NCAA Football FanHouse

Birmingham Plans SEC-Themed Tourism Center, Which Cannot End Peacefully

Adam Jacobi — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 08:30:00 EST

Have you found yourself in central Alabama, wanting to celebrate the rich tradition of the entire SEC, even the really lousy teams that nobody really likes, and unable to find an appropriate venue to do so? Sure, we all have. But fret not, because better days rapidly approach:

The Memphis real estate company creating Birmingham's entertainment district wants to build a tourist attraction devoted to the Southeastern Conference. The venue would include a merchandise store, restaurant and catering services and an interactive history of the SEC.

An "interactive history?" Think of the possibilities!

Darren McFadden's car
An exhibit where you, too, can block Greg Gantt's punts
The actual hobnailed boot used to break Tennessee's nose and crush their face
Plaster casts of The Orgeron's footprints, replete with claws
A copy of the petition filed by Kentucky in 1982 seeking all of Bear Bryant's Alabama titles to be retroactively awarded to Kentucky, on account of "we had him first." The measure failed 10-2, Auburn being the only school to join the Wildcats in voting "yea"
Tee Martin in an electrified cage

The article also mentions that the center would include "a restaurant and catering facility with Southern food," and we'll just go ahead and assume that the waitresses all run a sub-4.5. After all, what's the point of getting a pitcher of sweet tea if it isn't delivered with ESS EEE CEE SPEEEEEED?

Oh, and we'll be absolutely stunned if this place doesn't engender dozens of fistfights on a daily basis.

Birmingham Plans SEC-Themed Tourism Center, Which Cannot End Peacefully originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 05 Jul 2008 08:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The SEC's Shifting Defensive Sands

Brian Grummell — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:36:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, Auburn Football, Texas Football, Big 12, SEC, Texas A&M Football, Iowa State Football

The SEC has long been known as a place where defense rules in college football. Maybe some of that had to do with the league's generally minimal focus on offense for so many years, but we can debate that in another entry. Regardless, its defensive credibility is rock solid.

But in recent years, a steady influx of offensive changes from coaches to schemes has balanced the league and made it all the more dangerous.

But, as noted at the Daily Texan, there's also been a barely noticed flow of defensive coaching talent away from the SEC. Former Auburn star defensive coordinators Gene Chizik and Will Muschamp have made their way to the Big 12. Chizik was Texas' defensive coordinator before being hired as the head coach at Iowa State. Muschamp, meanwhile, is Texas' new D.C.

Elsewhere, former Alabama defensive coordinator Joe Kines is now the D.C. at Texas A&M. Chances are, those three have been adequately replaced, but their departure and the SEC's changing offensive makeup seems to indicate a change from the All D, No O days of SEC past. I doubt wide open offensive football with not much defense like on display in the WAC ever finds a home in the SEC. OK, severely doubt it. But it is interesting to note a modest departure of defensive coaching talent as a steady wave of offensive coaching talent moves in.

Related: I wonder if this perks up the state of defense in the suddenly wide-open, quarterback loaded Big 12?

(Via: Football Rumor Mill)

The SEC's Shifting Defensive Sands originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:36:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vandy Needs to Give Bobby Johnson a Raise

Charles Rich — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 23:52:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, Florida Football, LSU Football, SEC, NCAA FB Coaching, Vanderbilt Football

Ridiculous. I realize Vandy is a private school and they provide a valuable service to the SEC in helping with the conference graduations rates. Still, if they aren't going to actually pay their football coach over $1 million dollars, there's a problem. Sylvester Croom just got his pay pushed into the seven figure zone. Now Bobby Johnson is the only SEC coach still earning a paltry 6 figure salary. Keep up.

Les Miles, LSU, $3,750,000
Nick Saban, Alabama, $3,750,000
Urban Meyer, Florida, $3,250,000
Bobby Petrino, Arkansas, $2,850,000
Mark Richt, Georgia, $2,800,000
Tommy Tuberville, Auburn, $2,800,000
Phillip Fulmer, Tennessee, $2,050,000
Steve Spurrier, South Carolina, $1,750,000
Sylvester Croom, Mississippi State, $1,700,000
Houston Nutt, Ole Miss, $1,700,000
Rich Brooks, Kentucky, $1,600,000
Bobby Johnson, Vanderbilt, $950,000

Then again, Johnson is the only SEC coach not to be automatically placed on a hot seat after a losing season.

Vandy Needs to Give Bobby Johnson a Raise originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 25 Jun 2008 23:52:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jimmy Johns Delivers... Cocaine

Brian Cook — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 12:25:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, NCAA FB Police Blotter, The Word

Anyone who's lived on a college campus in the past ten years knows that Jimmy Johns delivers. If we are talking about the delicious sandwich purveyor, the delivery is... well... delicious sandwiches. If we are talking about the Alabama running back/linebacker, however, the delivery is delicious narcotics:

Investigators with the West Alabama Narcotics Task Force picked up Johns Tuesday morning around 8 a.m. Sources tell FOX6 News Johns has been under investigation for a couple of weeks.

Tuscaloosa Police Chief Ken Swindle says Johns is charged with 5 counts of distribution of powder cocaine, and 1 count of possession.

And that's goodbye to one awesomely-named but unfortunately crappy and felonious (allegedly) football player. Alabama is now one scholarship closer to cramming its enormous 32-player recruiting class on campus. Just two more to go!

(Via Bama Sports Report.)

Previously On Fanhouse:
Nick Saban's the Real Snake Oil Salesman Around These Parts
Snake Oil on the Recruiting Trail
Saban Made Him Do It: 'Bama DE Arrested

Jimmy Johns Delivers... Cocaine originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 24 Jun 2008 12:25:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Four Things Worth Reading: The Return!

Brian Cook — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:29:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, Auburn Football, Iowa Football, Penn State Football, UCLA Football, Blogs

A regular trip through the college football blogosphere.

1. That list is how long? A list of Penn State malfeasance since 2002 has been kicking around message boards for the past few weeks and may have even spurred ESPN to sic Outside the Lines on the Nits. It has 61(!!!) separate incidents featuring Penn State players and the long arm of the law. Or, sometimes, the long arm of nothing in particular:

53. Joe Paterno - Road Rage - No Charges

As much as we all love the possibly apocryphal JoePa road rage incident, it resulted in no charges and, uh, did not involve a Penn State player.

Many of the other incidents are arrests that resulted in acquittals or college kids getting busted for holding a half-full Natty Lite, which is punishment in an of itself. The list is overstated. But how much?

Run Up The Score breaks it down for you. The general conclusion:

All in all, the Penn State Nittany Lions don't have a widespread, 1988 Miami Hurricanes style criminal gang disguised in plain football uniforms. They have a drinking and fighting problem. Players aren't shooting guns or selling drugs. They're getting loaded and brawling. While I take modest comfort in the fact that the football roster doesn't double as a suspect list from The Wire, there is still a rather obvious behavioral problem within the program.

This is probably because the man they should fear more than any other is kind of ancient and "works from home."2. Bruins Nation is well-known around the college football blogosphere for one thing: blinding hatred of Karl Dorrell. And ridiculous expectations. Bruins Nation is well known around the college football blogosophere for two things: blinding hatred of Karl Dorrell, ridiculous expectations, and... incredibly soft lambswool kid gloves that apply silky lotion to the backside of Rick Neuheisel?

It is apparently so. Sunday Morning Quarterback takes a dryly hilarious look at a certain... difference in outlook now that a coach not universally regarded as incompetent has taken over. It's not in the direction you might imagine.

3. I object, dear sirs. It's one thing when the mainstream media derides all bloggers as mother's-basement living illiterate troglodytes. That's such an old saw now that it communicates more about the lame-stereotype proprietor than actual blogs. But what's with Paul Finebaum exalting the Capstone Report, the most mouth-breathing Alabama blog on the planet, one that accused the 'Bama players of being "without pride" and said they "didn't even want to know how to be champions" after last year's Louisiana-Monroe loss?

Finebaum is a cynical, joyless person who manufactures outrage for money, but exposing the Capstone Report to a wider audience only makes blogs look like sports talk radio, and that's too far. Auburn blog The Joe Cribbs Car Wash says this aggression will not stand, man, and fisks righteously.

Zinger incoming!

The point: if you've ever wondered what the hell kind of people would look at a manatee and come away telling everyone they'd seen a mermaid, the answer is the ancestors of Paul Finebaum.

Pow.

4. Don't mess with Gary Barta, Iowa Athletic Director, if you want to keep all your organs. (Language warning.)

Four Things Worth Reading: The Return! originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:29:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ESPN's Bill Curry Returns to Coaching

Bruce Ciskie — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, Georgia Tech Football, NCAA FB Coaching, Atlanta, Kentucky Football

After seeing mixed success as a head coach for Georgia Tech, Alabama, and Kentucky, Bill Curry found a home at ESPN. The former NFL offensive lineman and longtime coach spent ten years with the Worldwide Leader, serving primarily as a college football game and studio analyst.

The itch to coach, however, has returned for the 65-year-old Curry, and he's going back. Curry will be named the first head football coach in Georgia State history Thursday. The Atlanta-based school is starting up a football program in 2010. They'll compete in Division I-AA (er, FCS) and play home games at the Georgia Dome. Similar to the Atlanta Falcons, GSU will probably fail to sell the place out most weekends.

Curry has a familiar face helping him start the program. Dan Reeves, the former NFL player and head coach, has helped raise over $1 million for the startup program. He has given his endorsement to the reported hire.

Reeves said he was not part of the selection process but said "I can tell you this, I think that is a heck of a choice, a great deal for Georgia State, if that is the case.

"I think Bill will do a super job. He's got a great reputation. You couldn't ask for anyone better to start Georgia State's program. He's got college experience, he has recruited and he lieves in Atlanta. I think that's fantastic."

He's a well-known name, but Curry's track record as a head coach isn't all that great. He coached Alabama to the 1990 SEC championship, but lost twice as many games as he won at Kentucky before stepping aside in 1996. Reeves does make a great point, though.

For a startup program to get a guy like Curry is superb. He's already been through some intense recruiting battles, and he knows how to evaluate young talent.

At ESPN, Curry found a niche because of his conversational style of analysis. He brings GSU great expertise on offensive line play, and he should have little trouble convincing young kids and their families that his program will be a good place for players to develop, both on and off the field.

ESPN's Bill Curry Returns to Coaching originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rolando McClain Is Not Good at Motorcycling

Brian Cook — Sat, 10 May 2008 15:09:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, General CFB Insanity

WEEEEE, this seems like an exceptionally good and safe idea. Have I mentioned I've only had this thing for like two hours? I must be good at motorcycling, boy howdy, what do you mean "watch out for the ground"?

Alabama linebacker Rolando McClain is the latest athlete to come in for a round of media clucking after bashing himself in a motorcycle incident:

Alabama coach Nick Saban said linebacker Rolando McClain was involved in a motorcycle accident but sustained only minor injuries.

The sophomore was released from a hospital in his hometown of Decatur after the accident Thursday.

Cue the usual "I can't believe this guy could be so stupid" muttering from concerned citizens, but more important around these parts is how sucky McClain is at riding a motorcycle. He got in an accident Thursday, right? Guess when he bought the motorcycle?

A friend who was with the player moments before the accident told The Decatur Daily that McClain had bought the motorcycle earlier Thursday.

Rolando McClain + shiny new motorcycle + matter of hours = road pizza.

Latest College Football Photos

In this photo released by The College of William and Mary, William and Mary Chancellor and retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, left, speaks as Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Michael Tomlin, right, listens prior to giving the 2008 commencement address at the college Sunday, May 11, 2008 in Williamsburg, Va. (AP Photo/The College of William and Mary, Stephen Salpukas)

Joe Paterno, coach of the Penn State football team, smiles during a media availability, Saturday, May 10, 2008, in Valley Forge, Pa. (AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)

Joe Paterno, coach of the Penn State football team, smiles during a media availability, Saturday, May 10, 2008, in Valley Forge. (AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)

Former Georgia football player Herschel Walker talks to a reporter about his book "Breaking Free: My Life with Dissociative Identity Disorder," April 30, 2008, while at his lawyer's office in Atlanta. The book released this month tells the story of his struggle with the controversial and little know mental disorder. (AP Photo/John Amis)

Former Georgia football player Herschel Walker makes his way to a podium to speak, while being introduced to applause during a reception honoring him and the release of his book "Breaking Free: My Life with Dissociative Identity Disorder," April 30, 2008, in Atlanta. The book released this month tells the story of his struggle with the controversial and little know mental disorder listed in the title. (AP Photo/John Amis)

In this photo released by the University of Florida, football player Jamar Hornsby is shown in 2006. Hornsby was kicked off the team on Friday, May 9, 2008, after turning himself in on charges he used the gas credit card of a woman who was killed along with another player in a motorcycle accident. (AP Photo/University of Florida) ** NO SALES, EDITORIAL USE ONLY **

College fullback Owen Schmitt (R), drafted by the NFL's Seattle Seahawks, and DeSean Jackson, a wide receiver drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles, play EA Games NCAA Football at the game-makers' studio in Burnaby, British Columbia May 5, 2008. Both players will be featured on the cover of the game. REUTERS/Andy Clark (CANADA)

Reuters

College fullback Owen Schmitt (R), drafted by the NFL's Seattle Seahawks, and DeSean Jackson, a wide receiver drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles, play EA Games NCAA Football at the game-makers; studio in Burnaby, British Columbia May 5, 2008. Both players will be featured on the cover of the game. REUTERS/Andy Clark (CANADA)

Reuters

Lou Holtz speaks during an interview after he was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, Thursday, May 1, 2008, in New York. Holtz coached six schools to 249 victories in a career that spanned more than 30 years. He won a national title with Notre Dame in 1988. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Rolando McClain Is Not Good at Motorcycling originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 10 May 2008 15:09:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Saban Gets Around Rule Made to Reign Him In

Pete Holiday — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 10:31:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, SEC, NCAA FB Recruiting, NCAA FB Coaching

The problem with creating rules to try to force all college football coaches to be lazy recruiters, is that some of them just won't. When the NCAA tried to "fix" the so-called "bump" rule, they did in in a way that makes sense only to those who value, for example, duck hunting over college recruiting. Instead of allowing coaches to evaluate players during the "Spring Evaluation Period", they have to sit back on their campuses and wait for someone else to tell them how great some player is.

FanHouse's own Brian Cook described the rule this way:

It looks like the NCAA is moving to lessen the impact of the "bump" rule and provide a level playing field for coaches from enthusiastic frequent NCAA violators to guys who can't be bothered to get out of bed in March

Of course, the new NCAA rule "leveled the playing field" by catering to the laziest common denominator. It's about like making the no-huddle offense illegal because some teams don't have the personnel to run it. Or canceling a playground kickball game because you don't want to hurt the feelings of the kid who gets picked last. What most will be unsurprised to learn is that artificially induced slothfulness doesn't work.

Not to be hamstrung by some new recruiting rule, Saban found a loophole: video conferencing.

Like a lot of college coaches - including those from Auburn, Michigan, Oklahoma and Notre Dame - Saban is recruiting Athens High School defensive end William Ming. But Saban found a creative way to make contact the other day.

Alabama assistant coach Curt Cignetti visited Athens High, which has a Distance Learning Lab that allows Athens students to take online classes by using a live webcam.

Cignetti left behind a web address that Ming used to log on later that day and spend 15-20 minutes talking, through the webcam, with Saban, who was in his office in Tuscaloosa.

This is where Auburn fans and other Saban detractors are likely to be either furious or delighted. Furious over his blatant disregard for the rules, or delighted that this might be the time he finally slips up and gets caught being the big dirty cheater that "everyone" knows he is. Scarbinsky's article goes on to burst some bubbles, however, noting that e-Saban is completely legal:

In the current edition of the NCAA Division I Football Coaches Off-Campus Recruiting Guide, it states that "all electronically transmitted human voice exchange (including video conferencing and videophones) shall be considered telephone calls."

A coaching staff can make one phone call to a junior prospect during the spring evaluation period, but a prospect can make unlimited calls to a staff. So it is possible and permissible for a coach to go face-to-face with a prospect miles and miles away.

The moral of the story, children, is that you're not going to out-recruit coaches like Pete Carroll or Nick Saban by putting roadblocks in their way. You're actually going to have to get out of the duck blinds and go get some work done.

(Hat tip: Capstone Report)

Saban Gets Around Rule Made to Reign Him In originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 25 Apr 2008 10:31:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pro Football Weekly Hates D.J. Hall

Brian Grummell — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:37:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, SEC, NFL Prospects, The Word

From inside the pages of the venerable Pro Football Weekly 2008 Draft Guide:

49ers head coach Mike Nolan told PFW to watch out for this kid. We did. He stinks. Hall was virtually non-existent all week, hardly making a peep. He supposedly was nursing an injury, but it didn't stop him from playing in the [Senior Bowl].

Ouch.

Rarely do you see respected publications straight up say a player stinks. Bonus points for throwing a coach under the bus. Rough day at the office, perhaps?

Pro Football Weekly Hates D.J. Hall originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:37:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Alabama Shows Off Passing Game at A-Day

Pete Holiday — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 09:38:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, SEC, NCAA FB Fans

In front of the second-largest crowd of the spring games (78,200 according to the half-time announcement), Alabama threw the ball early and often.

I made my way down to Tuscaloosa for A-Day this year, and what I saw didn't surprise me in the least. The traffic to Tuscaloosa and around town was not quite as bad as a typical game day. The "Kick-off on the Quad" was scaled back, but still well attended, and the campus was swarming with crimson and white, with nary a sign of another teams fans to be found. It was a thing of beauty, really.

Inside the stadium, Alabama looked like a young team with a lot of talent, exactly what everyone expected. John Parker Wilson seemed to have improved in the off-season and Leigh Tiffin split the uprights from 44 yards out (both things fans should be relieved to hear).

Coach Nick Saban, who spent most of the scrimmage standing behind the offense, managed to get in the way of one play (pictured at right) as John Parker Wilson scrambled from pressure. He didn't go down, but it was certainly a funny situation nonetheless..

I was able to get my camera into the game, which resulted in a whole bunch of pictures that would've been good if I hadn't been 40 rows up, but some of them turned out okay anyway, take a look:

%Gallery-20527%

A number of questions remain for the Tide as we enter the long, slow summer.

John Parker Wilson: he seems to have cured whatever problem was causing him to throw off of his back foot, and didn't sail any passes over the heads of his receivers as far as I could tell. This is good news. He and his receivers also seemed to have good communication, something that he and D.J. Hall lacked at times last year. McElroy looked like a competent back up, if it comes to that, although the real surprise was the QB walk-on Thomas Darrah, who played lights-out every time he stepped on the field.

Jimmy Johns: He still seems to be feeling out his role at linebacker, but there's definitely some promise there. Rumors are swirling that he might use his redshirt this year. If he does, expect him to be an absolute monster next year.

Terry Grant: Back to his old self again? Who knows... he looked pretty sharp early last year as well, and we all know how that turned out.

Leigh Tiffin: For probably the first time in his tumultuous career, he actually looked like a stable, reliable kicker.

Defensive Front: The pressure was okay, but not phenomenal, during the scrimmage. They have some work to do before the Clemson game if the Tide expects to do better than 7 or 8 wins this year.

Offensive Front: This could be one of Alabama's strengths this year, but we really didn't see enough of the running game to know how versatile the line will be. Then again, any offensive line that includes Andre Smith should be capable of getting a decent running game going.

The Receiving Corps: Mike McCoy had an outstanding outing, making some good catches, running well after the catch, and generally being in the right place at the right time. Darius Hanks looked good as well, and both of them did an above average job blocking on the few run plays that we saw. It's also nice to see Saban really using the Tight Ends, hopefully that's a trend that will continue into the Fall.

All in all, a pretty good day for Tide Fans. That said, expecting more than 8 wins is probably being a little unrealistic. It's a young team that's still pretty shallow in places, but it's a good start. If the Tide gets a few breaks and the younger players can keep from making too many rookie mistakes, the Tide could find themselves looking at a 10 win season, but it's more likely that the progress will come in fits and spurts as is usually the case with a young team.

Alabama Shows Off Passing Game at A-Day originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 15 Apr 2008 09:38:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Les Miles Now Makes More Than Nick Saban

Brian Grummell — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 22:08:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, LSU Football, SEC, The Word

This is a good week for LSU coach Les Miles. He's certainly basking in LSU's BCS National Championship. He's miraculously not at beloved alma mater Michigan while they endure bad press for questionable academic practices within the athletic department.

And he got a big raise.

So big, in fact, that it makes him the highest-paid coach in the SEC by $1,000 over rival and former LSU coach Nick Saban.

Saban, who is guaranteed $3.75 million, was the SEC's highest-paid coach. Miles' new contract states he will be paid no less than the highest-paid coach at a public university in the conference, plus $1,000.

Sometimes in the SEC there's no need to be sneaky when it feels so good to be obvious. This is one bold, blunt example. I guess it pays to not be able to pronounce the word Arkansas so long as you are holding that glass football.

Side note for LSU fans: that's an AP National Championship Trophy in the picture. USC won one in 2004, you won one in 2008. Just so you know that we know that your coach knows it counts. That is all.

Les Miles Now Makes More Than Nick Saban originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 17 Mar 2008 22:08:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tuscaloosa Police Be Ridin' Dirty

Andy Katzer — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, Auburn Football, SEC, NCAA FB Police Blotter, The Word

Of course, "ridin' dirty" has a looser definition in Alabama, where it can encompass having the audacity to put an Auburn license plate on the front of your cruiser while patrolling the Alabama campus, as seen here:

That picture comes from the blog Alabama Gameday, who also links to a thread on the TideSports fourm where a member says he emailed the Tuscaloosa chief of police and "addressed the issue of credibility (and the growing lack thereof), and asked that he check into it and have it removed if possible." The poster says the chief responded by having the tag removed from the unit.

Now, this all might seem kind of petty until you understand the growing unease of an Alabama fan base that has seen more players arrested (8) than wins (7) in the year since Nick Saban took over the program. Tuscaloosa seems to be one of the college towns where arresting a student-athlete is a trophy of sorts for the local po-po; a statement that anybody is fair game, but especially those who make headlines. That may or may not be a fair assessment, but it's a growing concern in places where high-profile students seem to get in more trouble than the average student.

Consider, however: if the Auburn-fan cop with the Tiger plate on his cruiser wasn't targeting Bama players before, he sure could be now that he's been singled out himself.

Tuscaloosa Police Be Ridin' Dirty originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 04 Mar 2008 22:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Can Your Exhibition Game Do This?

Brian Grummell — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:40:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, SEC, NCAA FB Fans

Many people look upon Alabama's NCAA-record 92,000 attendance at last year's spring game in horror. Me? I beam with pride.

College football fans are rabid, their taste for the game insatiable. Meaningless spring exhibitions can be cause for 2% of the state population to show up and watch red-on-red violence.

Anyway, the school is going all-in this year, extending the festivities another day with an Alan Jackson warm-up concert and pep rally the night before. Here's guessing 'Tide coach Nick Saban's had more than his share of "5-o-clock somewhere" moments the past year (mostly self-inflicted). Should be a hell of a two-day party, all the more meaningful so many months before the season begins in earnest and well before the recruits have even hit campus.

College football, gotta love it.

(H/T: The Wizard of Odds)

Can Your Exhibition Game Do This? originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:40:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tide Lineman Leaves Team

Pete Holiday — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:18:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, SEC, NCAA FB Recruiting

Alabama offensive lineman BJ Stabler has opted to leave the team, citing chronic knee injuries. He'll spend the rest of his time at Alabama on medical scholarship and should graduate in August. While it's never good to see a player like Stabler go, he spent so much time injured (or recovering from injuries) that he never really had a chance to make an impact in the way that he could have.

Those "six" players that caused such a big stink have dwindled to "four", and that's if Tim Gayle's "number-crunching" is accurate. We're now getting down to a range in which the scholarship cap is within the margin of error for the type of guesswork Gayle was involved in.

It's also just another example of why getting all preachy about assumption-laden hypotheticals is a bad idea.

Then again, if things continue up at this rate, Alabama won't have anyone on scholarship when the A-Day Game rolls around.

(Hat-tip: Roll 'Bama Roll and Capstone Report)

Previously at FanHouse:

Tide Lineman Leaves Team originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:18:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Saban Made Him Do It: 'Bama DE Arrested

Pete Holiday — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:35:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, SEC, NCAA FB Recruiting, NCAA FB Police Blotter

Over the weekend, Alabama defensive end Jeremy Elder was arrested for (allegedly) robbing two students:

According to the UA Police Web site, two male UA students reported to UAPD on Saturday night that they were the victims of a robbery. The students reported that an unknown male approached them as they were walking to their vehicle in the Small Group Housing parking lot shortly after 11 p.m.

The unknown male presented a handgun and took cash from one of the students. The unknown male left on foot in a southerly direction. Neither student was injured in the incident.

If true, this was certainly a poor decision on the part of Elder (to put it lightly) and it's disappointing to see yet another college athlete ruin a tremendous opportunity. That aside, if there were ever a convenient time for this sort of thing, this is it. In fact, it's almost too convenient.

I can almost imagine it now...

Nick Saban, sitting in his office contemplating Tim Gayle's article about the rough spot he's going to find himself in come August. Realizing that his dirty dealings were now being examined by a crack team of college football bloggers. Knowing he'd have to be careful, but still having no idea where he was going to come up with six whole scholarships to make it down under the NCAA-imposed 85 scholarship cap over the next six months. Then it dawns on him... violent felonies. It's a sure thing! Everyone calls for kids to be kicked off the team if they've been arrested for serious crimes... perfect!

Or maybe this just serves to further illustrate the simple fact that counting roster spots is not sufficient to determine whether nefarious dealings are afoot with regards to scholarships.

Back to the point, though, outside of being an embarrassment (and a few points in The Fulmer Cup), this appears to have no substantial impact on the upcoming season: nobody really expected Elder to see significant playing time.

Saban Made Him Do It: 'Bama DE Arrested originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Snake Oil: More On Over-signing

Pete Holiday — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 13:49:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, NCAA FB Recruiting, NCAA FB Coaching

It started with a legitimate concern mixed with an unsubstantiated pot-shot at Nick Saban by FanHouse's Brian Cook. I replied, and so did a whole bunch of other Alabama bloggers. Brian took Round Two to his personal blog, MGOBLOG, and his post is most certainly neither work-safe nor child-friendly. The one good thing about Brian's post, is he more clearly enumerates his points. The bad thing is that he failed to do so without resorting to something on the order of an ad hominem every other paragraph, which tends to make him sound like a petulant child [Enter: The FanHouse Baby] as opposed to the college football analyst that he is known in the blog world to be.

Both sides have some valid points, which will be addressed in turn. The sole exception being the whine that Alabama's recruiting class shouldn't be ranked #1... the only suitable reply to which is pictured at right.

Executive summary from Brian's post at MGOBLOG (NSFW):

Issue #2. Nick Saban has taken the concept of oversigning and stretched it unto its breaking point. This is a nasty, filthy practice only undertaken by a program that couldn't really give a crap about the idea of a mutual commitment between player and school.

The crux of Brian's argument is that if, come August, a team has more than 85 players who should be getting football scholarships, the overage will need to be unceremoniously dumped to come within the NCAA's limitations. This is an undeniable fact. Brian would have you believe that makes him right and everyone else stupid, but there's more to it than that. First, it's a hypothetical situation which has not yet come to pass and is far from a certainty. Second, there's a lot of room for reasonable people to differ on "who should be getting [a] football scholarship[]."

The responding posts by Alabama bloggers tend to focus how the 86+ scholarshipped class will not come to pass. One factor for which Brian did not originally account was non-athletic scholarships. He attempts to dismiss this by asserting: "Anyone on scholarship and on the football team counts against the 85 limit."

This, of course, is false. Take, for example, Bryant Scholarship players (the Bryant scholarship is given to sons and daughters of his former players), as demonstrated quite clearly by The Capstone Report (whose author continues to butcher my last name) by simply citing the NCAA rule. The gist of it is this: non-athletic scholarships don't count until "the student athlete engages in varsity intercollegiate competition." So, with all due respect to Mr. Cook, he needs to take another read through the NCAA Bylaws.

At this point, Brian's post takes a particularly nasty turn, displaying the vast vocabulary of this Michigan Man: "The f****** point is that f****** Alabama is going to kick kids off the f****** team for no f******* reason." He goes on to erect and destroy straw men with great proficiency, but the inescapable fact his this: we won't know until August whether or not "someone gets it right in the ass," as he so eloquently puts it.

The argument is that if a coach over-promises with respect to the 85 scholarship limit, that's definitely scummy because either a previously scholarshipped student or a recruit is going to have to go without that scholarship. This is a potential problem. As noted above, however, there are a number of ways to avoid that problem all together. Let's say, for the sake of argument, that, come August, after all of the maneuvering and fiddling has been completed, Alabama ends up with 86 players on scholarship. One player will have to have his scholarship revoked.

As far as I'm concerned, nothing scummy has necessarily taken place... yet. There are a number of options which I suspect any neutral observer would concede are fair and non-scummy, for example:

1. A non-contributing scholarship player who is not putting in the effort to become a contributing player turns into a walk-on. Scholarships are year-to-year. Nobody is guaranteed four or five years of scholarship. Cook draws an arbitrary line at fourth year juniors to try to advance his argument, but even he concedes that revoking scholarships is within the rules of the game. Consider academic scholarships for non-athletes... typically, if you drop below a certain GPA, you lose your scholarship. Same situation here.

2. A player is cut from the team for some legitimate reason. Some of those reasons might include violations of team rules, run-ins with the law, failure to meet academic standards (above and beyond eligibility requirements), or simply not working hard enough.

The bottom line is that you simply can't do any sort of serious analysis of the ethics or propriety of these situations by just looking at a roster and counting. There's a lot more to it than that, and while these issues certainly disappear if you don't offer more recruits scholarships than you have spots under your 85-scholarship cap, merely making the offers isn't a problem as long as it's done carefully and with the contingencies covered.

The folly of this whole debate, really, is in Cook and his supporters assuming that they know the Alabama roster and scholarship situations better than Saban and his staff. Really, all that we know right now is that there's the potential for some unfair dealings. Cook argues that the mere potential for shady dealings is, itself, unethical. With all due respect, I think that's a particularly naive view that doesn't account for the subtlety and nuance of the business of college football. We're not dealing with robots, here. We're dealing with nearly 100 individuals from a wide variety of different backgrounds.

Come August, I hope we see Brian taking another look at the Alabama roster and letting us know how things shook out. Maybe he can even learn some new words between now and then to avoid having to use the same expletive four times in one sentence.

Snake Oil: More On Over-signing originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 16 Feb 2008 13:49:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nick Saban's the Real Snake Oil Salesman Around These Parts

Brian Cook — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 09:56:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, Miami Football, NCAA FB Recruiting

If you wandered over to the various recruiting sites on signing day you probably noticed big banners proclaiming Alabama's return to power via the nation's top recruiting class. This is due in large part to the enormous number of recruits that put pen to letter of intent for Nick Saban: 32, a full seven more than the NCAA's yearly limit of 25. Only Miami managed to stretch the boundaries of the rule further, signing 33.

Both classes are top five but in are overrated by sheer quantity. Alabama's #1 class is actually #6 by star average; Miami's #4 class is 14th by that metric. Both contain large numbers of players with no chance to qualify this fall; it's all smoke and mirrors.

That's irritating, but Tim Gayle's piece on the massive 'Bama oversigning is disturbing. Gayle crunches the numbers and comes to these conclusions:

Four to six guys are not going to qualify.
Four more guys who are marginally useful can plausibly be given medical scholarships and removed from the team.
Six more scholarships need to be forcibly extracted from somewhere.

Around six guys who are playing for Alabama now or expect to be in the fall are going to be told to get bent by the time fall practice rolls around. But let's all complain about how nasty Rich Rodriguez is, why don't we?

Some might argue that no one's really hurt by the practice of oversigning, but this shocking assertion from Bruce Feldman's latest post($) argues otherwise?

One administrator I spoke with said schools also can make it so some player doesn't qualify if they don't need him to, which may sound surprising, but it probably shouldn't at this point.

Jesus. That's truly filthy. When this happens a kid who manages to get qualified is shuffled off to a JUCO or prep school because there's not enough room for him. The school who signed him to a letter of intent is screwing him out of a chance to play at an actual D-I school for purely selfish motives.

The NCAA really has to do something about this. Feldman makes a point that the new APR restrictions do impose a cost upon teams that cycle through players willy-nilly, but your APR isn't affected when a kid who signed a LOI with your team doesn't qualify.

The 25-kid limit is a great idea that hurts schools who experience extreme attrition, but it's a paper tiger. Anyone who comes in for the winter semester, either via grayshirt or early enrollment, can count against either class. It's time to stop that and count kids against the class their high school teammates are in. And it's time to limit the number of LOIs schools can accept, and do away with these fictional classes of 30+ that do nothing but prop up egos and damage the careers of kids at the bottom of them.

Nick Saban's the Real Snake Oil Salesman Around These Parts originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 13 Feb 2008 09:56:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Old School: Bear Bryant Sifts Through the Ashes, 1967

Brian Cook — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 08:52:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, SEC, NCAA FB Video

"Old School" is the College Football FanHouse's irregular look back at the rich history of college football, usually through the medium of embeddable flash video. Check out the Old School archive for more famous plays and infamous hair.

The Tide entered 1967 with enormous expectations after an undefeated1966 season that ended in outrage and disappointment. Ken Stabler returned; Alabama was outraged after Bryant's bid for a third straight national title ended in controversy. Voters awarded it to Notre Dame despite Ara Parseghian playing for a tie in the 1966 "Game of the Century" (of the year) against Michigan State. Cue the first stirrings of SEC paranoia.

Anyway, the stakes were high. Alabama fell flat with a devastating tie against a Florida State team that opened its season with a 20-point loss to Houston. Bear was a picture of composure in the aftermath:

No, the defense did not play particularly well. 'Bama would end up 8-2-1, though they would claim a national championship anyway.*

*(Ha. Not true. Yet. Check back next year.)

Old School: Bear Bryant Sifts Through the Ashes, 1967 originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 08 Feb 2008 08:52:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Signing Day: The Morning After

Brian Grummell — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, Miami Football, Michigan Football, Notre Dame Football, Oklahoma Football, USC Football, NCAA FB Recruiting, The Word

Here's hoping your school isn't using whiskey as mouthwash thinking about who it woke up next to this morning

Themes

USC Soars Late, Pulls Shocker

Tallahassee Lincoln kids love to flirt, and they're never lacking for suitors. But when push comes to shove, the vast majority of them break hearts and stick with the hometown Seminoles. So it came as a complete shock to many people when highly regarded cornerback T.J. Bryant cast his lot with Pete Carroll and USC.

USC lost out on Alabama linebacker Jerrell Harris, but did pull in Bryant, Michigan linebacker Nick Perry and Los Angeles linebacker Uona Kavienga throughout the second half of the day to slide into 7th place in the Rivals.com rankings. It's been a great month of recruiting overall as USC recently got a pledge from the nation's top player for 2009 in quarterback Matt Barkley along with several other preliminary top 100 recruits. Damn.

Back To The Future

As expertly stated by EDSBS, the top of the recruiting rankings have a certain 1985 feel. Alabama, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Miami ... thank heaven for moth balls.

Miscellany

Notre Dame has a great deal to prove on the field after last year's disaster and two consecutive BCS flops. However, the Irish were magnificent in holding together their recruiting class and finding some decent guys in the trenches (at least on defense, anyway). The same can be said for UCLA after the departure of coach Karl Dorrell.

Jumpin' Sam McGuffie briefly flirted with California, but he's come home now and will stick with Michigan.

Signing Day: The Morning After originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 07 Feb 2008 10:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Signing Day: Rivals Calls it for Alabama

Brian Grummell — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 17:58:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama Football, NCAA FB Recruiting

Nick Saban is not a likable guy. Sometimes he drives his car into trees. He may have even inspired an NCAA recruiting rule. But hoo boy, can the $32 million dollar man recruit.

It helps that their signing class is 32 strong (the NCAA permits a maximum of 25 recruits to sign in any given class - there will be some creative accounting at work to make this class happen), but just the same the 'Tide signed an impressive class.

Among the notables are the nation's #4 player, wide receiver Julio Jones, the nation's #30 player offensive tackle Tyler Love, the nation's #38 player linebacker Jerrell Harris and the nation's #55 player, athlete Mark Barron. The 'Tide also signed Florida quarterback Star Jackson.

Reflecting the athlete first, football player second mentality so prevalent in the SEC, Alabama signed four four-star "athletes" as well as a fifth designated with a fifth star. It was a class loaded with quantity and quality, giving a major boost to second-year coach Nick Saban. For comparison's sake, in-state rival Auburn stands at 20th in the most recent rankings while Saban's former employer LSU registers the nation's 11th-best signing class.

Alabama was just 7-6 last year, but Saban and staff were able to sign players from nine state, as well as Alabama. Overall 14 of Alabama's 32 commits are from out of state, reflecting the program's sudden national pull under Saban.
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Signing Day: Rivals Calls it for Alabama originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 06 Feb 2008 17:58:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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