Greatest Names In Bama Football History-Cornelius Bennett
One of the truly great names in Alabama football history is Cornelius O'Landa Bennett, born August 25, 1965 in Birmingham, Alabama.
Bennett's football career began at Ensley High School in Birmingham, Alabama. He played numerous positions, including halfback on offense and several defensive positions. Not only a great football player, he was an excellent basketball player as well. In football he gained over 1,000 yards carrying the ball 101 times. He was given the nickname "Biscuit" because of his tan complexion.
Bennett played for the Crimson Tide from 1983 to 1986 under head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. He was a first team selection three times on the College Football All-America Team (1984-1986). He was one of only two Bama players ever to be named to three All-America teams, the other being Woodrow Lowe.
As a senior, Bennett won the Lombari Award, SEC Player of the Year and finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy balloting. During his four seasons at with the Tide, he recorded 287 tackles, 21 1/2 sacks and three fumble recoveries. Bennett was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2005.
Bennett was the second pick in the 1987 NFL Draft going to the Baltimore Colts. He was Alabama's highest draft selection ever since Joe Namath in 1965.
When Bennett and the Colts were unable to reach a contract agreement, Bennett was included in a three-way trade that sent him to the Buffalo Bills. The trade just did make it under the trade deadline for the year.
Bennett played in five Super Bowl games during his NFL career, four with Buffalo and one with the Atlanta Falcons. In his 14 NFL seasons Bennett recorded 71 1/2 sacks, 7 interceptions, 112 return yards, 31 forced fumbles, 27 fumble recoveries, 78 fumble return yards and 3 touchdowns (1 interception, 1 blocked field goal return, and 1 fumble return).
Bennett was a five time Pro Bowler (1988, 1990-1993) and was the AFC Defensive Player of the Year twice (1988 and 1991).
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Could Starting QB Job Be Down To Coker & Morris?
If the rumors turn out to be true the starting quarterback job at the University of Alabama will be filled by either Jacob Coker or Alec Morris. Word has been getting out that the two appeared to distance themselves, somewhat, from the pack in Saturday's scrimmage.
Take this one to the bank? I wouldn't. Though reporters at the scrimmage tend to lean toward Coker and Morris, and the majority seem to, you must take into account that there are still 13 days until the beginning of the 2015 season. Numerous practices are still to be run, and these men could get the "kinks" out before then and another start to shine.
Head coach Nick Saban has not, of course, made any such announcement. The competition prior to the start of the season can still push Coker and Morris, or any other of the quarterbacks, on to better performances.
So many have looked at the quarterback situation at the University of Alabama as a detriment. Perhaps the quarterbacks are better than the "average Joe" believes them to be and thus is making it more difficult for any one quarterback to distance himself. Let's realize that this time last year things appeared "bleak" in the quarterbacking position.
I have confidence that the one selected will be just fine with me. Lane Kiffin has proven himself to be a "quarterback whisperer" of sorts. Let the man work his magic. Besides, I trust Saban.
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Saturday Scrimmage Scribblings
All Photos Courtesy Of RollTide.com
Alabama football's defense once again took center stage during the Crimson Tide's final scrimmage yesterday afternoon before the opening of the 2015 football season. The scrimmage lasted just over two hours on this hot and humid afternoon. With temperature about 94 degrees the Tide ran about 125 plays.
Head football coach Nick Saban said, "I thought there was a lot of improvement out there today (yesterday). It took a lot of mental toughness to grind through the conditions we were in. I thought at the beginning of the scrimmage, the two first-teams didn't seem to dominate like they wanted to, but as the day moved on both first-teams played a little better."
Both sides of the ball showed improvement, but didn't keep Saban from stopping practice to have a "discussion" with certain members of the team when he got a little unhappy. The chat mainly dealt with the quarterbacks, and things settled down once he was finished. The quarterbacks saw a pretty equal rotation during the scrimmage, giving them all an opportunity to impress the coaches.
Saban provided the numbers on the passes for each of the QBs. "Bateman led with 27 throws, Coker was only one behind with 26, Morris only a little further back with 21, and then Barnett had the least with 11 tosses.
The running backs went through their rotation as well. Coaches had a "targeted" number of carries for the backs, with each one pretty much hitting that mark.
Receivers did a good job. However ArDarius Steward seemed to stand out, leading the way with eight total receptions on the afternoon. Saban commented, "I thought ArDarius Stewart had a really good day today (Saturday). He had eight catches and made some really good grabs while also adjusting to the ball well. He made some contested plays, too, which was great to see."
And the defense. Indeed, the defense once again stepped up and did their job. They've been ahead of the offense throughout the spring and fall, but that was to be expected. The defense forced some turnovers yesterday, two of which went for scores.
Reggie Ragland looked good, was consistent, which pleased the coaches. J.K. Scott did a better job today, but always provides what is needed from the punter. Cyrus Jones handled the majority of the punt returns for the scrimmage yesterday and did well.
There was an injury yesterday during the scrimmage to report. Ofensive lineman Dominick Jackson strained his shoulder and could be out few days.
Alabama opens the season on September 5th in the AdvoCare Classic when they take on the Wisconsin Badgers. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT. The game will be played inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas and will be broadcast on ABC.
All Photos Courtesy of RollTide.com
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Bear Bryant Quotes
Here are just a few of the many quotes made popular by the late Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant.
“I’m no miracle man. I guarantee nothing but hard work.”
“I know what it takes to win. If I can sell them on what it takes to win, then we are not going to lose too many football games.”
“Losing doesn’t make me want to quit. It makes me want to fight that much harder.”
“It’s not the will to win that matters – everyone has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters.”
“Never quit. It is the easiest cop-out in the world. Set a goal and don’t quit until you attain it. When you do attain it, set another goal, and don’t quit until you reach it. Never quit.”
“There’s a lot of blood, sweat, and guts between dreams and success.”
“If anything goes bad, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, we did it. If anything goes really good, then you did it. That’s all it takes to get people to win football games for you.”
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