Tide Practices 2 Hours Indoors On Wednesday
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| Photo Credit: EOG.com |
If the media viewing period of practice yesterday is an indication, there may be an issue with receiver Calvin Ridley. According to Matt Zenitz of al.com, Ridley was standing by on the sidelines watching as the other receivers went through drills. It was reported he was wearing something that appeared to be a sleeve on his right knee.
Also conspicuously absent yesterday were injured offensive lineman Alphonse Taylor and two of the Tide's running backs, B.J. Emmons and Bo Scarbrough. Taylor is still recovering from a concussion received in the Arkansas contest on November 8th and still awaits medical clearance. Alabama head coach Nick Saban said that Emmons has a sprained foot and is out indefinitely. Saban also said that Scarbrough is a little ill and is listed as day-to-day.
Minkah Fitzpatrick continued to work at the safety position.
While the passing game this season has been nothing to brag about for the Tigers, they have shown significant improvement since Ed Orgeron has taken over as the interim head coach following the firing of former head man Les Miles. Orgeron has had his offense air the ball out more, with the passing game surpassing the 200-yard mark in all three of the games he's led. Prior to that, the passing game had reached that milestone only once this season. LSU quarterback Danny Etling is 89-of-147 passing attempts with seven touchdowns and three interceptions. So the Alabama secondary is also busily preparing for LSU to air the ball out more.
Concerning the LSU offense, Saban said, "I think they've made a lot of explosive plays. I think they've got a very, very talented group of receivers. I think their quarterback is very smart in the way he sort of implements their offense. I think he gets them in and out of good and bad running plays and I think their play action game and vertical passing game is something that they've always had, but I think it's more effective now relative to their skill guys and their quarterback. And they've made a lot more explosive plays."
This will be the 81st meeting between the two schools in a series dating all the way back to 1895. Alabama leads the series 50-25-5 and currently boasts a five-game winning streak over the Bengal Tigers that began with the 21-0 victory in the 2012 Allstate BCS National Championship in New Orleans, Louisiana. That was the second meeting of the season, incidentally, between the two teams, with the Crimson Tide having lost the regular season matchup. Bama has captured 20 of the last 25 matchups between the two teams in Baton Rouge, with the last win there coming in 2014 to the tune of a 20-13 overtime victory. The most recent win for Alabama was last season in Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa last season 30-16.
Saturday's game will be broadcast live by CBS Sports, with Verne Lundquist handling the play-by-play duties, Gary Danielson providing expert analysis and Allie LaForce working the sidelines. This will be the fourth Crimson Tide game the trio has worked this season.
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What Saban Said On Wednesday 11/2
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| Alabama head football coach Nick Saban Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
University of Alabama head football coach Nick Saban again addressed the media yesterday, as is his Wednesday custom the week of a game. Saban spoke of the injury situation with the Crimson Tide as well as briefly talking about the looming contest with the nationally-ranked and SEC Western Division foe LSU Tigers.
Concerning injuries, Saban said that running back B.J. Emmons was suffering from a sprain in his foot and would be out of action indefinitely. Another Tide running back, Bo Scarbrough, was ill and didn't participate in the Wednesday practice and will be "day-to-day" according to the head man.
Offensive guard Alphonse Taylor is also listed as "day-to-day" according to Saban. Taylor has been absent due to a concussion suffered on October 8th in the Arkansas football game. Medical clearance must be given in order for the young man to play.
Saban was highly complimentary of the LSU football team, and especially of the running back corp. Saban said he doesn't know of any team in the country that has as good of running backs as those LSU has.
Defensively, Saban was complimentary of the LSU secondary, saying that the Tigers have "arguably one of the most athletic secondaries." He said from that standpoint, LSU presented a challenge to the Crimson Tide.
Saban also had some good words to say about Dalvin Tomlinson. Saban said that Tomlinson has been a "great example of perseverance". He also commented that he was pleased with Tomlinson as both a player and the type person he is.
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Bama Men's Basketball To Play Faulkner In Exhibition
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| Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
The University of Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team will play its first game of the 2016-17 season welcoming the Faulkner Eagles to Coleman Coliseum on the UA Campus in Tuscaloosa tomorrow night at 7 p.m. CT. It will be the Tide's only exhibition game of
the year.
Faulkner is led by head coach Scott Sanderson, son of former Alabama men's head basketball coach and Hall of Famer Wimp Sanderson. This is the younger Sanderson's third year at the helm of the Faulkner men's basketball program. He replaced his older brother, Jim, who retired after 24 years.
Alabama's official start for the 2016-17 regular season will be hosting the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Friday, November 11th at 8 p.m. CT. The contest, marking the first game of the Las
Vegas Main Event, will air on SEC Network+.
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Alabama Cross Country Prepping For NCAA South Regional
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| Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
Crimson Tide senior Antibahs Kosgei will again be seeking to repeat as the South region men's individual champion. He won the title a year ago at the 2015 championships which were held in Tuscaloosa. With a victory, Kosgei would become just the second repeat champion in Alabama cross country history. He would join David Kimani (2000-01-02). Kimani and Kosgei are the only Tide runners to win individual regional titles.
The Crimson Tide women remained at No. 4 and the men remained at No. 5 in their respective U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) South Region rankings which were released October 31st.
