepare for the Tide. It is going to be interesting to see how a rested and prepared Arkansas team plays on their home field.
Has A Young Alabama Team Learned To Play Consistent: Inconsistency is the number one characteristic I see in young teams and Alabama is no exception. They played great against Clemson, struggled against Tulane and then played well against Western Kentucky. Tulane gave an Eastern Carolina team, which beat Virginia Tech and West Virginia, a run for their money, so maybe they are better than what most expected, but this game will go along way in showing how much a young Tide team has matured in such a short period of time. The Tide has shown they can run the ball, but it's time to turn on the passing game. This game will show whether the Tide has learned to play with a killer instinct no matter who the opponent. This game will be very important in showing the Tide's current season potential in the SEC west.
How Good Is The Tide's Defense: The Alabama Defense allowed their first touchdown against the Hilltoppers, but other than that one play, they have been dominant only allowing 16 points to be scored on them so far. Since Petrino took over the Arkansas program, the team has a different look from the usual running style they've had in the past. Quarterback Casey Dick has thrown for 641 yards and four touchdowns with only one interception. That's a pretty dramatic change from last year where Dick only had 1,695 yards passing the entire season.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Something To Think About Arkansas Weekend
I don't know if anyone else noticed, but the Texas and Arkansas game has been postponed due to Hurricane Ike. This gives Arkansas nine days to prepare for their upcoming game against Alabama at Arkansas. Not to mention a weekend off to rest as opposed to a brutal showdown with the Longhorns.
Alabama's game this week versus Western Kentucky is going to be a momentum setter for the approaching game against the Razorbacks. IF the Tide struggles against the Hilltoppers of Western Kentucky, get ready for a tough game against Arkansas.
I know Arkansas has struggled lately against weaker opponents, but expect them to step it up when they begin their SEC schedule against Alabama.
Alabama's game this week versus Western Kentucky is going to be a momentum setter for the approaching game against the Razorbacks. IF the Tide struggles against the Hilltoppers of Western Kentucky, get ready for a tough game against Arkansas.
I know Arkansas has struggled lately against weaker opponents, but expect them to step it up when they begin their SEC schedule against Alabama.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Someone Explain This To Me
I must admit, Alabama's offense looked pretty sluggish after two starting offense linemen sat out the game with injuries therefore causing many other linemen to rotate positions. The line did well enough to help Glenn Coffee and Mark Ingram average over 5 yards per carry. That's not bad in my standard.
The defensive line did great for the second straight week allowing only six points -- totaling 9 points allowed through the first two games.
The one thing I do not understand is how journalists are commending the Crimson Tide's special teams unit. Great, Javier Arenas returned a punt for a touchdown and Chris Rogers recovered a blocked punt and took it in for six, but what about the rest of the special teams. A missed extra point, a missed field goal attempt and a kickoff out of bounds does not sound good to me.
The defensive line did great for the second straight week allowing only six points -- totaling 9 points allowed through the first two games.
The one thing I do not understand is how journalists are commending the Crimson Tide's special teams unit. Great, Javier Arenas returned a punt for a touchdown and Chris Rogers recovered a blocked punt and took it in for six, but what about the rest of the special teams. A missed extra point, a missed field goal attempt and a kickoff out of bounds does not sound good to me.
Are You Really Surprised By The Tulane Game?
The biggest flaw of a young immature team is the inability to play consistantly. At a young age, it's also much easier to play as the under-dog than to be the top dog. Going into a game against a lesser opponent with high expectations from a big win in week one is like trying to run around with a 600 lbs. gorilla on your back.
The Tulane game was just as much of a test as playing in the Georgia Dome against #9 Clemson. A young Alabama time learned a big lesson in the Tulane game in that they have to have a killer instinct in every single game they play. Not having you head straight and going into games against teams like Louisian-Monroe, Tulane, Western Kentucky and Arkansas St., that having nothing to lose, you are eventually going to get upset.
The Tide has been taught a lesson now there will be another test this coming Saturday. Will this team pass that test?
The Tulane game was just as much of a test as playing in the Georgia Dome against #9 Clemson. A young Alabama time learned a big lesson in the Tulane game in that they have to have a killer instinct in every single game they play. Not having you head straight and going into games against teams like Louisian-Monroe, Tulane, Western Kentucky and Arkansas St., that having nothing to lose, you are eventually going to get upset.
The Tide has been taught a lesson now there will be another test this coming Saturday. Will this team pass that test?
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