Tide Tidbits – November 24, 2009

AU’s Tate can’t bait Ingram
Alabama tailback Mark Ingram took the high road Monday, avoiding any Iron Bowl controversy in the wake of Auburn running back Ben Tate’s recent comments that he and not Ingram is the state’s elite back. Ingram, one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy, was named Monday as a finalist for the Doak Walker Award, given to the nation’s top college running back, along with Stanford’s Toby Gearhart and Clemson’s C.J. Spiller. He also is a finalist for the Maxwell Trophy, given to the nation’s top college football player, along with Texas quarterback Colt McCoy and Florida quarterback Tim Tebow. Ingram was surprised to learn that on Monday that Tate was one of those pulling for Ingram to break the trend of quarterbacks taking home the Heisman. “I guess that’s kind of surprising because I heard some other things he said, too,” Ingram said. [More]

Arenas sets the tone for Auburn week
Javier Arenas may have been guilty of nothing more than honesty, but in this instance, honesty won’t likely earn him much of a reprieve in places like Lee County and surrounding Auburn Tiger strongholds. The University of Alabama senior cornerback was asked Monday what he knew of the Alabama-Auburn rivalry as a youth in Tampa, Fla. “You know, when Cadillac Williams came to the (Tampa Bay) Bucs, I asked where he came from and they said Auburn, and I thought he went to a Division III school or something like that. I had never heard of it.” And with that, Iron Bowl week began with a bang. The Crimson Tide travels to Auburn on Friday in hopes of completing its second consecutive unbeaten regular season. [More]

Emotional discipline at center of execution
There’s the eye control discipline of which Nick Saban occasionally speaks, something his Alabama defense has followed this season with the efficiency of Zen masters. That is what will be required of them Friday afternoon against the often explosive Auburn offense, which has more formations and zigs and zags than the Blue Angels. Then there’s the eye control discipline that will come during Thanksgiving dinner – served a day early because of this year’s Friday kickoff – at various coaches’ homes for those Crimson Tide players whose families live beyond a two-hour radius from campus. In that regard, don’t expect a whole lot of plate discipline when the eyes meet the food. “It’s all-out war on Wednesday,” cornerback Javier Arenas said. “You do what you’ve got to do. Whatever I get my hands on, I’m eating.” [More]

Willis returns to AU for first time
Alabama linebacker Cory Reamer’s opinion about new inside linebackers coach James Willis seems to mesh with coaches throughout the Mobile area. “We all love him,” Reamer said. This week’s opposing players knew the feeling. If there really is a thin line between love and hate, then Willis probably knows where it lies. Friday’s game at Jordan-Hare Stadium will be his 10th Iron Bowl, either as a contributing player or coach. But it’s the first one spent on the other side of the in-state fence. A Huntsville native and former all-SEC linebacker at Auburn, Willis coached on the Tigers’ staff for six years after his NFL career ended, first as a graduate assistant (2001-03) and then as a linebackers coach (2006-08). When former Alabama assistant Lance Thompson — the Crimson Tide’s primary recruiter in the Mobile area — bolted for rival Tennessee in January, head coach Nick Saban didn’t look far to find a replacement. Amid the uncertainty of a staff change at Auburn, Saban swooped in to nab Willis, stunning Tigers fans by nabbing the man who had been the program’s primary Mobile recruiter under Tommy Tuberville. [More]

Alabama looks to exploit Auburn’s red zone defense
The University of Alabama’s midseason troubles with its red-zone offense, coach Nick Saban has noted more than once, were often a function of its own mistakes rather than the defensive play of its opponents. UA has since come out of that lull with scores in six of its last seven red-zone chances over a three-game stretch. But if the Crimson Tide encounters trouble inside the opponents’ 20-yard line this week, expect its own mistakes to again be the reason. Auburn ranks last in the Southeastern Conference in red-zone defense, allowing 37 scores this season in 39 opportunities (94.9 percent). What’s worse, the Tigers have allowed a league-high 27 red-zone touchdowns, five more than next-worst Vanderbilt (22) and Mississippi State (22). [More]

Tide hope to bottle up Auburn run game
Alabama middle linebacker Rolando McClain has seen the formations and the shifts and the motions that Auburn’s offense presents. But what most concerns him is the Tigers’ pace of play. “That’s how they get teams off balance,” McClain said Monday. “They run to the line. They want to run a play every 20 seconds. If they get a big play, they will run to the line and run the same play and try to get another big play. We are going to have to be ready for that and be ready for the quick tempo and get to the ball and line up.” Of course, once the ball is snapped, Alabama’s intention is to stop the Tigers’ potent running game. Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban called Auburn “probably the best running team we have played all year.” The statistics support that. The Tigers are third in the SEC and 11th in the country in rushing offense. [More]

Roll Tide!

~ _____________________________________
Have BamaFootball4Life eMailed to You for Free _____________________________________


Enter your email address:

Other subscription options.

~

______________________________________
Quick Links ______________________________________


FREE Magazines!

Recruiting
2008 Bama Statistics
mybama.com
Polls/Rankings
Links and More Links...