Bama Track & Field To Compete This Weekend; Crimson Tide's Patrick Murphy Is Team USA Coaching Candidate; UA Athletics Places 78 On 2016 Fall SEC Honor Roll; Two From Bama Men's Tennis In ITA Division I Men's Singles Rankings; Is Chip Kelly Interested In Alabama Football Vacancy?

Alabama Track & Field To Compete This Weekend

Photo Credit: UA Athletics

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – The University of Alabama track and field teams will be participating in two separate meets this coming weekend. A contingent of Crimson Tide distance runners will make their way to Ames, Iowa for the Iowa State Classic, with the remainder of the men's & women's teams heading to Clemson for the Tiger Paw Invitational in their second meet of the season. Both meets are scheduled for February 10th and 11th.

Alabama track and field head coach Dan Waters said,  "This is a unique weekend, with our athletes competing at two different meets. But with this being our last scheduled weekend of competition before the SEC Championships, it's important to have both teams as sharp as possible. Both meets this weekend provide us with an optimal level of competition for all of our athletes."

The Crimson Tide men are currently ranked No. 11 and the women moved up three spots to No. 17 in the most recent U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Indoor National Team Rankings. Regionally, the Bama men are No. 1 in the South Region while the women are ranked No. 2.

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Alabama Crimson Tide Softball's Patrick Murphy

Is Team USA Coaching Candidate

UA Softball head coach Patrick Murphy
Photo Credit: UA Athletics

OKLAHOMA CITY – University of Alabama softball head coach Patrick Murphy has been afforded another national honor. Murphy is one of 22 candidates selected by USA Softball on Wednesday for consideration to coach in international competition over the next three years.

Murphy is one of nine current collegiate head coaches that have been placed on this prestigious list, and one of four candidates from the Southeastern Conference. Head coaches and assistant coaches for the Women's National Team (WNT) and Junior Women's National Team (JWNT) will be selected from this list for all competitions for the years  2017, 2018 and 2019. The 22 candidates may be required to participate in international events, player evaluations, selection camps and other specified events as part of the evaluation process.

The schedule for the WNT and JWNT has yet to be finalized for the 2017-19 cycle, but those international calendars are highlighted by the 2017 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Junior Women's World Championship in Clearwater, Florida, 2018 WBSC Women's World Championship in Chiba, Japan, the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru and the 2019 WBSC Junior Women's World Championship in Irvine, California.


Murphy is currently in his 19th season leading the Crimson Tide softball team in Tuscaloosa, and is certainly no stranger to international competition. In 2010, he coached the JWNT in Bogata, Columbia after serving as an assistant coach for Team USA in 2009 where he helped lead the Americans to gold at the Pan Am Qualifier. In 2004, Murphy was the hitting coach for the Canadian national team that finished fourth at the 2004 Olympics.

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University Of Alabama Athletics Places 78 On 

2016 Fall SEC Honor Roll

Photo Credit: UA Athletics

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - The Southeastern Conference office has announced that the University of Alabama has placed 78 student-athletes on the 2016 Fall Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll.

The SEC and UA announce a total of 35 members of the Alabama Crimson Tide's 2016 Southeastern Conference championship football team earned a place on the honor roll. Among those members of the football team are such football stars as starters O.J. Howard, JK Scott, Tony Brown, Cole Mazza, Hale Hentges and Ross Pierschbacher. Alabama football had the second-most members among the 14 SEC football programs. Arkansas was first.

In all, there were 12 members from the Crimson Tide's volleyball team, including All-American and Academic All-American Krystal Rivers. Again, Alabama was ranked second among the volleyball squads. Bama also had 15 members of the soccer team make the academic honor roll, 11 members of the women's cross country squad and five from the men's cross country team.

To earn a place on the honor roll, a student-athlete must earn a 3.0 or better grade point average for either the preceding academic year or their career and be a sophomore or better in academic standing. The Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll is based on the 2016 spring, summer and fall terms. Any student-athlete who participates in an SEC championship sport or a student-athlete who participates in a sport listed on his/her institution's NCAA Sports Sponsorship Form is eligible for nomination to the Academic Honor Roll.

The Southeastern Conference will release a winter and spring honor roll in the months to come and recognizes its first-year student-athletes based on grades from the fall and spring semester with an honor roll that is released in June.

Here is a look at the 2016 University of Alabama 2016 Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll:

Student-Athlete	Sport	Major
Tony Brown	Football	Communication Studies
Richie Petitbon	Football	Communication Studies
Brandon Moore	Football	Consumer Sciences
Jacob Parker	Football	Finance
Jonathan Rice	Football	Finance
Donovan Mosley	Football	General Business
JK Scott	Football	General Business
Michael Woods	Football	General Business
Joshua Casher	Football	HPES
Will Davis	Football	HPES
J.C. Hassenauer	Football	HPES
Keith Holcombe	Football	HPES
Derek Kief	Football	HPES
Cole Mazza	Football	HPES
Christian Miller	Football	HPES
Jamey Mosley	Football	HPES
Keaton Anderson	Football	Management
David Cornwell	Football	Management
Bo Grant	Football	Management
Truett Harris	Football	Management
Cooper Bateman	Football	Marketing
Hunter Bryant	Football	Marketing
Derrick Garnett	Football	Marketing
Hale Hentges	Football	Marketing
Jake Long	Football	Marketing
Ross Pierschbacher	Football	Marketing
Thomas Woods	Football	Marketing
Josh McMillon	Football	Mechanical Engineering
Lawrence Erekosima	Football	Psychology
Brandon Kennedy	Football	Psychology
Joseph Harvey	Football	RHM
Dakota Ball	Football	Sports Business Management
Brandon Greene	Football	Sports Business Management
O.J. Howard	Football	Sports Business Management
Alphonse Taylor	Football	Sports Business Management
Payton Ballard	M Cross Country	Accounting
Conner Ferrentino	M Cross Country	Accounting/Finance
Clay Austell	M Cross Country	Computer Science
Conner Thompson	M Cross Country	Mechanical Engineering
Josh Short	M Cross Country	Political Science
Leah Lawrence	Volleyball	Accounting
Shannon Mikesky	Volleyball	Accounting
Kathryn Hutson	Volleyball	Advertising
Alexa Tomlak	Volleyball	Biology
Jennifer Casillas	Volleyball	General Studies
Abolanle Onipede	Volleyball	General Studies
Brooke Feld	Volleyball	Marketing
Brittany Thomas	Volleyball	Marketing
Emily Stebbins	Volleyball	Psychology
Quincey Gary	Volleyball	Public Relations
Natalie Murison	Volleyball	Public Relations
Krytal Rivers	Volleyball	Spanish
Nicole Gardner	W Cross Country	Biology/Psychology
Ebie Douglas	W Cross Country	Elementary Education
Jessica Gray	W Cross Country	Exercise Science
Brianna Koshy	W Cross Country	Exercise Science
Alison Ringle	W Cross Country	Exercise Science
Hannah Waggoner	W Cross Country	Mechanical Engineering
Calli Coggins	W Cross Country	Nutrition
Sarah Mohan	W Cross Country	Nutrition
Rachael Reddy	W Cross Country	Nutrition
Caroline Barlow	W Cross Country	Psychology
Kaitlin York	W Cross Country	Psychology
Madison Anzelc	W Soccer	Biology and Psychology
Alexis Mouton	W Soccer	Chemical Engineering
Jordan Meier	W Soccer	Civil Engineering
Catherine Jorgensen	W Soccer	Communication Studies
Tori Gann	W Soccer	General Business
Christina Martensson	W Soccer	General Business
Elena Zang	W Soccer	General Business
Hailey Brohaugh	W Soccer	Human Performance Exercise Science
Auburn Mercer	W Soccer	Human Performance Exercise Science
Kat Stratton	W Soccer	Human Performance Exercise Science
Emma Welch	W Soccer	Marketing
Caroline Alexander	W Soccer	Public Relations
Lacey Clarida	W Soccer	Public Relations
Chatham DeProspo	W Soccer	Public Relations
Chloe Maize	W Soccer	Public Relations

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Two From Alabama Men's Tennis

In ITA Division I Men's Singles Rankings

Photo Credit: UA Athletics

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – Two more student-athletes from the University of Alabama athletic department have received national honors.  The Alabama men's tennis team has two players featured in the singles Division I Men's Collegiate Tennis Rankings, released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association on Wednesday.

Alabama freshman standout Thibault Cancel has been ranked No. 82 in singles play in this set of rankings. Cancel also earned his first Southeastern Conference Freshman Player of the Week accolade for this week, as announced by the SEC office earlier.  Cancel is tied for first on the team for the best singles record since beginning dual play at 5-1. In singles play, Cancel has compiled an overall 11-3 record this season, including a 5-1 mark form the No 2 singles spot.

Sophomore Mazen Osama  is ranked at No. 92 in singles play. Osama has compiled an 11-5 mark in singles play this season, including a 3-2 record since beginning dual play. All five of Osama's matches in dual play came from the No. 1 singles position, where he has a 1-2 mark against nationally-ranked opponents.

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Is Chip Kelly Interested In Alabama Football Vacancy?

Chip Kelly
Photo taken from Bing.com

Questions have arisen as to the actual interest level of Chip Kelly to replace departed University of Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian who less than two months earlier replaced departed Lane Kiffin. It appears to be a "mixed bag."

Jason Cole of the Bleacher Report says that Kelly has no interest in the job, and that he is, in fact, focusing on landing another NFL head coaching job, or at the very least, an NFL offensive coordinator job.

Adam Schefter, however, of ESPN says that Kelly is indeed a candidate. Not only that, but Schefter says that Kelly has spoken with Alabama football head coach Nick Saban recently.

Kelly is the former head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers of the NFL as well as the Oregon Ducks in the college football ranks.

Oh, and Skip Bayless of Fox Sports threw in his two-cents worth, saying, "There is no way this can work. We're talking about two bull elephants here in Saint Nick and Chip Kelly. These two have two of the biggest egos I've ever been around. These two each think they are the smartest man in every room, and all of a sudden they would be in the same room. They might have to be separated occasionally.

"Can you imagine Nick Saban throwing a fit in the face of Chip Kelly on the sideline during a game for calling the wrong plays? You'd see the first walk-off by an offensive coordinator because Chip Kelly would walk right to the locker room and say, 'You can take this job and do you know what with it.' It won't work. I like it in concept, but those two won't fit together."