Alabama
Crimson Tide
Preview 2009
By
Pete Fiutak
Interested in blogging about Bama football? Let
us know
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2009 CFN Alabama Preview |
2009 Bama Offense
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2009 Bama Defense |
2009 Bama Depth
Chart
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2008 Bama Preview |
2007 Bama Preview |
2006 Bama
Preview
Head coach: Nick Saban
3rd year: 19-8
14th year overall: 110-50-1
Returning Lettermen:
Off. 24, Def. 28, ST 3
Lettermen Lost: 11 |
Ten
Best Alabama Players
1.
WR Julio Jones, Soph.
2. DT Terrence
Cody, Sr.
3. LB Rolando McClain, Jr.
4. LB Dont'a
Hightower, Sr.
5. CB/PR Javier Arenas, Sr.
6. RB Mark
Ingram, Soph.
7. RB Trent Richardson, Fr.
8. CB Dre
Kirkpatrick, Fr.
9. S Kareem Jackson, Jr.
10. CB Kareem
Jackson, Jr. |
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2009 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 10-2
2009 Record: 0-0
9/5 Virginia
Tech (Atlanta)
9/12 FIU
9/19 North Texas
9/26 Arkansas
10/3 at Kentucky
10/10 at Ole Miss
10/17 South Carolina
10/24 Tennessee
10/31 OPEN DATE
11/7 LSU
11/14 at Miss State
11/21 Chattanooga
11/28 at Auburn |
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2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction:
8-4
2008 Record: 12-2
8/30
Clemson W 34-10
9/6 Tulane W 20-6
9/13 West Kentucky
W 41-7
9/20 at Arkansas W
49-14
9/27 at Georgia W 41-30
10/4 Kentucky W 17-14
10/11 OPEN DATE
10/18 Ole Miss W 24-20
10/25 at Tennessee W 29-9
11/1 Arkansas State W
35-0
11/8 at LSU W 27-21 OT
11/15 Miss State W
32-7
11/22 OPEN DATE
11/29 Auburn W 36-0
12/6 SEC Championship
Florida L 31-20
Sugar Bowl
Jan. 2 Utah L 31-17 |
It's been quickly forgotten after what happened
last year, but this was supposed to be the season that Alabama
was going to become a national power. That the program was quarter away
from playing for the national title in a surprise, breakthrough 2008
campaign, should only set the hype machine on 11. Instead, Bama is being
put on the pay-no-mind list.
Everyone is in love with Ole Miss,
the hot program on a national scale going into the season. Everyone is
assuming last year was an aberration for LSU and things will be back to
normal this year. Even Arkansas is being given a little love with the
pieces in place for Bobby Petrino to start doing what he'd like on
offense. And then there's Alabama, who should be even better and more
talented this year, but few are talking about national championship
potential, and that's wrong. Bama has the rare chance to be able to use
the "no one believes in us" cliché when it actually appliies.
The
recency effect appears to have kicked in when it comes to what happened
last year. Bama was tight as a drum throughout the season, seemingly
answering every challenge with big scoring drive to quell uprisings game
after game, while being ruthlessly business-like and unflappable on the
way to a No. 1 ranking and the SEC West title. That Tim Tebow took out
the heart and soul of the Tide in the fourth quarter of the SEC
Championship, and with the subsequent lifeless performance against Utah
in the Sugar Bowl, shouldn't diminish what happened for a team that no
one had on the national title radar. For 51 quarters, this looked like a
team and a program that was announcing it had arrived under head coach
Nick Saban. Don't be shocked if this year's team is better.
So why, outside of the Utah embarrassment, is Alabama not being put
among the preseason favorites to end up in Pasadena? Maybe it's because
it's too easy, and too lazy, to assume the team will slip after losing a
few key players.
John Parker Wilson finished his career as the
top passing quarterback in school history, but Greg McElroy should be a
more than adequate replacement and he should be an even more perfect fit
for what the offense wants to do. Andre Smith was the nation's best
offensive lineman last year, but JUCO transfer James Carpenter appears
to be a solid fill-in at left tackle. Rashad Johnson was the ultimate
playmaker and leader for the defensive backfield, but the other three
starters are back in the secondary and Robby Green, Johnson's
replacement, was one of the stars of the offseason.
Glen Coffee is gone,
but the backfield will be better with several good options ready to step
up to carry the load. The great tight ends, Nick Walker and Travis
McCall, have to be replaced, but Georgia Tech transfer Colin Peek has
All-SEC potential. Antoine Caldwell was a sensational center, but
William Vlachos is stronger and has looked terrific. Get the point? Bama
has filled the holes, while everyone else of note is back.
Not only are
superstars like WR Julio Jones, DT Terrence Cody, and LB Rolando McClain
returning, but there's an influx of superior talent from the last two
tremendous recruiting classes that has upgraded the overall talent
level. True freshmen Trent Richardson (running back) and Dre Kirkpatrick
(corner) are just two elite players that Saban has brought in to
potentially shine right away.
So if last year's team came from
out of nowhere to become a heartbeat away from playing for the national
championship, don't be shocked if this year's team, with all the
improvements, is able to finish the job.
What to watch for on offense: Greg McElroy. The
junior might not be flashy and he's not going to do anything that'll
earn him all-star honors over Tim Tebow, but he's the type of heady,
tough, consistent playmaker who ends up winning championships. LSU was
able to win national titles with Matt Mauck and Matt Flynn, and Alabama
won a championship with Jay Barker at the helm. McElroy is the same sort
of leader who won't screw things up and will make the plays that need to
be made.
What to watch for on defense: The run defense. After
finishing No. 2 last year against the run with a linebacking corps that
was getting its feet wet and with a mediocre pass rush that didn't help
the statistics, Bama should be truly special. The front three, anchored
by Terrence Cody, is full of huge, tackle-sized linemen at all the
spots, while the linebackers are phenomenal. No one's going to be able
to power the ball on this group, while the spread attacks will have more
problems than they had last year.
The team will be far better if … the last
five quarters of last season are forgotten. How about this for a fun
stat? Alabama allowed 155 points in the first 51 quarters of last
season, and 45 in the final five. Much will be made about the collapse
in New Orleans, and there's the added distraction of the NCAA and its
bizarre vacated wins ruling. If this year's team can take on the same
confidence it had when it so coolly and calmly rolled through the first
12 games of last season, and came through whenever tested, the
combination of talent and schedule should take over.
The Schedule:
The Tide made a huge
statement against Clemson to kick off last season, and they're
hoping to do the same this year against defending ACC and Orange
Bowl champion Virginia Tech. The rest of the non-conference
schedule (FIU, North Texas and Chattanooga) is laughable.
Getting a week off before facing LSU at home is nice, but road
trips to Ole Miss and Auburn will make it tough to repeat as
West champions. On the plus side, Bama can't ask for much more
than for two of the SEC road games to come against Kentucky and
Mississippi State. There are only four true road games and
there's a stretch from October 11th to November 13th without
going away from home for anything.
Best Offensive Player:
Sophomore WR Julio Jones.
There are always exceptions to the commonly held belief that young
players aren't ready for the NFL until they've matured. Jones bucks that
misguided thought with the size, speed, and hands to make him a No. 1
target in the pros right now. If he was eligible, he would've been a
sure-thing pick in the 2009 draft and might have been an Oakland Raider.
Best Defensive Player:
Senior NT Terrance Cody. LB Rolando McClain could
be in the discussion, and fellow LB Dont'a Hightower might end up being
the best defensive player, but Mount Cody is the key to the D. The
massive lineman has gotten in better shape to be even quicker and more
active, but that's not his role. His job will be to stuff everything on
the inside and be the one the rest of the fantastic run defense works
around.
Key player to a
successful season:
Junior OT James Carpenter. Out of all the key
players needing to be replaced, Andre Smith might be the toughest. The
Utah loss made that more than a little bit clear. Carpenter won't be
Smith for the running game, but the 6-5, 305-pound star from the JUCO
ranks might turn out to be more productive in pass protection.
If he can shine from the start, Drew Davis can stay on the right side
and superstar recruit D.J. Fluker can come along slowly.
The season will be a
success if
... the Tide wins the SEC title. It's asking too much to have the same
regular season two years in a row with all the same injury breaks and
after the SEC was down last year. But the schedule isn't bad and the
team is loaded with talent and depth. So the team is better, the
schedule is better, and the program will be more motivated than ever
after how last year ended. Bama can't be shooting any lower than an SEC
title as the goal.
Key game:
Oct. 10 at Ole Miss. LSU comes to Tuscaloosa and
Auburn isn't nearly as talented as Bama. It's too simplistic to assume
the entire season might come down to the showdown in Oxford, but it's
the toughest road game of the year and it could be the biggest hurdle.
If the Tide wins this, barring an upset, it'll be 8-0 going into the LSU
game. Win that, too, and it'll be 11-0 before going to Auburn.
2008 Fun Stats:
- Score after
three quarters: Alabama 362 - Opponents 123
- Rushing yards per game: Alabama 184.6 - Opponents 74.1
- Third
down conversions: Alabama 76-of-183 (42%) - Opponents 56-of-199 (28%)
-
2009 CFN Alabama Preview |
2009 Bama Offense
-
2009 Bama Defense |
2009 Bama Depth
Chart
-
2008 Bama Preview |
2007 Bama Preview |
2006 Bama
Preview
|