Practice Underway For Tide In Preparation For Kentucky
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| Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
Alabama football practice is in full go-mode in its preparation for the visiting Kentucky Wildcats this coming Saturday. Monday's practice session lasted just under 90 minutes and was in shells only at the Thomas-Drew Practice Fields.
While head coach Nick Saban had said that the Alabama-Kent State contest was the first complete game the Crimson Tide had played all year, he didn't say it was perfect. Bama focused on correcting the flaws in the 48-0 victory in an effort to be better prepared for their second Southeastern Conference foe this season, and the first from the Eastern Division.
Three players were missing from practice yesterday during the media viewing period. Running back Damien Harris as well as wide receivers ArDarius Stewart and Robert Foster are listed as "day-to-day" according to Saban. Harris is suffering from a sprained ankle, while Stewart and Foster both have knee injuries.
Linebacker Rashaan Evans was at Monday's practice. Evans didn't play in the Kent State game this past Saturday.
The 4-0 (1-0 SEC) Crimson Tide face off against the Wildcats (2-2, 1-1 SEC) this Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium for homecoming, with a 6:05 p.m. CT kickoff. ESPN will broadcast the game live, with Dave Pasch handling play-by-play, Greg McElroy provide analysis and Tom Luginbill on the sidelines. Kentucky is led by head coach Mark Stoops, now in his fourth season at Lexington. The 'Cats are coming off a 17-10 win over South Carolina.
Alabama leads the series with Kentucky 36-2-1 which includes a 9-0 record in Tuscaloosa. In the last meeting in 2013, Bama defeated the Wildcats 48-7 in Lexington. Saban is 8-1 in SEC home-openers, and have outscored opponents 282-129. This is Kentucky's first trip to Tuscaloosa since 2008.
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Third Week Of Fall Practice Underway For Bama Baseball
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Third Week Of Fall Practice Underway For Bama Baseball
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| Alabama Baseball Practice Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
Week three of fall baseball practice is underway for the University of Alabama baseball team under the direction of first year head coach Greg Goff and his capable coaching staff.
Practice sessions are being held weekdays 2:30 p. m. -5:30 p.m. CT, but the Thursday session will end 30 minutes earlier at 5 p.m. The Friday session will be a relatively quick practice followed by a scrimmage which is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday will be this week's last practice day and is scheduled for 11 a.m.
All practice sessions are, of course, subject to change depending on weather
conditions for the day. Scrimmages are subject to change, with the
amount of innings and pitches per game being determined as fall camp
progresses. Dates and times of all practices and scrimmages for the
upcoming week can be found on RollTide.com each Monday.
If you are interested in watching the Crimson Tide practice or scrimmage, then you are welcome to do so. Sewell-Thomas Stadium will be open to fans who wish to watch. Fans are asked to enter Sewell-Thomas
Stadium through the main gate (Gate 3) located directly behind home
plate. Once inside, fans are encouraged to stay in the lower bowl
seating area, as access to the upper levels of the stadium is
restricted.
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What's Happening This Weekend For Crimson Tide Athletics
This is a very busy time on colleges campuses across the United States, and it is no different at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Various sports are in-season, or are in pre-season practice sessions, as well as freshmen still getting used to navigating the campus and trying to figure out where they fit in...both in the classroom and, those who play sports, on the field or court.
Here is a look at significant upcoming events for the Alabama Crimson Tide:
Friday, September 30
1 p.m. – Cross Country at Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational (South Bend, Indiana)
4 p.m. – Swimming & Diving vs. Vanderbilt and West Florida (UA Aquatic Center)
6 p.m. – Volleyball at Georgia (Athens, Georgia)
7 p.m. – Soccer at Mississippi State (Starkville, Mississippi)
Saturday, October 1
6 p.m. – Football vs. Kentucky (Bryant-Denny Stadium)
All Day – Men's Tennis at ITA All-American Championships (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
All Day – Women's Tennis at ITF 10k Charleston (Charleston, South Carolina)
All Day – Women's Tennis at ITA Riviera All-American Championships (Los Angeles, Calififornia)
Sunday, October 2
3 p.m. – Volleyball at Mississippi State (Starkville, Mississippi)
All Day – Men's Tennis at ITA All-American Championships (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
All Day – Women's Tennis at ITA Riviera All-American Championships (Los Angeles, California)
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SEC Announces CBS Exercising 6-Day Option
For the Alabama-Arkansas Contest
The contest will be the 25th for the Crimson Tide and Razorbacks, and the 11th time in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Alabama holds the series advantage 16-8, and is 6-4 all-time in Fayetteville. Head coach Nick Saban is 12-2 all-time against the Hogs and is 9-0 overall and 4-0 in Fayetteville against Arkansas during his tenure at Alabama.
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What Saban Said...At Monday's Press Briefing
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Coaching Staff Names Nine Players Of The Week
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What Saban Said...At Monday's Press Briefing
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| Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
University of Alabama head football coach Nick Saban met with the media yesterday afternoon to talk about this past Saturday's game with Kent State as well as the upcoming contest with the Kentucky Wildcats. He also spoke of injuries to various players, and a few thoughts on the firing of LSU head coach Les Miles.
In his opening statement, Saban said, "Well, just in review, we challenged the players to play a complete game, and I thought we did a much better job of that in this last game. Now that we are back in SEC play, I think it's time to build on that; build on the momentum; play faster; be more crisp; practice better; play with confidence; use the right technique and not talk about paying attention to detail or being casual or finishing or any of those things. If we want to be the team that we are capable of being, I think it's important for everyone to buy into that and do that. The SEC is a tough league and every game you play in this league is an important game as this game will be against Kentucky.
"You all got the players of the week. The injury update is Damien Harris is still day-to-day. He probably won't do much today. I think ArDarius Stewart and Robert Foster will both still be listed as day-to-day and questionable for this game.
"We are looking forward to Homecoming and playing at home. Hopefully we will have a great crowd that's enthusiastic about this game, and I know our players definitely will be.
"Tony Brown and Johnny Dwight are both eligible to play in this game. They have done all the things they needed to do, so their suspensions are over, and we are very happy to have them back.
"Kentucky has played their best in the last two games that they have played. Mark Stoops has done a really good job of sort of finding out who they are and how they want to play. They played really well in the last two games. They have really good skill players on offense, good running backs and good receivers. They have explosive guys that have put up pretty impressive performances to this point. Their quarterback has played well for them, even though he had to come in for the starter, and he has done a nice job; they haven't really skipped a beat. Defensively, they really played their best in their last game against South Carolina. They did much better on third down and got off the field. This is a physical team, and I think it's going to be really important that we start fast and play physical in this game and in all aspects of the game because they are a very well-coached team. They are playing really well right now."
When asked to comment on the firing of LSU head coach Les Miles, Saban said, "That's not really for me to say, you know, one way or the other. It's a challenge for us to continue to try to be successful. I can't really comment on anybody else's standard for what they want to try to accomplish or what they want to try to do."
It was apparent Saban had respect for the man that took over at LSU after he left for the NFL. "First of all, Les Miles is one of the most respected colleagues in terms of the rivalry that we've had, the competition that we've had, the great teams that they've had," Saban said. "I kind of hated that a man wins a national championship, wins two SEC titles and doesn't make it through the season. It is what it is, but I have a tremendous amount of respect for Les Miles and what he was able to accomplish there, the number of wins he had.
"This is very similar to Georgia firing Mark Richt when he averages 10 wins a season. I guess this is the time that we live in, everybody needs to know that, but it doesn't minimize to any degree the amount of respect that I have for the job that Les Miles did at LSU, the great competitive teams that he's had there for a long, long time and the amount of success that he's had. And certainly wish him and his family well."
Concerning the Kentucky Wildcats, and head coach Mark Stoops in particular, Saban said he goes way back with Stoops and his family. He even spoke of having been unsuccessful at trying to get stoops to Michigan State as a recruit.
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Coaching Staff Names Nine Players Of The Week
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| Alabama Crimson Tide Football coaching staff Photo Credit: Athletic Department |
The Alabama Crimson Tide coaching staff yesterday recognized nine players as Players of the Week following the 48-0 blowout victory over the Kent State Golden Flashes this past Saturday. From the offense, the coaches named O.J. Howard, Joshua Jacobs and Jonah Williams. From the defense it was Minkah Fitzpatrick, Ronnie Harrison and Keith Holcombe. From the special teams the coaches named Adam Griffith, Xavian Marks and JK Scott. The announcement was made today.
O.J. Howard had a a really good Saturday, hauling in three catches for a team-high 60 yards as well as scoring his first touchdown of the season. He also helped block for Jacobs' career performance, with the freshman rushing for 97 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 11 carries. Jacobs also snaggedt a pair of passes for 23 yards, Williams was a rock, posting a team-high grade of 86 percent with a team-leading four knockdown blocks. He didn't allow a single sack, commit a penalty or surrender a quarterback pressure,
Defensively, Fitzpatrick led Alabama with 1.5 sacks for -13 yards as part of his three total tackles on the day. Harrison also contributed three tackles as well as recovered a fumble. Holcombe finished with a career-high six tackles to rank second on the team.
On extra-point attempts,Griffith was a perfect 4-for-4 as well as adding a pair of field goals of 28 and 48 yards. He also averaged 63.7 yards per kickoff on six kickoffs for 382 total yards, with three of those being touchbacks. In only two punts this past Saturday, totaled 98 yards with a long of 53 to average 49.0 yards per punt. Marks, in his first action of the season as a punt returner, scored from 75 yards out to record his first career punt return for a touchdown. He finished the day with four punt returns for 90 yards with a long of 75.
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Alabama Writers Hall Of Fame Class Of 2016
Alabama has a great football team, as recognized by pretty much everyone in the nation, having won 16 National Championships through the years. Bama boasts basketball, baseball, softball, gymnastics and other sports champions, both nationally and in-conference.
Bet you never really gave much thought to the great writers from Alabama. Click the link below and check out the nine authors being inducted into the 2016 Alabama Writers Hall of Fame at The University of Alabama’s Bryant Conference Center September 29th.
Alabama writers class of 2016 (Click the link)
