#nick saban dynasty era

[wafflesetc]

sorry about alabama waffles

Honestly, if anyone who reads this is a college football fan this might be very controversial, but it was a good game. I am bummed for Bama but honestly, Michigan outplayed them. I think Jim Harbaugh is a great coach, and Michigan deserves to be in the Natty. It was a good game to watch, it was close at points and a nail biter. I'm glad the CFP chose Bama over FSU - because seeing how UGA vs FSU went on Saturday, a UM vs FSU game would have been just as tough, if not worse.

Personally, as a Bama fan, I was just happy that they won the SEC and beat Georgia, the playoffs were just an added bonus this year.

And, there's always next year.

[printondemnd]

Nick Saban Dynasty The Eras Tour Shirt

Introducing the Nick Saban Dynasty The Eras Tour Shirt - a must-have for any die-hard Alabama football fan. Celebrate the legendary coaching career of Nick Saban with this exclusive shirt that pays homage to the various eras of his dominance in college football.

[bettingpunter]

Nick Saban Championships: 1 National Title Away from History

How many Nick Saban Championships are we going to witness?! In the Rose Bowl game on Friday, Nick Saban will lead Alabama out of the tunnel for the sixth time in the College Football Playoff era. The Crimson Tide will battle Notre Dame inside of AT&T Stadium for a Rose Bowl title and more importantly, a ticket to Miami for the National Championship Game.  Saban has been a collegiate head coach for a quarter of a century with four programs: Toledo, Michigan State, LSU, and Alabama. Saban took over the job in Tuscaloosa back in 2007 and the Southeastern Conference hasn’t been the same since.  Saban won his first national title at LSU in 2003, but he has done much more in his time leading the Crimson Tide. At Alabama, Saban’s record is 163-23. The 69-year-old has won five National Championships with the Tide giving him a total of six victories all time.  Saban is currently tied with Alabama legend, Bear Bryant, for the most National Championship wins of all time by a head coach. Two games in 2021 stand in his way of dethroning Bear Bryant and taking sole possession of first place on this legendary list. Will we see more Nick Saban Championships in 2021 and the near future? 

Nick Saban Championships: The Football Resume

Coach Saban has done it all in the football world. He has spent close to fifty years of his life coaching football and this legend isn’t done yet. The majority of Saban’s coaching career has been spent at the collegiate level, but he was an NFL defensive coordinator twice and a head coach once. Before he took over the Alabama job, Saban was the head coach of the Miami Dolphins.

Nick Saban hoisting 1 of his Championship trophies after an Alabama victory.

Saban found his niche in the SEC. In his time at LSU and Alabama, Saban has won nine SEC Championship Games in eleven trips to the conference finale. He has been named SEC Coach of the Year five times and is also a two-time recipient of the Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award (2008 & 2018). On the national stage, Coach Saban has dominated as well claiming six national championships. He has taken his team to the College Football Playoff in six of the seven seasons that this postseason format has been in place. Saban’s winning resume conveys how successful this man has been as a collegiate head coach. Something that isn’t always noted is Saban’s ability to recruit and develop talent. At Alabama, Saban has produced 33 first-round picks in the NFL Draft. The six-time national champion has turned Alabama into a dynasty in countless ways. 

MORE: COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF PREVIEW: #4 NOTRE DAME VS. #1 ALABAMA BETTING PICK

Nick Saban Championships: The Culture

Nick Saban is a master of implementing winning culture into any locker room that he leads. This has been clear in his time at the University of Alabama. Every Alabama team under Saban has been known for their relentless style of play. Saban has a unique talent for figuring out a way for his players and coaches to buy into his philosophy. The culture of success that Nick Saban has developed at Alabama doesn’t ever seem to fade.

Saban heated over a call.

Saban continuously drills his message of accountability into the Tide’s locker room. A few of Saban’s major principles are work ethic, discipline, toughness, and effort. In my opinion, there isn’t a team in the country that exemplifies these values more than Alabama every single Saturday in the fall.

Saban preaches that high achievers don’t fit in with mediocre people. He doesn’t allow ‘mediocre’ anywhere near his program. 

“There are two pains in life. There is the pain of discipline and the pain of disappointment. If you can handle the pain of discipline, then you’ll never have to deal with the pain of disappointment.” 

– Nick Saban

Nick Saban has made Alabama the first thing that comes to mind when college football is mentioned. His winning culture has led the way for Alabama’s success in his tenure as the head coach of the Tide.

MORE: TOP 10 ATMOSPHERES IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Nick Saban Championships: The Record

Saban has plenty of critics throughout the media which is preposterous. People say that Nick Saban only wins because he’s at Alabama. Nick Saban is Alabama. He built this factory from the ground up. Alabama had success prior to Saban, but the program hadn’t won a national title since 1992 before he took over the head coaching duties.  Saban has created a dynasty at Alabama, but he did it because of his mentality. Nothing has been given to the future Hall of Famer. Everything has been earned by Saban and the 69-year-old is still working like he hasn’t accomplished a damn thing in the game of football.  Saban exemplifies the message that he gives his players every single day. There isn’t a harder worker in college football than Coach Saban. He deserves this record, and I can’t wait to see him conquer it in 2021. I believe that Saban will win his seventh National Championship on January 11th. Although, I guarantee that Saban isn’t thinking about this record. All he is thinking about is dominating Notre Dame on New Year’s Day. That mentality has allowed Nick Saban to take Alabama to unimaginable heights in the college football world. 

MORE: HOW DABO SWINNEYS CULTURE TOOK THE TIGERS TO NEW HEIGHTS

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[in-the-dawg-house]

Is the Saban Dynasty on the Verge of Falling? The Georgia Bulldogs may hold the answers.

By: Iris Fambro Carter

August 24, 2020

It is amazing the emotions that are projected when the name “Alabama Crimson Tide” is mentioned. The historic college football team has become synonymous with championships, dynasties, and legacy.

Between 1957 to 1982 Paul “Bear” Bryant led the Tide to six national championships and 13 conference championships while posting a 323-85-17 record. After his departure, it was assumed that no coach could come close to matching what Bear Bryant did in Tuscaloosa. Although Alabama won one national championship under Gene Stallings in 1992, it is the Nick Saban era that has caused some to wonder whether Saban could see the same success as Bear Bryant. Nick Saban took the helm in the 2007 season. Two year after he became the head coach at Alabama Saban had returned the Crimson Tide to prominence. Saban has been the coach since, and the Crimson Tide have consistently been in the fray of possible teams that could win the natty. This held true between 2009 and 2017 when the Crimson Tide won five National Championships. Between 2009 to 2015 Saban’s team had one of the top defenses every year. Those teams were hard to score on. They were like boas constricting the life out of unsuspecting prey.

However, during their last national championship, Alabama had to come from behind to beat Georgia in overtime 26-23. For three-quarters of the game it appeared that the Crimson Tide was overmatched against the up-and-coming Georgia Dawgs. But somehow, the Crimson Tide found their mojo and secured the national title. Looking at it now, during that game could we have been witnessing the beginning of the Tide’s downward slide? Will 2020 be the year that will unseat Saban as the king of football? Some say that it has already happened. Here is why:

2018 National Championship game versus Clemson Tigers - Alabama lost 44-16. The Tide had no answers for Trevor Lawrence as he sliced up the defense. The offense looked overmatched by a stingy Tiger defense. Before this game, the two teams had met in the playoffs three other times with all three being highly contested battles. This one was such a blowout that by the third quarter most of the Alabama fans had already exited Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

2019 regular-season game versus LSU Tigers - Although the final score of this game was 46-41 it was not that close. At half-time, the score was 33-13 in favor of the Tigers. LSU carved up the Crimson Tide defense with surgical precision. This was the first time the Tigers had beaten the Crimson Tide in eight years and the first time for Ed Orgeron as a head coach.

2019 regular-season game versus Ole Miss - Alabama actually appeared desperate in this game. Since Alabama was no longer in the driver’s seat to win the SEC West after their loss to LSU some say that Saban’s desire to impress the CFP judges may have caused him to leave Tua Tagovailoa in too long. This may have been a sign of desperation, but that is hard to say.

2019 Iron Bowl against Auburn - So far, the last time Alabama beat Auburn in Auburn was in 2015. Guz Malzahn has had Saban’s number when they play at Jordan Hare.

The key to figuring out if Saban’s magic is wearing off or if 2019 was just a blip in the road may be settled this year when the Tide plays the Georgia Bulldogs in Bryant-Denny Stadium. Although most of the contests between these two have been highly contested, the Tide has owned the Dawgs. The last time Georgia beat Alabama was in 2007 with a 26-23 win. Oddly, it was the last time Georgia played at Bryant-Denny. To recap, it was an overtime win that helped the Dawgs go 11-2, finish the season #2 in the final AP poll, and #3 in the Coaches poll. There is a possibility that these two teams will meet twice, and possibly three times this year. That will be discussed in a later blog. But for now, let’s look at the impact that could possibly happen if the Tide were to get upset by the Dawgs in Tuscaloosa.

The Tide would have lost their last games to the

Clemson Tigers

LSU Tigers

Auburn Tigers

Georgia Bulldogs

The last time the Tide lost to LSU, Auburn, and Georgia within a year was back in 2007 during Nick Saban’s first season in Tuscaloosa. A loss to Georgia could possibly sound the alarm that trouble is brewing in Tuscaloosa. Nick Saban may question his ability to continue to be the head coach at Alabama. If this scenario plays out and Alabama manages to win the rest of their schedule, they could possibly meet Georgia for a second time. If the outcome favors the Dawgs again would that spell doomsday for Saban?

All of this is speculation since the Dawgs have managed to blow three leads against the Crimson Tide in three championship games between 2012 and 2018. The last two games were against Kirby Smart. Here is a recap of the Georgia losses to Alabama in championship games:

2012 SEC Championship game - Georgia was up 21-10 with 6:31 left in the 3rd quarter. The Crimson Tide secured the victory 32-28 when the clock expired on Georgia at the Alabama three-yard line.

2018 CFP Championship game and lost to Alabama in overtime 26-23. This game saw the Dawgs up 20-10 going into the 4th quarter, although the momentum of the game had shifted to the Crimson Tide.

2018 SEC Championship game against Alabama and lost 35-28 with 2:00 minutes left. This game was a microcosm of the CFPagainst these two teams since Alabama had to come from behind 28-14 with 12:39 left in the 3rd quarter.

Alabama has had to weather some storms playing against the feisty Georgia Bulldogs, and fortunately, for them, they have prevailed. But none of this matters if the Dawgs somehow find a way to defeat the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa. If that happens we may be witnessing a dynasty crumble before our eyes.

[junker-town]

The CFB teams that recruited best (and worst) relative to their conferences

Boise State had a dream recruiting cycle. Texas and Oklahoma put the Big 12 even further in the rearview. And Vanderbilt’s road to respectability got even longer.

The cost of competing in college football depends on your neighborhood. It takes a more prolific recruiting class to win in the Sun Belt than it does to win in the SEC.

This post isn’t about the best recruiting classes, strictly speaking. It’s about the best classes relative to each team’s conference — in other words, who has the nicest house on the block. In this sport, out-recruiting your peers is by far the simplest path contention, even if “contention” means going to conference title games and not the Playoff.

How the conferences stacked up

This is the average national rank of the classes in every FBS league after National Signing Day, along with average four- and five-star recruits, all per the 247Sports Composite. These numbers are subject to change just a tad in the weeks, months, and even years to come, but at this point, they’re plenty fine to evaluate teams and trends.

SEC — average class 18.5, average blue-chips 11.3

Big 12 — average class 33, average blue-chips 4.6

Big Ten — average class 35, average blue-chips 5.1

Pac-12 — average class 38, average blue-chips 4.5

ACC — average class 40.6, average blue-chips 3.6

AAC — average class 87.9

Conference USA — average class 89.2

Mountain West — average class 97.3

MAC — average class 104

Sun Belt — average class 106.5

The only Group of 5 team to sign a blue-chip recruit was Boise State, which signed three. The Broncos have arguably the best mid-major class in the rankings era.

Here’s a four-year outlook from Bill Connelly, featuring weighted averages and national percentiles. Remember that rankings are still wiggling around somewhat.

The eight teams that did the best relative to their leagues in 2019

The first one, then, won’t be surprising.

1. Boise State (48.3 ranking spots better than average Mountain West team)

The Broncos are the most reliable “non-power” in part because they develop players well and win a lot of big games, but also because they recruit like gangbusters. They’ve put together a No. 49 class that so thoroughly laps their peers that it should further guarantee their ownership of the Mountain West Mountain for years to come. The involved four-stars are QB Hank Bachmeier (the No. 6 pro-style passer), possible linebacker Casey Kline (the No. 16 ATH), and Austin Griffin (the No. 1 JUCO tight end). All three come from California.

2. UL Lafayette (34.5 spots better than average Sun Belt team)

Former Nick Saban assistant Billy Napier is building the Ragin’ Cajuns into a serious Sun Belt contender, continuing by signing up 2019’s No. 71 class. The league’s West division is probably the worst in FBS, and ULL — which won it last year, in Napier’s first season — is poised to built a mini-dynasty there. Getting past App State, Troy, or whoever emerges from the other side of the league is still going to be a task. But recruiting at a solidly above-average AAC level is a hell of a good start if you’re trying to win the SBC.

3. Toledo (33 spots better than average MAC team)

The Rockets signed the No. 78 class. This is already the best program in the MAC, with a comfortably league-best No. 48 average S&P+ rating over the last five years. Jason Candle, who replaced Matt Campbell when Campbell left for Iowa State, has quietly continued to do a really good job. Toledo and Western Michigan have been the top two recruiters in the league, but Toledo has started to open up a talent gap on everyone with this class.

4. FAU (32.2 spots better than average Conference USA team)

The Owls’ No. 57 class is a nice feather in Lane Kiffin’s cap. After a great debut in 2017, his team declined badly in 2018. That he was able to convince so many solid players to #ComeToTheFAU suggests a quick bounce back is plenty possible.

5. UCF (31.8 spots better than average AAC team)

It pays to lose one game in two years and have one of the best stadium environments in the sport. UCF’s No. 56 class is a ways ahead of several Power 5 teams, and it’s just the latest establishing point for the Knights as the best program in their league. Hopefully, McKenzie Milton heals quickly and gets back to dominating for this team. But the Knights have masterfully converted a few great seasons into a long-term recruiting edge that’s going to outlast any one player (and maybe any number of coaches, too).

6. Oregon (1 spots, 7.5 blue-chips better than average Pac-12 team)

The Ducks, at No. 7 nationally, were the best recruiting team in California this year, as both USC and UCLA recruited well below their norms. Combine the Ducks cleaning up in one of the two talent-richest states in the union with the two teams in L.A. underperforming and Washington doing just OK, and you’ve got a recipe for a rout. Oregon will get a good deal of 2019 hype with Justin Herbert back at QB, but the future beyond that is brighter.

7. Clemson (30.6 spots, 9.4 blue-chips better than average ACC team)

Pretty soon, it’s time to sit down and have a serious talk about the non-Clemson ACC. (The Tigers finished at No. 10.)

8. Texas (30 spots, 12.4 blue-chips better than average Big 12 team)

The Big 12 has two prestige programs, and it should be a two-horse race most years. Oklahoma’s starting from a bit ahead, but this Longhorns class only makes it more likely that the two will have annual rematches in the Big 12 Championship. (So does Oklahoma coming in 10th on this list of biggest differences.)

At No. 3, it’s Texas’ second top-three class in a row. Last year’s was strongest in the secondary. This year’s is most loaded at receiver and the defensive front positions.

The six teams that did the worst relative to their leagues in 2019

1. Vanderbilt (39.5 spots, 11.5 blue-chips worse than average SEC team)

It’s not anything all that new, but Vandy’s even worse off now than it usually is. The SEC just had the best conference recruiting year in the rankings era, one in which most of its teams did somehow better than usual. But Vandy, which entered with a four-year recruiting ranking of 51, had the No. 57 class. When you’re Vandy, you can’t go backward while all your peers are charging forward. Derek Mason could be at serious firing risk in 2019, but unless his replacement’s name is “James Franklin,” the needle may not move that much.

2. UConn (36.1 spots worse than average AAC team)

The Huskies (No. 124) should probably not be playing FBS football, exhibit 1,008.

3. Charlotte (35.8 spots worse than average Conference USA team)

Give new coach Will Healy some time. This startup job has upside:

Charlotte is the rarest of jobs: a high-ceiling Group of 5 with no baggage, expectation, or obvious obstacles, with good facilities in a major metro in the South. That is an aspiring head coach’s dream and a vision for beleaguered vets too.

For now, the 49ers have the No. 125 class, but check back in a year.

4. Navy (35.1 spots worse than average AAC team)

The Mids (No. 123) are always going to recruit behind their conference’s pace, because they’re a service academy that runs the triple option. That’s not cause for concern on its own. But, they were legitimately bad in 2018, and another down year in 2019 would erode a lot of the good faith the program’s built up as one you should just trust to figure things out.

5. Texas Tech (34 spots, 4.5 blue-chips worse than average Big 12 team)

Tech typically recruits in the lower middle of the Big 12, and its typical struggles on the trail were likely exacerbated amid a coaching transition. Matt Wells still seems like a smart hire, and Kliff Kingsbury’s going to be better off in a league that has a draft.

6. Louisville (32.6 spots, 2.6 blue-chips worse than average ACC team)

The ACC’s bad recruiting year didn’t prevent Louisville from getting lapped by the field. The Cardinals finished at No. 73, but they were an incredible 117th before the February Signing Day. Bobby Petrino left Scott Satterfield a smoldering pile of ash. The good news is that if any coach can win quickly despite a talent shortcoming, it’s Satterfield.

7. Kansas (32 spots, 3.5 blue-chips worse than average Big 12 team)

KU is betting on Les Miles being able to recruit above the school’s standard by the sheer force of his personality. We’ll see how that goes in the long run, but this class is confirmation that it’s harder to recruit to Kansas than it is to LSU. Who knew?

8. Oregon State (29.1 spots, 4.5 blue-chips worse than average Pac-12 team)

The Beavers are going to stay doormats unless former Washington OC Johnathan Smith can pull many rabbits out of his hat. A No. 67 class is behind even the Beavs’ low four-year average of 59th. Maybe some of that’s attributable to Oregon’s good year, but then, the big L.A. teams won’t recruit this mediocrely forever. Where’s OSU’s pipeline that’s going to get this program to contention in the North? That is a rhetorical question.

Here’s a table you can play around with to see how your team fared.

[bongaboi]

Clemson: 2018 NCAA Division I FBS National Champions

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- With stunning ease -- and a freshman quarterback -- Clemson toppled college football's greatest dynasty again to become the first perfect playoff champion.

Trevor Lawrence passed for 347 yards and three touchdowns and the second-ranked Tigers beat No. 1 Alabama 44-16 on Monday night in the College Football Playoff national championship game.

In the fourth consecutive playoff meeting between the Tigers and Tide, Clemson evened the series and beat `Bama for the national championship for the second time in three seasons. Clemson is the first team in the AP poll era, dating back to 1936, to finish 15-0.

"We're gonna enjoy this one. We've got a nice spot to put it in our facility, right next to that other one," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. "We've got twins!"

Alabama coach Nick Saban and the Tide (14-1) were looking for a sixth national championship in 10 years, trying to add to an already unprecedented run in the sport. Instead, Clemson crushed Alabama, becoming the first opponent to beat the Tide by more than 14 points since Saban became coach in 2007.

Swinney's Tigers sealed their status as a superpower, no longer just 1A to Alabama's 1.

"We're 15-0, we beat the best team ever, nobody's taking that away from us," Clemson All-America defensive tackle Christian Wilkins said.

Two seasons ago it was Deshaun Watson dethroning the Tide with a last-second touchdown pass. Clemson's new star quarterback didn't need the late-game heroics. The long-haired Lawrence cut though Alabama's defense with the help of another fabulous freshman. Justyn Ross made a juggling grab, a one-handed snare and broke a 74-yard touchdown about midway through the third quarter that made it 37-16 and had Swinney high-stepping down the sidelines.

Ross, who scored two touchdowns in the semifinal rout of Notre Dame, had six catches for 153 yards against his home-state team.

Swinney takes a different approach than Saban, running a more fun-loving program than Alabama's all-business organization. But the results have been every bit as good. And on Monday night at Levi's Stadium, in a championship game played more than 2,000 miles away from Clemson's South Carolina campus, the Tigers were way too much for an Alabama team that had spent the season mauling its opposition by an average of 31 points per game.

Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa threw two crucial interceptions in the first half, the first returned 44 yards for a touchdown by A.J. Terrell to put Clemson up 7-0. The Tide came in scoring 48 points per game, but were shut out over the final 44 minutes by an opportunistic Clemson defense that stiffened in key spots.

Tagovailoa, the sophomore who came off the bench to win the championship game last year for the Tide, went 22 for 34 for 295 yards and two touchdowns.

"Good is not good enough," Tagovailoa said.

The Heisman runner-up was also the second-best quarterback on the field in the championship game. Lawrence finished 20 for 32, but went 18 for 25 for 277 yards over the final three quarters.

The teenager who took over as the starter four games into the season raised the Tigers' play, giving them an explosive offense to match a suffocating defense that was led by a star-studded line with All-Americans Clelin Ferrell and Wilkins.

"It's been an awesome journey," Lawrence said. "It's really unbelievable."

[auburnfamilynews]

It’s no secret that Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn doesn’t give great interviews. Whether it’s in-game interviews, post-game shows, mid-week conference calls, or even those fund raiser events that take him across the state, Gus doesn’t give anything away. Simply put, he plays his cards close to his vest which is boring and offers no legitimate insight into the game. Gus has patented answers to almost any question and those answers usually involve “the future is bright” or “he’s a guy that’s done some good things.” Gus has been the lovable coach that refuses to cuss, offering a lot of “awe shucks” when things don’t go his way. 

It’s true that despite wearing a visor, he’s never thrown it like Steve Spurrier. He’s never said, “they ran through our $#% like ^*@# through a tin horn,” but he has said, “we whipped the dog crap out of them.” The most emotion that Gus Malzahn has ever shown is a striking resemblance between Beaker from the Muppets and the look your dad gave you when you watched a third strike in the championship game.

For years, one of the mantras that a lot of Auburn fans had, through the good and the bad, was, “at least we aren’t Bama.” Of course, they are referencing the coach across the state, that may be the best to ever coach the game. He’s been called a lot of names over the years by Auburn fans, but despite what fans think of him and how he does it, coach Nick Saban wins and wins and wins. When he is winning, he never stops coaching for a minute and is famous for his fiery temper. It doesn’t seem to matter if it’s an assistant coach, a kicker, a second or third string lineman or his star quarterback, if you don’t do what you are supposed to do, he’s going to find you and likely cuss you out. 

For the first half-decade of the Malzahn-era, Gus has been anything but Saban. In many ways, he has been the antithesis of Saban, which is fitting since Alabama is the arch-rival and the nemesis of Auburn University. Along the way, Gus has been the only current head coach to beat Saban and the Tide twice. There are many opinions on Auburn’s success against the Tide as well as against other top teams across the country. Some point to a special player here or there. Some just think it’s “the odd year.” While others believe it’s about his play calling and whether Gus is motivated. All of these parties are at odds with accepting the bad years because of the good years. One faction believes that Auburn deserves better, the other may think this is simply where Auburn belongs. 

In the in between is a lot of mediocrity. 

Across the state, it’s called “the process.” It’s the full range of identifying recruiting needs, recruiting those players, developing them, and holding them accountable through their college career. Auburn has essentially matched Alabama step-for-step in most of this, but one thing that’s been really missing is …

the last two crucial parts of the process. The number one question that has followed Gus Malzahn is can he develop players? That last point about holding them accountable is a part that has only partially been done. Malzahn has done a terrific job of keeping kids out of trouble off the field, but that degree of coaching hasn’t shown up on the field like it does in Tuscaloosa, in particular. 

The season is still young, but Auburn is 5-0, has a Top 10 match-up in Gainesville this weekend that will, by all accounts, propel them into the elite if they win. Malzahn has a chance to do something he’s never done at Auburn: go 6-0 to start the year. While a lot of people are thinking that this could be a trap game for the Tigers, or thinking that having the most impressive team in the country is too good to be true, allow me to say that this year feels and looks different.

It feels and looks different because the man pacing the sideline doesn’t look anything like the good-ole-boy that has been at the helm for Auburn all these years. Gus Malzahn may be coaching for his job this year or not, but it sure seems like he believes he is and it’s brought out an urgency that we’ve not seen. It comes in the form of challenging referees and players alike, something that he’s seldom done. By that, we aren’t referring to light-hearted pleas to the refs or pats on the butt and a “you’ll do better next time” to players. No, this is past the numbers and dressing down the refs or following a player all the way to the bench to let them know what he thinks of the bonehead play they just made. 

Wouldn’t you know it, his players are starting to look like a team from that dynasty over there. One of the most impressive things Malzhan has done this year is getting up a good lead and letting his defense chew up minute after minute of clock. In the one event that the Texas A&M game looked like it might get close, he executed a terrific drive to score another touchdown and put his defense right back on the field.

He’s relying on his defense as he develops his offense. In the past, he would have thrown his quarterbacks (all of them) to the wolves and mixed in as many trick plays as he could. This year, he has slowly but surely built the offense into what looks to be as complete a unit as Auburn has seen since 2004. Just a week ago, people were wondering if Bo Nix would ever throw for more than 100 yards. Malzahn unleashed him Saturday against a good SEC foe and the numbers speak for themselves. 

Auburn doesn’t have a Nick Saban. They don’t want a Nick Saban. But they needed something else from their head coach and by all accounts, this new Malzahn is closer to what Auburn folks have wanted than ever before. I rather like the new Gus. 

The post Upon Further Review: I Rather Like New Gus appeared first on Track 'Em Tigers, Auburn's oldest and most read independent blog.

from Track 'Em Tigers, Auburn's oldest and most read independent blog http://trackemtigers.com/upon-further-review-i-rather-like-new-gus/

[poemsbyjosh-blog]

Tide Pride

“Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing”-Vince Lombardi

It was a warm summer day in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. For any other city this would be welcomed news. But for this town of more than 100,000, this news is unwelcomed. Around this area, summer only means that the anticipation of the upcoming college football season has reached its boiling point. In the new era of football, many people can have their needs fed by the constant talk of the upcoming season from college news reporters, radio talk shows, and the every day banter found on the streets. There is also the A-Day game, when people will fill these Tuscaloosa streets to see their beloved Crimson Tide take on none other than their beloved Crimson Tide. That will get these people by like a dime bag will a cocaine addict, but ask any real cokehead, or Alabama fan, and they will tell you, it will never be enough.

To Tuscaloosa and any city within a hundred mile radius, only two times of year exist- football season and getting ready for the next football season. Alabama football is more than a religion to the fans of the Crimson Tide; most people don’t spend the week after a church service talking about it and preparing for the next. The way in which fans, that stalemate traffic from interstate 20 to Jack Warner Highway 7 times a year, pack Bryant-Denny Stadium prepared to chant and scream in support for people they never have or will meet. The people who hold Paul “Bear” Bryant among the most important people to ever live, sometimes questionable if he even falls behind their lord and savior Jesus Christ, and create a wardrobe of only crimson, white, and hounds-tooth, even for days other than Saturday. No, Alabama football is more than a religion; it is society as a whole. In many ways, this is life.

To people unfamiliar with the traditions of this area, this may be the most bizarre culture they could ever discover, especially within the United States. But the history of this state reveals a reasoning that almost evokes sympathy for such a fan base. Since 1877, the end of reconstruction, Alabama has been among the bottom feeders of the United States economy. The small farmers of Northern Alabama had no source to compete with the urbanizing North and therefore plummeted into regional recession too extreme for them to overcome. The area was also fighting the open wounds that were racism, segregation, and the frank, harsh realities of unchangeable ignorance. The depression hit like the apocalypse, and it probably would have been if programs in the New Deal like TVA saved the area. But this was more like a comatose patient, surviving in a vegetable state than a healed leper at the hands of Jesus. Franklin Roosevelt provided a pulse, but a life? Well, that was an issue for debate.

The next few decades showed no hope. It was a dying land, once the most holy, revered land of the spirited Cherokee and Creek tribes had become purgatory for the struggling white population too set in their ways to adapt (which ironically is the excuse provided by the same race for chasing out the original protectors of the land). These people held on to one thing, and hold on they did. These people were more connected with God than any other area in the lands. The “Bible Belt” lived up to its name as people only lived for their God. That was, until football.

In 1958, The University of Alabama hired Paul “Bear” Bryant as their head coach. His nickname stemmed from an agreement to wrestle a bear at the age of 13, or so the legend tells. The masterful head coach was seemingly fearless and just the same, heartless. While coach at Texas A&M, he took his team to hell in Junction, Texas. Hell would be an understatement for this place. Hell probably would have been a vacation from what Bryant put these young adults through. The man could have easily been mistaken for the devil, but by his first championship in 1961, Alabama would know him as God.

Bryant gave the state something to cheer for, sending players like Joe Namath and Kenny Stabler onto the field to lead the Crimson Tide to among the best in the country, something the fans of these teams were not often titled. Soon, people all around the state took on this identity and why not? Bryant was breeding winning, winning was breeding optimism, and optimism was the most precious import this state could wish for. It was not long before Bryant and his crimson colored soldiers were fighting for an entire state and the state they fought for would never lead them into battle alone.

By the time Paul Bryant passed in 1983, he was the crowned pope of the state, touching his worshippers with grit and glory. He had turned children into superstars and himself into an icon. With his passing, and the coupled grieving of a state, it had finally become apparent just the magnitude of this sport, especially in the south. The biggest sport in the world has continued to grow into much more than that for the people of “The Heart of Dixie.”

In 2015, 33 years after the death of the beloved king, the crown had long been passed down to a new reign. Nick Saban now leads the Tide into an atmosphere of over 100,000 filled stadium seats and 300,000 faithful fans outside on a typical fall Saturday. He is running his players on this July day, in spite of the triple digit temperatures. No need to worry however, because his players are by far the most talented, well-trained athletes this country will see. On the sidelines of the many illustrious stadiums of the Southeastern Conference, Saban develops the most effective game schemes possible to defeat his opponent. His ability to attack the weakened, amplify his strength, and go for the kill at the right time likens him to warlords like General Macarthur. But if there is one thing he does better than plan for his weekly wars, it is find the best players across this nation to battle for him.

It seems like centuries since a Saban-coached team did not have a top 5 recruiting class, and it would not be surprising if such an occurrence never happened. He is constantly on the road seeing the best of the best of this sport and drawing them in like a tiger pulling in his prey. Two years ago he may have found his most prized catch yet, a star running back out of Hoover, Alabama wearing number 27. His name was Vincent Cooper.

Cooper was the perfect running back. He had speed to run with the wind and the strength to keep that speed through a brick wall. His hands were like glue, and his quickness was so instinctual, people believed a brain couldn’t comprehend at the same pace that he accomplished it. By his freshmen year, he had already drawn comparisons to the likes of Bo Jackson and Shaun Alexander, whose records he would eventually shatter. He carried a Hoover team, a national football dynasty, to 4 consecutive state championships and 2 national crowns. He was number one on every team’s recruiting list, wanted so much even John Dillinger would have envy. Like most of his teammates, and most top players in the south, he was drawn to the promise lands that were Tuscaloosa. To be the best of the best, he had to go to the best, and that he did.

In his freshmen year, he disappointed no one, accomplishing unprecedented freshmen accolades. The Tide rolled to another undefeated season and Vince took home the Heisman by the largest margin in the history of the award, and becoming the first freshmen to win it. He was treated like royalty around Tuscaloosa and this “southern hospitality” spread to almost any city in the state (sans Auburn, of course). In the final game of the year, the national championship, Cooper rushed for 210 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 31-7 victory over the second best team, the Oklahoma Sooners. With roses in his mouth and crystal in his hand, Vincent Cooper was at the top of the world. The only problem was the only way to go from here is down.

Cooper would indeed descend, and soon at that. Allegations came from every side of cheating, money laundering, ineligibility, and defamations so severe, Vince never thought he could recover from them. But as long as Cooper had his haven- no, his heaven, on the football field, he knew things would be ok. He put in more that offseason than any in his life, a statement shocking in its validity. Coming into his sophomore season, he was 20 more pounds of muscle and a thousand more tons of inspiration, and it certainly showed in their first game as he rushed for 150 yards and 3 touchdowns in the first quarter. The second game would not prove so successful.

Alabama was playing a pesky team, the Boise State Broncos. The game had been scheduled many years before when Boise was becoming a powerhouse, but coaches left, players graduated, and success dwindled. Nonetheless the team still had fight. They were no longer the Grizzly Bear prepared to fight any time and anywhere. But they were still a mosquito, easy to kill, but one slip and you could be fighting deathly diseases. The game began with a steady dose of Vince, up the middle to tire the defensive line of Boise State. All part of Saban’s scheme. By the half, Alabama lead modestly 17-9. The next quarter, however the lead opened up to 34-9 and Cooper expected that he would soon be rested, especially after 30 plus carries on the night, his offensive coordinator told him he still needed one more series out of him just to be safe. But safe for who?

On 3rd and 3 from the Alabama 47, the offense broke huddle. Everyone in the stadium knew the play somewhere in their subconscious, football-oriented mind; handoff behind the right guard to Cooper. He took the ball and strode forward as he had so many times before, outstretching the ball as he had so many times, before balancing himself with his inside hand. As he reached across midfield and got the first down, a linebacker for the Broncos reached to knock the ball loose. In doing this, he knocked Cooper’s teammate, a 328 pound lineman, off-kilter and he fell on Vince’s wrist, seeming to shatter it instantly (or so Cooper thought). He walked to the sideline, with his wrist at his side. Coach Saban had preached hiding injuries if they occurred because it gave them an advantage in later weeks. He tried with all of his might, but a single tear streamed down his face, although he would convince his coach it was sweat. When he reached his coach, his coach sternly spoke a short few sentences.

“At least we don’t need you the rest of this game. Get to the locker room and the trainer.”

We may not need me thought a now furious Cooper but I need my wrist. The trainer would diagnose him with a severely bruised wrist that would probably heel in a few weeks. As much as Vince felt it was worse than this, he couldn’t disagree. He took off his pads and iced his wrist before the media could see. Saban would tell the media he had a sore groin, and would be out a week. A week he probably would have sat out in any case, as they were playing UT-Chattanooga. He hoped his wrist would be heeled in time for the Mississippi State game the week after but he was not convinced of it.

In the next week his wrist began to improve, and the following Tuesday, he returned to practice. His wrist was still sore but he assumed this was only natural and he could grit it out. After all, he was Heisman winning phenom Vincent Cooper. He carried the ball well that week, in the game, and for the remainder of the season, although not as stellar as the season before. His arm continued to writhe with pain, as he was not allowed to wear a protective glove because it would tip off an opponent. He remained among the most talented athletes in college football, still mentioned in the Heisman race. But his wrist was getting worse and worse and Vince had noticed no decrease in the swelling. By the time he built up courage to approach the training staff about assuring him that this was ok (as they had many previous times), it was too late. Because it was now the week before Thanksgiving and that meant one thing, Iron Bowl.

If football was God in the state of Alabama, then the Iron Bowl was the pearly gates of heaven. Every person in the state was declared to one side and everyone would anticipate the game, no matter the record of the teams. This year, Auburn was strong, having only lost to a talented Florida team in week 6. Alabama was still undefeated riding a limp-armed Cooper as far as they could. That meant the implications of this game were of the greatest magnitude. The winner went on to the SEC championship and most likely the National Championship. There was no chance in hell (and especially Alabama) Cooper could miss this game.

The game began the defensive battle everyone expected, with Auburn stacking the box to prevent Cooper from defeating them. Cooper still managed 85 yards and a touchdown in the first three quarters and would drive the Tide on a defining drive in the middle of the fourth to retake the lead 23-20. After Auburn failed to score on their next drive it was on Cooper to finish the game off; he was to run the clock out. On the next play, he ran it to the right, protecting the ball with his lone remaining strong forearm. The second down play he ran the ball up the middle, using both arms to protect the ball, to within a single yard of the first down, now only two minutes remaining. The next play would be the same. Now with 1:47 left in the game and Auburn holding a timeout, the Tide needed one more first down to clinch one of the sweetest Iron Bowl wins in history. It was time for a partially oblivious Saban to go for the kill. Sweep left to Cooper.

Vince feared this play was coming but knew it was all the same. They were stacking the line and the left side had a wide receiver that blocked better than any in the nation. Auburn was weak on that side as well with injuries to cornerbacks. It was the perfect play except for one minute detail; Vince could not feel his arm. It hurt so bad he could not make a fist. He was almost crying in pain, begging for a cortisone shot or anything. He tried to approach the coach to tell him he could not do it but his legs had turned to jelly and there was not time to get another call in without a delay of game. Vince was going to have to do what he always did, run the damn ball.

Vince Cooper could still run like a gazelle, especially in the comfort of pads. He took the sweeping play in the backfield and jetted to the sideline. That way he thought if I let go it should fall out of bounds and we will be saved. He swung around his teammate and started up the field. He knew better than to step out of bounds and knew if he got hit the ball was coming out. He had to reach the end zone. As he crossed the forty, he thought he was clear but then noticed a defender running him down. Cooper was doomed, for it was their standout safety, Clayton, with speed from the gods. He could not even register the sounds of the millions of people around him screaming as if their own lives were at stake due to the immense pain he felt beside the football. This cleared his mind to say in a voice so clear It is all over now.

Cooper had one last idea. Stutter step and see if he could make the tackler miss. More importantly stutter towards the out-of bounds line. This should guarantee the ball to float out of bounds. As Clayton barreled down on him, he slowed his run and stepped inside. There was just one thing he had forgotten; the corner now chasing him from behind. As soon as he slowed he felt the blow into his back, the shock clicked a final instinct switch the ball to your strong hand. He did successfully but as he got it across he felt arms around the ball. Two arms, double the number he could use to hold the ball. It was the star safety and milliseconds before Vince could safely crash into the ground, the ball was out of his possession and headed to the other end zone, the one of his own team, the one that was undefended.

The crowd turned like a channel on television. Like someone had changed from the celebration of returning soldiers from World War II on the history channel to a rerun of Walter Cronkite announcing President Kennedy’s assassination. Cooper got up, trotted to his sideline and sat on the bench. He would not return for the last efforts of his offense, efforts that were futile. The Tide lost the game 27-23, the SEC west crown, and Vincent Cooper lost his beloved support.

The offseason, which began that night for Cooper, would be hell. Trainers told him he had broken his wrist during the game. Cooper was reluctant to believe it, but never questioned it. Never would he know when his wrist snapped.

“Vincent Cooper, boy hero” turned into “Vincent Cooper, Wanted Dead or Alive” in a split second. The people now hated him. People he never met, who he would never meet, and who should be unaffected by anything Vince ever did, were threatening his life for that fumble. At the suggestion of coaches, he changed living quarters, cars, and companions. He wouldn’t show his face in the city, especially not on the college campus. His parent’s house became constant victim to vandals and outright hate. A hate so pure and evil it trembled in every crevice of Vince’s spine. The team lost their final game without him 27-16 and, in spite of not playing, the fans blamed Vince.

He became a hide-away; he was contemplating transferring despite the fact that Saban had stood so strongly beside him promising him it would get better. Saban had an uncanny way of assuring, like a military dad. Cooper trusted Saban and knew that Saban would never mean to do this to him, even in the intensity of a football game. It was himself and his inability to confront the issue that let this happen. Saban made constant visits to Cooper, and defended Cooper to the media incessantly. Nick Saban proved to Vincent Cooper over the next few months that he was a much better person than he was a football coach. For a while, Cooper believed Saban would be the only face he ever confronted He believed that until he was forced into confrontation with a few fellow students at the Ferguson Center.

It was three A.M. and Vince decided he would not come in contact with another person, much less a problem, and besides he was starving. He entered and fixed a plate of food and sat down to eat at a booth. Then two college students of hefty size began to tease him.

“Can you try not to drop your pizza, asshole” said the taller one with the chestnut hair. The other joined in with chimes of laughter, taunting laughter. Vince wanted so adamantly to hit them, knowing he could knock both of them out, left handed. But he never believed in violence, and was growing immune to such harsh comments. But he also could not handle the constant comments and decided to leave and head to his apartment.

When he got to his car, he found that someone had slashed his tires. He tried to call a friend, one of the few he still had, to pick him up but he was asleep. He decided to walk the three miles home.

As he walked he thought, probably more clearly than any time since he removed his pads. He looked up to see Bryce, the mental institution and wondered how close he was at this moment to getting a room there. Then he looked to a neighborhood outside of college residence. He saw the true evil of this desolate city, completely reliant on football as its only marketing tool. The entire city, a large city at that, relied on tourism, hotels, and football to stay alive. He wondered how much his fumble had cost the city. He knew that the city was overwhelmingly in poverty but their must be another source of income for this town. Before he could draw any possibilities his peripheral vision, so incredible even with a helmet on, caught a glimpse of lights swerving on the road beside him. Before Vince knew it the car had swerved (intentional or unintentional he will never find out) facing him and was headed on a crash course.

This was no linebacker, or defensive end, or even a strong safety named Clayton. This was a 2000 pound vehicle coming at him at a speed double that of any registered human. The uncatchable Vincent Cooper never stood a chance.

June, 2015. Nick Saban is finishing up the practice that has tired out his football team. An informant from the school walks onto the field and up to the short man with such a tall reputation. She tells him what has happened to his star running back. The man who never shows emotion on the playing field cried a tear of pain on the practice field.

When he woke up in the hospital later that day, Vince no longer felt the pain in his wrist. Unfortunately that was because of the heavy amounts of morphine and the intense pain below his waist. His legs, he thought, must have been crushed. He was only later informed that in the heat of the moment he had jumped, avoided a blunt hit, and only taken a nasty shot to the ankle and a concussion. The diagnosis was good for Vincent Cooper the person. But for Vincent Cooper the football player, the diagnosis was death.

He was assured he would never step foot on a field again, and the news was broken to him by none other than his only remaining friend, Coach Saban. Saban had promised a 17 year old to be there during the best and worst and he had been true. More so I believe thought Cooper in the latter. But the presence of Saban had been minimal in easing the pain. Cooper was unsure there was a person beneath the pads. He felt like he was superman, and the Clark Kent of himself could not exist on his own.

Tears wept for several hours, with only family visitors coming through, except one nurse. An exquisitely slender, young woman named Amy Briggs. She had come through three times before Vince spoke up, realizing this nurse was shy beyond all else. They shared a quick introduction. Vince was surprised to hear Amy “recognized the name, but couldn’t place it” and even more surprised to find out she had even attended his university. He knew that she was of a different breed.

That night they shared their story, Briggs only needing recollection of Vince’s story. Vince found out that Amy enrolled originally on Pre-Med but found the curriculum overwhelming and turned to nursing where she not only excelled but found her niche. She graduated and came into the local hospital, a “5-story morgue” at the time according to Amy and worked to turn this place into something respectable. She said the hospital needed more money but just by becoming a whistle-blower of false practice and a voice for good, she and a few colleagues of hers had made a dent in a shoddy environment.

Vince pondered how a football team could have such an overwhelming amount of money and a hospital so piss poor. I’ll confront Coach Saban about it, see what he can do thought Vince, knowing his coach could fix it, then realizing Saban was no longer his coach. Amy left at certain points, but always returned to see to Vince.

“How long is your shift?” asked Vince, beginning to think he would leave the hospital before her.

“Tonight it is only 12 hours,” said Amy almost inattentively as she changed his IV.

“When do you have time for family and friends,” said Vince almost cautiously, fearing the answer he would receive.

“I had to give up socializing and crack down on school,” Briggs replied, emotionless in tone, “and now I can’t pick back up, because I need to work all of the time to get ahead on student loans.”

“Surely your loans can’t be that much, I mean, didn’t you have scholarship. You seem very bright to me. Bright enough that you should have been able to breeze through your studies while maintaining friends.”

Amy laughed at this, even throwing her head back, “I didn’t receive any scholarship. Nobody wants to help a boring little nurse. Not the scholarship board, not my teachers, not even the med schools that denied me. I live in the real world not the football field.”

Vince was taken back by this. Not the tone or harsh attitude with which Amy spoke such. But the sad realities of what had been said. Vince never considered what happened outside of his own life and how hard it must be on the others. The heart and brain that this girl bestowed were beyond any amount of talent a running back could possess. All of these years, he thought his own life was hard. Juggling easy classes with professors who gave him an A anyway and learning how to play a game properly for the next week seemed like a toddler’s schedule for what this woman, this girl, had been through, and she had to pay to do it, and would still never make a fraction of the money he would have received had he not been riddled by injuries. I wish I would have taken that money he thought I would have handed that 180 grand over right here and now.

Vince was soon released from the hospital, but kept in contact with his nurse, what little he could. Although there was no Florence Nightingale effect, Amy liked Vince well enough. She had given up dating due to the strenuous schedule and the constant hurt from the guys around her. A hurt she rarely showed, much less spoke of. It would not take long for Amy to reveal much more.

Anxiety, depression, loneliness, and emptiness- a fitting title to the story of Amy Briggs. She was overworked, underappreciated, misused, and unloved and there was nothing she could do about it. She had let herself rot away into the confines of the only thing she now knew. The only happiness she knew was helping others. Vince watched a beautiful young girl walk towards his hospital bed. He now could only see the beaten spirits of an old woman, weathered to the point of cracking beneath the pressure of one more let-down.

If Vincent Cooper had been the silver-spoon fed son of a rich plantation in today’s educational hierarchy, then Amy was the constantly beaten slave (probably beaten for refusing to give up educating herself thought Vince). She was the definition of everything right about humanity and the victim of a definition of everything that was wrong with this world. She was the Nelson Mandela of American higher learning; thought Vince, not caring if this demeaned what Mandela had went through. If any career should be worshipped, it should be the person carrying a syringe of some person’s miracle, not the one carrying an odd-shaped brown object. Everything was wrong with this and Vincent Cooper was determined to change this, except he had become powerless to do so.

Now. Present day. The time in which Vincent Cooper wished he was heralded as he had been one year before. A time in which he thought he could use his “prince-hood” as a newspaper had coined it, for the good of humanity. But Vincent Cooper was still the goof that fumbled the last ball he would ever touch (Vince knew now the sight of a football would destroy and disgust him simultaneously). He had no say in Tuscaloosa, and probably couldn’t safely speak in public. He would be willing to live with that pain in his wrist for the rest of eternity if he could just do anything for people like Amy Briggs. But the truth, the evil sickening joke of the fact of the matter, was he that he could not. And it wouldn’t have mattered if he could because his efforts would be tardy.

Like the weathered wood of a storm riddled Tuscaloosa house, standing ages longer than any home should suffer, the poverty stricken roof of Amy Briggs’s spirit came crumbling in with the devastating blow of the most powerful wind gust yet. In a vote from her fellow employees and the board of the hospital, Amy Briggs’s tenure had been terminated due to her inability to coexist with her coworkers.

Both Amy and Vince and everyone familiar with the situation (which Vince assumed had to include every patient that had ever been blessed to be treated by Amy) knew the real reason why Amy was being fired, the laziness of humanity was shining through. Her coworkers spited her for her dedication and hated her for requesting the same of them. They were perfectly happy with their shoddy establishment and could no longer take Briggs’s constant strive for a “living area, not a dying one.” Her determination tasted bitter to these people, who worked their asses off throughout school to sit back and relax for decent pay. Eventually, they were too fed up with her goal of good for everyone else, and fought back with the good of themselves.

Of course, there was nothing Amy could do except sulk in this misery. Alabama allowed termination without reason and there was no discrimination of a particular type of person (“good-hearted” is too small a faction to count). She was left with nothing except an ex-football player she hardly knew.

When that ex-football player came to her apartment the next day, he found her dead from a non-accidental overdose. In her lap was the last bill she had received from her loan agency, with “DNR” across it in bold black writing.

“As if these bastards would even bother,” muttered Vince angrier than at any other point in his life. He then, uncontrollably, punched through the wall with power no human should possess. He did so with his still tender right arm. He had called an ambulance already to announce her “Dead on Arrival.” They tended to his blood ridden arm taking him to the hospital to get an x-ray. The last time he would ever see Amy Briggs she was being carelessly prodded around in a way that she would never dare treat a person. The image would never leave Vince.

On July 4th 2015, Amy Briggs was pronounced dead. On Independence Day she had freed herself of the oppression that she came to know as life. There would be no ceremony like the one held for a football coach some 33 years before, but Vincent Cooper would cry that day like no man could have possibly cried for the holy “Bear.”

The tears cried by Vincent Cooper were of an endless stream. He didn’t know if a person could dehydrate his or herself on a fountain of sorrow permanently turned to “pour”, and the only person he knew to ask was in the morgue of the hospital she so despised. He had no desire to find out if this could happen; he had only one thing in his mind. Give the only Alabama student he wanted to call a teammate a little protection.

On the same day of freedom declaration, Vincent Cooper relieved himself of his own strangleholds, recent as they were. Vincent did not die a football player, and he did not die a hospital patient. He died on his own terms. Instead of fumbling the ball as he had once before, he simply laid the ball down on the midfield stripe and walked away smiling. He felt like this made him the single greatest player the game had ever seen. He was the only one to ever overcome it. Vincent Cooper died of gunshot wounds to the head, a head that had often been hidden beneath a white helmet. One thing from football did however pay off in the end. He could not manage to pull the trigger with his limp right hand and had to switch to his left. Years of being forced to use that hand and maintain a strong grip on the football allowed him to pull the trigger with ease even in the overwhelming feeling he ended his life with.

A similar DNR note was found on Cooper’s headless corpse. Except this one was not on paper. It was on the x-ray he received from the hospital. It showed scar tissue in his right wrist, scar tissue that had been forming for over 10 months. In other words, scar tissue that had formed before the Iron Bowl ever happened.

The next day, practice was cancelled for The University of Alabama football. Nick Saban could have easily lied and said this was due to the heat. This time he would not and never again. He spent the day founding a scholarship. A scholarship founded from Saban’s own pay, the scholarship board, his former players, and whoever the hell collects the lucrative profits of an Alabama Saturday. The scholarship would go towards “The jobs of necessity” as it would be coined. Jobs including education, surgeons, and of course- nursing. The scholarship would be called the “Saban-Cooper-Briggs” scholarship and it was Saban’s wish that this would continue to other schools, maybe even an act of congress. Saban, who was planning to announce an unexpected retirement at his next conference, prayed that this scholarship would become his legacy, overriding any on-field accomplishment. But he knew deep down these were merely dreams, and dreaming in this world seemed to leave you holding a sign that read “DNR.”

“I ain’t nothing but a winner”-Paul Bryant

And what a sad truth that is.

[goarticletec-blog]

Column: What happens if No. 1 Alabama loses to Georgia?

New Post has been published on https://www.articletec.com/column-what-happens-if-no-1-alabama-loses-to-georgia/

Column: What happens if No. 1 Alabama loses to Georgia?

ATLANTA (AP) – If Alabama wins the Southeastern Conference championship game, there’s little suspense.

Nick Saban’s dynasty – probably the greatest in college football history – heads back to the College Football Playoff as the No. 1 seed and an overwhelming favorite for its sixth national title in the past decade.

But what happens if the Crimson Tide loses to No. 4 Georgia ?

That’s where things could get very, very interesting.

Alabama has clearly been the nation’s best team since the first week of the season, a juggernaut on both sides of the line with Heisman Trophy winner-to-be Tua Tagovailoa guiding a dynamic offense to go along with another of those typically stout Saban defenses. The Crimson Tide’s closest game so far was decided by 22 points. The average margin of victory is a whopping 35 points – the sort of numbers that put this group firmly in the discussion for best team ever.

But No. 4 Georgia is no slouch. The Bulldogs slipped up once this season, losing badly at LSU, but they easily dispatched their other 11 opponents to earn another shot at Alabama, the team that beat them in last season’s dramatic national championship game .

While Alabama is a hefty 13 1/2-point favorite, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that Georgia could pull off an upset.

That scenario would be a nightmare for the selection committee, which would have to award Georgia one of its four coveted berths but would be hard-pressed not to give one to Alabama as well – especially if it’s another tight game.

For those suffering from SEC fatigue – see: the rest of the country – that would be hard pill to swallow.

“I certainly think the committee will be challenged in their evaluation” if Georgia beats Alabama, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey speculated Friday, not passing up a chance to do a little lobbying. “The SEC champion will clearly be one of the four teams, and I think if there are two 12-1 teams in this league, then it is clear you can justify both being two of the top four teams.”

Three playoff spots are almost surely accounted for: the Alabama-Georgia winner, No. 2 Clemson and No. 3 Notre Dame.

Clemson has to go through the formality of playing the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game Saturday night , but that shouldn’t be a problem against 27 1/2-point underdog Pittsburgh. Notre Dame made its case by wrapping up a 12-0 regular season last weekend . If Alabama wins the SEC title, the fourth spot should go to either No. 5 Oklahoma or No. 6 Ohio State.

Oklahoma faces Texas in the Big 12 title game , giving the Sooners a chance to avenge their only loss of the season. Ohio State takes on Northwestern for the Big Ten title , coming off a dominating win over Michigan that helped cover the blemish of that stunning loss to Purdue earlier in the season.

But an Alabama loss could bump both from playoff consideration, no matter how impressive they look in their conference championship games.

It’s hard to envision any scenario where the Tide gets left out.

Remember, it was only last season that top-ranked Alabama suffered its first loss against Auburn in the regular-season finale, knocking the Tide out of the SEC championship game. Then, after watching from the sideline as Georgia beat Auburn for the conference title, Saban’s team landed a playoff invite anyway.

The Bulldogs did, too, making the SEC the first conference in the playoff era to take up two spots.

While there was plenty of grumbling about the SEC getting favorable treatment, it was hard to argue with the committee’s logic. Ohio State won the Big Ten title, but the Buckeyes had a pair of losses on their resume. The Pac-12 had no one of consequence. Central Florida barked loudly about deserving a chance with its perfect record, but no one in their right mind thought the Knights were a better team than the Crimson Tide.

Alabama backed up the committee’s decision by cruising past Clemson in the semifinals , setting up an all-SEC national championship against Georgia. That game was one of the ages, the Tide rallying from a pair of 13-point deficits to beat the Bulldogs 26-23 in overtime on Tagovailoa’s 41-yard touchdown pass.

If Alabama stumbles again, it might tougher to give the Tide a second chance – especially if Oklahoma and Ohio State both win impressively. But the committee has shown its willingness to overlook Power Five conference champions in favor of what it views as the stronger team, also picking Ohio State in 2016 even though the Buckeyes didn’t even quality for the Big Ten title game. (That one didn’t work out so well; Ohio State was blitzed by eventual national champion Clemson 31-0 in the semifinals).

Saban shrugged off any speculation about his team’s playoff future during Friday’s final news conference before the SEC championship game.

“Our total focus is on this game,” he said. “I don’t really spend a lot of time worrying about what-ifs.”

Sankey tried to make a case for his conference deserving two teams in the playoff – no matter who wins Saturday.

“I actually think there’s an argument that Georgia is still one of the four best teams, even with two losses,” he said, pointing out that the SEC has eight of 25 teams in this week’s CFP rankings. “I go back to that unique rigor of our schedule. I know that the committee has indicated deep respect for the competition in this conference. They still merit consideration.”

Sorry, commish, now you’re just getting greedy.

But if Alabama loses?

You’ll probably get your wish.

___

Paul Newberry is a sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at [email protected] or at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 . His work can be found at https://apnews.com/search/paul%20newberry

___

For more AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Copyright © 2018 The Washington Times, LLC.

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[nflwblz]

Alabama Crimson Tide: 3 Potential Landmines During the Regular Season

Alabama Crimson Tide: 3 Potential Landmines During the Regular Season #RollTide #Bama #SEC

The Alabama Crimson Tide have the closest thing to a dynasty that you can have in modern day college football. Under Nick Saban, Bama has won five national championships over eleven years. This is almost unfathomable to imagine in an era of limited scholarships. It is also a testament to Saban’s staff that they are able to year in, year out, out-recruit the other SEC schools.

The Southeastern…

[investmart007]

No. 1 Alabama tops preseason Top 25; Clemson, Georgia next

New Post has been published on https://is.gd/GHEROq

No. 1 Alabama tops preseason Top 25; Clemson, Georgia next

Alabama will begin its quest for a second consecutive national championship with a rare three-peat.

The Crimson Tide is just the second team to be ranked No. 1 in the preseason Associated Press Top 25 poll for three straight seasons.

Alabama received 42 out of 61 first-place votes.

No. 2 Clemson received 18 first-place votes. Georgia is No. 3 and Wisconsin is fourth. The Badgers received one first-place vote. Ohio State was ranked No. 5.

The preseason AP poll started in 1950 and since then only Oklahoma from 1985-87 had started No. 1 in three straight years until now.

Ring up another milestone for coach Nick Saban’s Tide dynasty.

Alabama has won five national championships since 2009 and now has been No. 1 to start the season five times under Saban. Last season was the first time Saban’s team started and finished the season No. 1.

The Tide enter this season with a question at quarterback, but there appears to be two good answers from which Saban has to choose:

Tua Tagovailoa won the College Football Playoff championship game for Alabama with a second-half comeback and overtime touchdown pass. Jalen Hurts has led the Tide to the national title game in each of his two seasons as a starter.

Whoever is quarterback, Alabama’s offense should be potent with running back Damien Harris working behind a powerful line anchored by tackle Jonah Williams.

The Tide’s always tough defense will have all new starters in the secondary, but defensive end Raekwon Davis and linebackers Mack Wilson and Dylan Moses are primed to be Alabama’s next All-Americans.

The machine never stops in Tuscaloosa. One again, everybody is chasing Alabama.

NO. 1 AT BEING NO. 1 The AP poll began in 1936 and Alabama is approaching the top of a very storied list:

Ohio State — 105 weeks at No. 1 Alabama — 104 Oklahoma — 101 Notre Dame — 98 Southern California — 91 Florida State — 72 Nebraska — 70 PRESEASON FAVORITES This is Alabama’s seventh time overall being a preseason No. 1, matching USC for fourth most.

Oklahoma — 10 preseason No. 1 rankings Ohio State — 8 Alabama — 7 USC — 7 Florida State 6 Nebraska — 6 THE OTHER CHAMPS

Central Florida was the only team in the country to go undefeated last season and — you might have heard — the school decided to declare the Knights national champions because why not? This is college football and nobody is really in charge.

UCF is ranked in the Top 25 for the first time to the start the season, coming in 21st in the preseason poll. The Knights are the highest-ranked team not in a Power Five conference, one spot ahead of Boise State from the Mountain West. If that ranking after going unbeaten seems unusually low, it is but it is not unprecedented. In the CFP/BCS era (1998-present), 19 teams have had unbeaten seasons. Three of those teams — 1998 Tulane, 1999 Marshall, 2004 Utah — were unranked in the preseason poll the next season. Not surprisingly, all those teams played outside of what were then called BCS automatic qualifying conferences. Five other teams were ranked outside the top 10, including three from outside BCS-auto bid leagues. Boise State in 2007 was No. 24 in the preseason. Utah in 2009 started 19th. TCU began 2011 at No. 14.

The only so-called power conference team to go unbeaten in the BCS/CFP era and be ranked similarly low the next season was Auburn — twice. After going 13-0 in 2004, the Tigers started 2005 ranked 16th. After Cam Newton led Auburn to the 2010 national title, the Newton-less Tigers were ranked No. 23 to begin 2011.

NOTABLE

— No. 2 Clemson matched its best preseason ranking. The Tigers were No. 2 in 2016 and went on to win the national championship.

— No. 4 Wisconsin has its best preseason ranking since 2000, when it was also No. 4. The Badgers also had one first-place vote that year.

— No. 5 Ohio State is making it 30th straight appearance in the preseason rankings (1989-2018). Only Penn State (34) and Nebraska (33) have had longer streaks.

— No. 6 Washington has its best preseason ranking since 1997, when the Huskies were No. 4.

— No. 8 Miami has its best preseason ranking since being No. 6 to start the 2004 season.

— No. 18 Mississippi State has its best preseason ranking since 1981, when the Bulldogs were No. 14.

CONFERENCE CALL SEC — 6 (3 top 10) Big Ten — 5 (all top 15) ACC — 4 Big 12 — 4 Pac-12 — 3 American — 1 Mountain West — 1 Independent — 1

By RALPH D. RUSSO, Associated Press

[zeroviraluniverse-blog]

Nick Saban Alabama Crimson Tide future coaching plans

Visit Now - http://zeroviral.com/nick-saban-alabama-crimson-tide-future-coaching-plans/

Nick Saban Alabama Crimson Tide future coaching plans

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Earlier this month, Alabama coach Nick Saban finally got to enjoy his first full day off in Tuscaloosa since the season ended. Sure, he’d spent a few days vacationing in Florida and even played golf at Augusta National, but this was his first time to kick back and relax at the house, enjoying the aftermath of another national title.

At one point, Saban turned to his wife, Terry, and joked, “What the hell are we going to do the rest of the day?”

It was 8 a.m.

For a guy who hears with increasing frequency that he might be nearing the finish line — perhaps wishful thinking from rival recruiters as much as anything — the 66-year-old Saban isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, as Alabama begins another year of spring practice on Tuesday. And for that matter, he can’t imagine what he would do if he weren’t coaching football.

“That’s what everybody keeps saying, that I’m not going to be doing this for much longer, and all the people who say it have no idea what I’m going to do,” Saban told ESPN during a wide-ranging interview. “I’ve been involved in some fashion with football and being a part of a football team ever since I can remember. I don’t know what it would be like not doing it and don’t want to know.”

One of Saban’s former coaching rivals, Hall of Famer Steve Spurrier, said the rest of the college football world might want to take Saban at his word when he says retirement hasn’t crossed his mind. The two talked after Spurrier stepped down during the 2015 season, and Spurrier said their conversation was telling.

“Nick ain’t thinking about retiring, not even close,” Spurrier said. “He can go into his 70s easy, and I think he will.

“I told him he won’t retire until he loses three games in a season. He told me, ‘If I ever lose three games around here again, they might kill me.’ I think he was joking, but I’m not sure.”

Kidding aside, Saban enters his 12th season at Alabama in tiptop shape. He’s a notoriously light eater and weighs exactly the same (180 pounds) as he did during his senior season at Kent State in 1972. His pace — be it on the recruiting trail, the practice field or one of his pickup basketball games — remains as relentless as ever.

“The way I look at it is, as long as I’m healthy and as long as I feel that I can do a good job, I want to keep doing it because I enjoy doing it,” Saban said. “What I don’t want to do is just stay forever, forever and forever and ride the program down where I’m not creating value. I would never want to do that, and I think I’m a long ways from doing that. I don’t want to talk about anybody else, but there have been a couple of coaches where their legacy was tarnished by them maybe doing it longer than they should have. That won’t be me.”

Saban’s chase for coaching immortality is real, even though he shrugs it off as “clutter” that gets in the way of preparing his team each year. Yes, he’s aware of the monster he’s created at Alabama. And, yes, he’s aware you have to keep feeding that monster. But he doesn’t agree that he or his program are defined purely by the number of championships the Tide rake in.

“I don’t base being successful on what the standard is on the outside,” Saban said. “I agree that the expectation is that we have to win the national championship every year. That’s what it’s become here. But I don’t think having a good program necessarily is totally relevant to how many national championships you win.”

Jamie Gilliam/Icon Sportswire

Saban, who has guided Alabama to an unprecedented five national championships in nine years, also isn’t naïve.

“You’ve got to win games to survive. I get that,” Saban said. “But to make that the standard anywhere, winning five national championships in nine years … it’s just not realistic. Nobody had ever won five championships in nine years, and now the expectation is that you’re supposed to win every year? It’s not going to happen.”

As fiercely driven and competitive as Saban is, senior running back Damien Harris said one of the big misnomers about Alabama’s program is that everything is geared solely toward winning championships.

“People on the outside look at the winning and the success we’ve had and the dynasty coach Saban has built, and then you get here and realize this place is about a lot more than that,” Harris said. “Yes, we want to win, dominate our opponents and be the toughest team, but at the end of the day, this place is 100 percent about the grind, the buy-in from everybody and the commitment to excellence, and that’s all Coach Saban.

“We’re proud of the championships we’ve won here, but not once have I heard Coach Saban use that as motivation, that we’ve got to win championships. It’s not about the destination. It’s about the journey, and I think that’s what keeps him going.”

But what a journey it’s been.

To win five national championships in nine years is dizzying enough, but Alabama’s .899 winning percentage over the past decade is the best of any major college school over a 10-year span since Bud Wilkinson and Oklahoma were dominating the sport from the late 1940s through the late 1950s. Alabama’s 125 wins over the past decade are the most for any FBS school during a 10-year span in the Associated Press poll era (since 1936), according to ESPN Stats & Information.

Just as impressive is that Alabama never has a real letdown. The Tide have lost just one game to a team ranked outside the top 15 in the AP poll in the past 10 years, that lone loss coming to Spurrier’s No. 19 South Carolina Gamecocks in 2010. For perspective, Ohio State has lost 10 games to teams ranked outside the top 15 during that same span, Oklahoma 13 games, Florida State 20 games, Clemson 21 games and USC 26 games.

Since Saban’s second season in 2008, Alabama has played just three regular-season games in which it hasn’t been legitimately in the national championship conversation, the three games against Mississippi State, Georgia State and Auburn in 2010 after losing 24-21 at LSU on Nov. 6.

In the Crimson Tide’s five national championship seasons under Saban, they went 17-2 against Top 10 opponents, and since the start of Saban’s second season in Tuscaloosa in 2008 they’re 27-9 overall against Top 10 foes.

“I know everybody has their own interpretation of who coach Saban is and people get caught up in all of the wins and all of the championships,” Harris said. “But what separates coach Saban is his ability to bring out the best in every one of his players.”

Saban is the first to admit he’s old school in a lot of ways, but that doesn’t mean he’s unwilling to adapt. This will be his youngest coaching staff since he’s been at Alabama, and despite massive turnover on his staff the last few years, there’s been zero slippage in the program.

“Just because we change people, we don’t change philosophy,” said Saban, whose 2018 staff won’t include a single on-field coach from the 2015 national championship staff in the same role. “We don’t change what we do, how we want to do it or why it’s important to do it a certain way.

“The people that we hire don’t come in and re-invent the wheel. They implement the philosophy that we have. Now, they have input and we make changes. We change all the time. I’m always looking for a better way. And when you get new people, you get new ideas, and that’s a good thing. But the basic core of what we do, we don’t change. You define the expectation for everybody, and this is (Bill) Belichick through and through and where I learned it, because then it’s easy for people who understand what the expectation is to be accountable to it.”

Five of Saban’s former assistants from the past three years are now head coaches elsewhere — Kirby Smart at Georgia, Jeremy Pruitt at Tennessee, Mario Cristobal at Oregon, Lane Kiffin at Florida Atlantic and Billy Napier at Louisiana.

So it wasn’t by accident that this Alabama staff is so young. Newcomers Pete Golding and Karl Scott on defense and Josh Gattis on offense are all in their early-to-mid 30s, meaning five of the Crimson Tide’s 10 on-field assistant coaches are under 40.

“I was making a conscious attempt to get younger,” Saban said. “If you look through the years, until lately, I always had young guys. I had a real young staff at LSU and look at all the young guys I’ve had over the years who emerged as really good coaches. They have more energy in recruiting, which is important, and they relate to the players better. It wasn’t like we got rid of guys. They got better jobs, but I was looking to get younger.”

That doesn’t mean Saban is ready to say this infusion of fresh blood has given him more juice, although he has noticed one difference.

“I’ve got a little more patience than I used to have, but that’s been a gradual thing through the years in philosophy of dealing with coaches and handling players and helping players,” Saban said. “They respond better when you listen to what they have to say. Now, what is right for them or what is the right thing to do is still the right thing to do, but the approach is a little different.”

Smart, whose first meeting against his old boss was the loss in the national championship game a year ago, said his enduring takeaway from all those years working under Saban was very simply that you hold everybody’s feet to the fire and hold everybody accountable.

“And that goes for every single meeting, every single drill, every single practice and every single day,” Smart said.

Or as Saban likes to remind his coaches, “If you ain’t coaching it, then you’re letting it happen.”

One thing we know about Saban is that he’s going to keep coaching it, the only way he knows how.

“He’s as invested as he’s ever been, and I don’t see him leaving any time soon,” Harris said.

[junker-town]

Clemson’s win streaks vs. almost every champ of last 20 years

No national champion from 1998 onward would go on to have a winning record against Clemson.

College football is cyclical in some ways, with the same teams staying on top for long stretches, so I’m sure this kind of thing has happened several times in its history.

But this still goes to show Clemson has been building something excellent for almost a decade now. It’s sometimes easy to forget how many good teams the Tigers have beaten during their transformation from promising program to consistent winner to consistent champ. This team is a whole lot more than just the lil underdog that beats Bama.

First, let’s run through the last decade of national championship programs.

Sure, much of this list boils down to “Clemson blew out Nick Saban’s Alabama,” but since Clemson was the first team to ever do that, that’s fine!

2018: Clemson is Clemson.

2017: Alabama lost to Clemson by 32 total points the year before and after this.

2016: Clemson is Clemson.

2015: Alabama’s perfect record in official title games would soon be ruined by Clemson (twice).

2014: Ohio State lost to Clemson by 36 total points shortly before and shortly after this. I don’t want 44-16 to make us forget about 31-0.

THE BAND HAS MEMES pic.twitter.com/76CA3QyU6y

— DEATH VALLEY RECORDS (@STSouthland) September 2, 2017

2013: Florida State is 1-4 against Clemson since, losing by as many as 49.

2012: Alabama would soon lose two title games against Clemson by a total of 32 points, icymi.

2011: Alabama would soon lose two title games against Clemson by a total of 32 points, icymi.

2010: Auburn is 0-4 against Clemson since.

2009: Alabama would soon lose two title games against Clemson by a total of 32 points, icymi. This was Saban’s first title at Bama, after which he’d go 2-2 against Clemson. (His Bama also beat Clemson in 2008, but that doesn’t fit our scope here.)

At that point, we find Clemson needs to schedule a few upcoming games, in order to complete the millennium.

However, no champ has bragging rights over the Tigers until you exit the BCS era:

2008: Florida and Clemson haven’t played since.

2007: LSU is 0-1 against Clemson since.

2006: Florida and Clemson haven’t played since.

2005: Texas and Clemson have never played.

2004: Well, Clemson owns the other USC, but these two haven’t played.

2003: LSU is 0-1 against Clemson since.

2002: Ohio State is 0-2 against Clemson since.

THE BAND HAS MEMES pic.twitter.com/76CA3QyU6y

— DEATH VALLEY RECORDS (@STSouthland) September 2, 2017

2001: Miami is 2-4 against Clemson since, including a recent 93-3 margin in our present timeline.

2000: Oklahoma is 0-2 against Clemson since.

1999: This is a fun one, because Florida State was still amid one of the sport’s greatest dynasties ever, but is 9-10 against Clemson since this season anyway.

1998: Tennessee is 0-1 against Clemson since, and that wasn’t even Dabo Swinney’s team yet. We’ll cut it at 21 years.

1997 was our last true split title. Nebraska is 1-0 against Clemson since, and Michigan has never played the Tigers, so let’s stop there.

Clemson also often plays Notre Dame and has recently beaten the Irish even worse than it beat Saban’s Alabama (if you can imagine a beating worse than that), but we don’t have time to dig back far enough into history to find national titles won by Notre Dame. Frankly, going that deep into the ancient vaults sounds spooky. Pressing publish.

[koreybarnettcollection]

Think of FSU Defense as ‘The House’ – and the Odds Always are in Favor of the House in the Long Run

“Ag-ile. Mob-ile. Host-ile.”

That’s how I grew up learning how defense was played – fast, aggressive and violent.

For years, those were the hallmarks of the FSU defense and, truthfully, the backbone of the dynasty-era Bobby Bowden teams. The defenses looked like the man running them, and that sentence alone should put pictures of Mickey Andrews in your head.

Statistically, the FSU defense hasn’t been that bad of late, but a lot of that luster is gone. “That bad” isn’t the standard for a program that hasn’t had a losing season in my lifetime.

Fans want success. Success is in the details: teaching, accountability, game plan and scheme. Defense is reactionary and about instinct. It’s second nature, not necessarily thinking. Run to the ball, be fundamentally sound and be physical. Be relentless.

Simplicity is lethal in the new era. New Florida State coach Willie Taggart hired Harlon Barnett as his defensive coordinator, and he coaches a system he has been immersed in for years, one that has been used since Nick Saban was at Michigan State in the late 1990s. I called Taggart’s offense “Rock-Paper-Scissors” recently. My view of the defense is just as simple: “The House.” If you know about gambling, the house always wins. Vegas can be beat, but in this defense, like what happens in Vegas, the odds always are in favor of the house in the long run.

There has been much discussion about what kind of defense FSU is going to run. One theme has been heard over and over: “I hope we don’t run that Charles Kelly bull!” Well, I’m sorry, but it’s going to be basically the same thing. At the least, it will have a lot of similarities – with better teaching, more accountability, better game planning and a better understanding of how to use the scheme.

RELATED: A 36-player checklist for Willie Taggart and FSU’s 2019 recruiting class

Kelly was a coach who tried to run someone else’s system; Barnett was made in the system. The biggest difference – and this should make FSU fans happy – is what will be done on third down. Another difference is the “star” position and how it will look. You’ll see more exotic looks. Barnett is masterful at disguising coverages and blitzes, and that’s why he’s been so successful as a position coach as well as a coordinator

It’s a 4-2-5 set but with different stripes. The line is going to use a lot of one gap and play downhill; the read-and-react, two gap days are over. And the “star” – the fifth defensive back – is a different player in this scheme. In Barnett’s scheme, it’s a hybrid linebacker/defensive back type. For comparison’s sake, Jalen Ramsey and Lamarcus Joyner played the “star” in the old scheme; in this one, you’d want a Derrick Brooks or Telvin Smith type. Truthfully, Derwin James might have seen another level of success had he stayed.

As for coverage. I’ve looked at film and – more important — asked questions of guys who know more than me about defense. FSU will play a lot of Cover 4, load the box, play press man and force you to beat the DBs deep. I know what you’re thinking: “Which is it, Cover 4 or man?”

Quarters, in simplicity, is essentially man-to-man in the college concept. The buzz word for high school defenses right now is palms coverage. Quarters comes from what you do on your inside routes. You’re trying to take the seams away and make the offense settle for low-percentage throws. You use the sideline as an extra defender. This coverage allows for multiple looks from your front seven and gives you the ability to have a loaded-box look for run-heavy offenses.

RELATED: Bobby Bowden-era mat drills made a difference in those Florida State teams

Barnett was successful with talent that he developed in the Big Ten. To do that you must have cats on the outside. It’ll be a man look, but you’ll get disguises from time to time. Florida State recruits areas loaded with speed.

Barnett is the casino manager. The offense is a gambler and he’s the house playing the odds. The only way the gambler wins is by beating the odds. Barnett is forcing the offense to rely on low-percentage plays to win. The longer you play, the more those odds regress to the mean and the more the house wins.

It’s the perfect defense to complement a tempo offense. The defense wants to take away the run, force the short and intermediate stuff to get you in third-and-long (or, as FSU fans have called it, “third-and-Kelly”), then force you to beat it over the top. This should generate a lot of turnovers because the secondary will be allowed to play aggressive, and most of what FSU has or has coming in is long, fast and athletic defenders.

RELATED: A 6-point plan for Willie Taggart to get FSU back to its dominant ways

In summation, the idea is to take away high-percentage plays and make opponents beat you with low-percentage passes. Lull you to sleep, watch you double-down on a bad bet and suddenly, it’s double coverage or a blitz you didn’t see and pit boss Barnett takes all your chips with a smile on your face. Keep playing the odds and you’ll eventually lose because the house always wins.

Article Originally Appeared on Gridiron Now: http://gridironnow.com/fsu-defense-harlon-barnett-odds-house/

See more information on: Sports Den Live Blog

[ralphcowanhub]

Think of FSU Defense as ‘The House’ – and the Odds Always are in Favor of the House in the Long Run

“Ag-ile. Mob-ile. Host-ile.”

That’s how I grew up learning how defense was played – fast, aggressive and violent.

For years, those were the hallmarks of the FSU defense and, truthfully, the backbone of the dynasty-era Bobby Bowden teams. The defenses looked like the man running them, and that sentence alone should put pictures of Mickey Andrews in your head.

Statistically, the FSU defense hasn’t been that bad of late, but a lot of that luster is gone. “That bad” isn’t the standard for a program that hasn’t had a losing season in my lifetime.

Fans want success. Success is in the details: teaching, accountability, game plan and scheme. Defense is reactionary and about instinct. It’s second nature, not necessarily thinking. Run to the ball, be fundamentally sound and be physical. Be relentless.

Simplicity is lethal in the new era. New Florida State coach Willie Taggart hired Harlon Barnett as his defensive coordinator, and he coaches a system he has been immersed in for years, one that has been used since Nick Saban was at Michigan State in the late 1990s. I called Taggart’s offense “Rock-Paper-Scissors” recently. My view of the defense is just as simple: “The House.” If you know about gambling, the house always wins. Vegas can be beat, but in this defense, like what happens in Vegas, the odds always are in favor of the house in the long run.

There has been much discussion about what kind of defense FSU is going to run. One theme has been heard over and over: “I hope we don’t run that Charles Kelly bull!” Well, I’m sorry, but it’s going to be basically the same thing. At the least, it will have a lot of similarities – with better teaching, more accountability, better game planning and a better understanding of how to use the scheme.

RELATED: A 36-player checklist for Willie Taggart and FSU’s 2019 recruiting class

Kelly was a coach who tried to run someone else’s system; Barnett was made in the system. The biggest difference – and this should make FSU fans happy – is what will be done on third down. Another difference is the “star” position and how it will look. You’ll see more exotic looks. Barnett is masterful at disguising coverages and blitzes, and that’s why he’s been so successful as a position coach as well as a coordinator

It’s a 4-2-5 set but with different stripes. The line is going to use a lot of one gap and play downhill; the read-and-react, two gap days are over. And the “star” – the fifth defensive back – is a different player in this scheme. In Barnett’s scheme, it’s a hybrid linebacker/defensive back type. For comparison’s sake, Jalen Ramsey and Lamarcus Joyner played the “star” in the old scheme; in this one, you’d want a Derrick Brooks or Telvin Smith type. Truthfully, Derwin James might have seen another level of success had he stayed.

As for coverage. I’ve looked at film and – more important — asked questions of guys who know more than me about defense. FSU will play a lot of Cover 4, load the box, play press man and force you to beat the DBs deep. I know what you’re thinking: “Which is it, Cover 4 or man?”

Quarters, in simplicity, is essentially man-to-man in the college concept. The buzz word for high school defenses right now is palms coverage. Quarters comes from what you do on your inside routes. You’re trying to take the seams away and make the offense settle for low-percentage throws. You use the sideline as an extra defender. This coverage allows for multiple looks from your front seven and gives you the ability to have a loaded-box look for run-heavy offenses.

RELATED: Bobby Bowden-era mat drills made a difference in those Florida State teams

Barnett was successful with talent that he developed in the Big Ten. To do that you must have cats on the outside. It’ll be a man look, but you’ll get disguises from time to time. Florida State recruits areas loaded with speed.

Barnett is the casino manager. The offense is a gambler and he’s the house playing the odds. The only way the gambler wins is by beating the odds. Barnett is forcing the offense to rely on low-percentage plays to win. The longer you play, the more those odds regress to the mean and the more the house wins.

It’s the perfect defense to complement a tempo offense. The defense wants to take away the run, force the short and intermediate stuff to get you in third-and-long (or, as FSU fans have called it, “third-and-Kelly”), then force you to beat it over the top. This should generate a lot of turnovers because the secondary will be allowed to play aggressive, and most of what FSU has or has coming in is long, fast and athletic defenders.

RELATED: A 6-point plan for Willie Taggart to get FSU back to its dominant ways

In summation, the idea is to take away high-percentage plays and make opponents beat you with low-percentage passes. Lull you to sleep, watch you double-down on a bad bet and suddenly, it’s double coverage or a blitz you didn’t see and pit boss Barnett takes all your chips with a smile on your face. Keep playing the odds and you’ll eventually lose because the house always wins.

Article Originally Appeared on Gridiron Now: http://gridironnow.com/fsu-defense-harlon-barnett-odds-house/

Read more info on: http://sportsdenlive.com/

[sportsdenjax]

Think of FSU Defense as ‘The House’ – and the Odds Always are in Favor of the House in the Long Run

“Ag-ile. Mob-ile. Host-ile.”

That’s how I grew up learning how defense was played – fast, aggressive and violent.

For years, those were the hallmarks of the FSU defense and, truthfully, the backbone of the dynasty-era Bobby Bowden teams. The defenses looked like the man running them, and that sentence alone should put pictures of Mickey Andrews in your head.

Statistically, the FSU defense hasn’t been that bad of late, but a lot of that luster is gone. “That bad” isn’t the standard for a program that hasn’t had a losing season in my lifetime.

Fans want success. Success is in the details: teaching, accountability, game plan and scheme. Defense is reactionary and about instinct. It’s second nature, not necessarily thinking. Run to the ball, be fundamentally sound and be physical. Be relentless.

Simplicity is lethal in the new era. New Florida State coach Willie Taggart hired Harlon Barnett as his defensive coordinator, and he coaches a system he has been immersed in for years, one that has been used since Nick Saban was at Michigan State in the late 1990s. I called Taggart’s offense “Rock-Paper-Scissors” recently. My view of the defense is just as simple: “The House.” If you know about gambling, the house always wins. Vegas can be beat, but in this defense, like what happens in Vegas, the odds always are in favor of the house in the long run.

There has been much discussion about what kind of defense FSU is going to run. One theme has been heard over and over: “I hope we don’t run that Charles Kelly bull!” Well, I’m sorry, but it’s going to be basically the same thing. At the least, it will have a lot of similarities – with better teaching, more accountability, better game planning and a better understanding of how to use the scheme.

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Kelly was a coach who tried to run someone else’s system; Barnett was made in the system. The biggest difference – and this should make FSU fans happy – is what will be done on third down. Another difference is the “star” position and how it will look. You’ll see more exotic looks. Barnett is masterful at disguising coverages and blitzes, and that’s why he’s been so successful as a position coach as well as a coordinator

It’s a 4-2-5 set but with different stripes. The line is going to use a lot of one gap and play downhill; the read-and-react, two gap days are over. And the “star” – the fifth defensive back – is a different player in this scheme. In Barnett’s scheme, it’s a hybrid linebacker/defensive back type. For comparison’s sake, Jalen Ramsey and Lamarcus Joyner played the “star” in the old scheme; in this one, you’d want a Derrick Brooks or Telvin Smith type. Truthfully, Derwin James might have seen another level of success had he stayed.

As for coverage. I’ve looked at film and – more important — asked questions of guys who know more than me about defense. FSU will play a lot of Cover 4, load the box, play press man and force you to beat the DBs deep. I know what you’re thinking: “Which is it, Cover 4 or man?”

Quarters, in simplicity, is essentially man-to-man in the college concept. The buzz word for high school defenses right now is palms coverage. Quarters comes from what you do on your inside routes. You’re trying to take the seams away and make the offense settle for low-percentage throws. You use the sideline as an extra defender. This coverage allows for multiple looks from your front seven and gives you the ability to have a loaded-box look for run-heavy offenses.

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Barnett was successful with talent that he developed in the Big Ten. To do that you must have cats on the outside. It’ll be a man look, but you’ll get disguises from time to time. Florida State recruits areas loaded with speed.

Barnett is the casino manager. The offense is a gambler and he’s the house playing the odds. The only way the gambler wins is by beating the odds. Barnett is forcing the offense to rely on low-percentage plays to win. The longer you play, the more those odds regress to the mean and the more the house wins.

It’s the perfect defense to complement a tempo offense. The defense wants to take away the run, force the short and intermediate stuff to get you in third-and-long (or, as FSU fans have called it, “third-and-Kelly”), then force you to beat it over the top. This should generate a lot of turnovers because the secondary will be allowed to play aggressive, and most of what FSU has or has coming in is long, fast and athletic defenders.

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In summation, the idea is to take away high-percentage plays and make opponents beat you with low-percentage passes. Lull you to sleep, watch you double-down on a bad bet and suddenly, it’s double coverage or a blitz you didn’t see and pit boss Barnett takes all your chips with a smile on your face. Keep playing the odds and you’ll eventually lose because the house always wins.

Article Originally Appeared on Gridiron Now: http://gridironnow.com/fsu-defense-harlon-barnett-odds-house/

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