Recapping Saban's Monday Press Conference
Photo Credit: RollTide.com
University of Alabama head football coach Nick Saban conducted his first game-week press conference of the season. He and some hand-picked players met with the media yesterday at noon. Later the Tide put on full pads for their practice on the Thomas-Drew Pactice Fields.
Saban said, "This game is what the team has worked all offseason for. We've talked a lot about establishing an identity, and now is the time to create the identity of this team. We could say, 'Are we going to play with a reputation of the Alabama teams of the past, or is this team going to create an identity of its own being a dangerous team?' I don't think anyone is ever really afraid of you until you become a scary in terms of how you execute, what you do, the discipline you play with, the grit that you have...which is the perseverance and passion that helps you accomplish the goals. You become scary if you show the ability to stay focused on those things and do those things effectively and consistently over a long period of time, which is the entire season. I have been pleased with the way our players have approached things this fall. I thought we had good days of work on Friday and Saturday, and we still have a little extra time."
Concerning Wisconsin, Saban said, "This is obviously a very good team that we are playing. They won 11 games last year. They've got a significant number of starters returning, including five or six on offense and five or six on defense. They have their quarterback and their runner, even though that wasn't their star, he gained almost 1,000 yards a year ago. Wisconsin has a couple of offensive linemen, good tight ends, and they are a very, very good defensive team, one of the top defensive teams in the country. They are very well coached and they do a really good job at executing and playing together on defense. They play with a tremendous amount of toughness and really, really play with a lot of energy and effort. We are going to have to do a really good job playing against them."
The Crimson Tide has three more practices this week before leaving for Arlington, Texas on Friday. Bama meets Wisconsin in the AdvoCare Classic on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT inside AT&T Stadium and will be aired live on ABC.
Saban said, "This game is what the team has worked all offseason for. We've talked a lot about establishing an identity, and now is the time to create the identity of this team. We could say, 'Are we going to play with a reputation of the Alabama teams of the past, or is this team going to create an identity of its own being a dangerous team?' I don't think anyone is ever really afraid of you until you become a scary in terms of how you execute, what you do, the discipline you play with, the grit that you have...which is the perseverance and passion that helps you accomplish the goals. You become scary if you show the ability to stay focused on those things and do those things effectively and consistently over a long period of time, which is the entire season. I have been pleased with the way our players have approached things this fall. I thought we had good days of work on Friday and Saturday, and we still have a little extra time."
Concerning Wisconsin, Saban said, "This is obviously a very good team that we are playing. They won 11 games last year. They've got a significant number of starters returning, including five or six on offense and five or six on defense. They have their quarterback and their runner, even though that wasn't their star, he gained almost 1,000 yards a year ago. Wisconsin has a couple of offensive linemen, good tight ends, and they are a very, very good defensive team, one of the top defensive teams in the country. They are very well coached and they do a really good job at executing and playing together on defense. They play with a tremendous amount of toughness and really, really play with a lot of energy and effort. We are going to have to do a really good job playing against them."
The Crimson Tide has three more practices this week before leaving for Arlington, Texas on Friday. Bama meets Wisconsin in the AdvoCare Classic on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT inside AT&T Stadium and will be aired live on ABC.
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Offense
LT: Cam Robinson, Lester Cotton, Korren Kirven
LG: Ross Pierschbacher, Dallas Warmack, Isaac Luatua
C: Ryan Kelly, J.C. Hassenauer, Brandon Kennedy
RG: Alphonse Taylor OR Bradley Bozeman, Richie Petibon
RT: Dominick Jackson, Brandon Greene, Matt Womack
TE: O.J.Howard OR Ty Flournoy-Smith, Michael Nysewander
TE: Dakota Ball, Hale Hentges
QB: Jake Coker OR Cooper Bateman OR Alec Morris, Blake Barnett OR David Cornwell
RB: Derrick Henry, Kenyan Drake, Damien Harris
WR: Robert Foster OR Calvin Ridley, Deionte Thompson
WR: ArDarius Stewart, Daylon Charlot OR Cam Sims, Derek Kief
WR: Richard Mullaney OR Chris Black
Defense
DE: A'Shawn Robinson, Jonathan Allen, D.J. Pettway
NG: Darren Lake OR Daron Payne
DE: Jarran Reed, Dalvin Tomlinson, Da'Shawn Hand
OLB: Dillon Lee, Rashaan Evans, Christian Miller
MLB: Reggie Ragland, Shaun Dion Hamilton, Walker Jones/Adonis Thomas
MLB: Reuben Foster, Keith Holcombe
OLB: Denzel Devall, Ryan Anderson, Tim Williams
CB: Cyrus Jones, Bradley Sylve, Maurice Smith
CB: Marlon Humphrey, Tony Brown OR Minkah Fitzpatrick
S: Eddie Jackson, Ronnie Harrison, Shawn Burgess-Becker
S: Geno Smith, Jabriel Washington, Hootie Jones
Star: Minkah Fitzpatrick, Tony Brown, Maurice Smith
Special Teams
K: Adam Griffith
P: JK Scott
KR: Kenyan Drake OR ArDarius Stewart
KR: Cyrus Jones OR Chris Black
PR: Cyrus Jones, Chris Black, Richard Mullaney
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Saban, Alabama Release Depth Chart
For Wisconsin Game
Here's a look at how Alabama stacks up going into Saturday's contest with the Wisconsin Badgers.
Offense
LT: Cam Robinson, Lester Cotton, Korren Kirven
LG: Ross Pierschbacher, Dallas Warmack, Isaac Luatua
C: Ryan Kelly, J.C. Hassenauer, Brandon Kennedy
RG: Alphonse Taylor OR Bradley Bozeman, Richie Petibon
RT: Dominick Jackson, Brandon Greene, Matt Womack
TE: O.J.Howard OR Ty Flournoy-Smith, Michael Nysewander
TE: Dakota Ball, Hale Hentges
QB: Jake Coker OR Cooper Bateman OR Alec Morris, Blake Barnett OR David Cornwell
RB: Derrick Henry, Kenyan Drake, Damien Harris
WR: Robert Foster OR Calvin Ridley, Deionte Thompson
WR: ArDarius Stewart, Daylon Charlot OR Cam Sims, Derek Kief
WR: Richard Mullaney OR Chris Black
Defense
DE: A'Shawn Robinson, Jonathan Allen, D.J. Pettway
NG: Darren Lake OR Daron Payne
DE: Jarran Reed, Dalvin Tomlinson, Da'Shawn Hand
OLB: Dillon Lee, Rashaan Evans, Christian Miller
MLB: Reggie Ragland, Shaun Dion Hamilton, Walker Jones/Adonis Thomas
MLB: Reuben Foster, Keith Holcombe
OLB: Denzel Devall, Ryan Anderson, Tim Williams
CB: Cyrus Jones, Bradley Sylve, Maurice Smith
CB: Marlon Humphrey, Tony Brown OR Minkah Fitzpatrick
S: Eddie Jackson, Ronnie Harrison, Shawn Burgess-Becker
S: Geno Smith, Jabriel Washington, Hootie Jones
Star: Minkah Fitzpatrick, Tony Brown, Maurice Smith
Special Teams
K: Adam Griffith
P: JK Scott
KR: Kenyan Drake OR ArDarius Stewart
KR: Cyrus Jones OR Chris Black
PR: Cyrus Jones, Chris Black, Richard Mullaney
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Women's Cross Country Ranked 2nd In South Region
Photo Credit: RollTide.com
The Alabama Crimson Tide women's cross country team has been voted second in the South Region by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association in its preseason Regional Cross Country Rankings. That's one spot higher than the start of the past two seasons for the Tide.
The Vanderbilt Commodores came in at number one, followed by Alabama, Lipscomb, Mississippi State and at fifth is Florida.
Photo Credit: RollTide.com
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Bama Women 2nd, Men 6th In SEC Preseason Poll
Photo Credit: RollTide.com
The Southeastern Conference yesterday announced its preseason cross country poll. The Alabama women came in at third while the men were chosen sixth.
The Bama women earned 44 points in the voting, tying them with Florida for third. Arkansas, the defending SEC champs, received 12 of the available 14 first place votes. Vandy was picked to finish second.
The men came in sixth place with 75 points. Coming in first in the race for the SEC title was Ole Miss. Second place was Arkansas.
Both the men and women will kickoff the 2015 season at the Samford Cross Country Opener to be held at Veteran's Park in Hoover, Alabama today. Then it's on to Memphis on Saturday for the Brooks Twilight Classic.
The Bama women earned 44 points in the voting, tying them with Florida for third. Arkansas, the defending SEC champs, received 12 of the available 14 first place votes. Vandy was picked to finish second.
The men came in sixth place with 75 points. Coming in first in the race for the SEC title was Ole Miss. Second place was Arkansas.
Both the men and women will kickoff the 2015 season at the Samford Cross Country Opener to be held at Veteran's Park in Hoover, Alabama today. Then it's on to Memphis on Saturday for the Brooks Twilight Classic.
