dcroz

Yeah, because we all know that getting athletes who have never even wrestled in the amateur ranks is the way to get future pro wrestling (or "sports entertainment") stars. As opposed to, I don't know, getting people who are actually on the independent wrestling scene and show they want to do it for a living.

That previous #2 ranking came at the start of the conference season before the wheels came off; this #2 ranking is now with 19 games played and the team looking as much like a team as it ever has and not like five selfish guys as we’ve so often seen Alabama basketball decay into over the years. This group looks like they know they can accomplish great things; just hoping it continues that way.

Yes, and they still hand out the crystal football on that large, black base that was the defacto BCS National Championship trophy, which they also handed out before the BCS era even began.

Good grief, do you have a box of exclamation points near their expiration date so you have to use them before they go bad?

If last night's game is what you want A&M to play like all year, they won't become bowl eligible. Alabama did everything it could to give the game to the Aggies and they still couldn't get it done. Don't you think after five seasons and all the hoopla over this year's recruiting class that more should be expected of Jimbo than moral victories?

*not yet appeared

I think Kiffin would be at the top of 'Bama's wish list. I don't think Kirby's leaving his alma mater unless the administration or boosters do something really, really stupid to tick him off. Sarkesian's and Fischer's stock is dropping fast. Billy Napier could be one to watch, though Florida has become the Coaches' Graveyard the last dozen years or so (though Muschamp got a temporary reprieve with the SC job). Mario Cristobal would be another choice, but he didn't do that well at Oregon and the start of his stint at Miami has not exactly been glorious. And there's not really much enthusiasm among the Tide faithful for Dabo Swinney. But then, Saban may not retire for several years, so it's quite possible the guy to succeed him has yet appeared on his coaching tree.

Georgia is finding out this year what Alabama did in 2010: it’s much different being the hunted rather than the hunter. That year, Alabama had its starting QB (Greg McElroy) and Heisman-winning RB back (Mark Ingram) along with a total bull sharing the backfield (Trent Richardson) and most of its other key players from its 2009 14-0 national championship team. It was supposed to be an even more talented team than the previous year and practically was crowned national champion before the season began (even Sports Illustrated had the word “Dynasty” as its cover headline on the issue of ‘Bama’s defeat of Texas in the BCS Championship Game). Then South Carolina happened. And LSU. And Auburn. The season expected to end with another natty instead ended in the Citrus Bowl as the #16-ranked team going in. All because the team ate the “rat poison” of media praise and expectations. Georgia is having the same problem, the hangover after the big party of winning last year’s championship. And Smart knows all too well that this is what is happening as he was DC on that 2010 Tide team. It’s one thing to coach guys on preparing for the next game; it’s another thing altogether to get them to snap out of being complacent, which is one reason why it is so hard to repeat as national champions. Let’s see how he does.

A win over Texas A&M without Young is merely "possible?" Milroe & Co. put up more points on Arkansas than the Tide did when Young was in the game. Certainly not saying that the Tide offense is the same without Young playing, but with A&M's offense being as anemic as it is, Milroe won't need to throw for 300 yards to win the game if Young is still on the shelf. Now against Tennessee, on the other hand....

Actually it’s 15 wins in a row, as Arkansas and Tennessee have both never beaten Saban while he’s been in Tuscaloosa. But getting to 16 for either or both is gonna be a challenge this season.

Ok. Was thinking this was the guy on here who still had them at 14. Still, they should be above Auburn and Missouri.

How is Vandy still at 14? They were there last week despite being 3-1 and with the awful performances of South Carolina, Auburn, and Mizzou to look at and should have been at 11. USC looked better yesterday, but other two should be at 13 and 14 with that disaster of a game on the Plains. The 'Dores were no match for 'Bama, but they could beat either of them.

Saban has long wanted to go to a nine-game conference schedule and the Tide will be playing two Power 5 opponents a year (one home, one away) within the next few years. We’ll see how that tougher schedule works out for playoff chances.

Not sure which is funnier: Bama losing at Tennessee, or Georgia losing at South Carolina.

Exhibits A and B why neither one became the starter at Alabama (aside from the two series Barnett started against USC to begin the 2016 season before getting pulled).

I knew Price was problematic the moment I read an article on him in The Birmingham News shortly after he arrived on campus. It reported that on his first day there, he stuck his head out of his office to ask his secretary where the restroom was, and she informed him that he had his own private restroom inside his office. And...he was totally blown away by that. It indicated to me immediately that he had no idea what he had gotten himself into. I just never expected him to flame out so quickly, and in the manner that he did.

Amateurism has always just been the story that the owners have told to keep from having to share any of the receipts with the players. The athletes play for a noble purpose; the promoters walk away with all the money. With all the money that is pouring in to college sports nowadays--much of that coming from the use of the athletes' names and faces splattered across replica jerseys and other merch--then it's fair and proper that players demand a slice of it since they're the ones working to make that cash.

Spreading what wealth? The alleged "true cost of a college education?" Please, that's breadcrumbs compared to what the schools make off these athletes from selling stuff with their names and images and likenesses splattered all over them. Time was when athletics actually cost money, but now there is so much cash out there from television rights and merchandising that I have no idea how P5 schools supposedly lose money from athletics (I suspect there are some Hollywood-style accounting tricks going on). If your employer were to tell you that instead of being paid for your work that it was going to give you a place to live and food to eat, but you had zero say in just what that was and you could not earn a penny otherwise without being kicked out, you'd revolt. In fact, that's exactly how companies used to operate and it led to bloody conflicts and the rapid growth of unions. But hey, as long as you get to cheer for your team on Saturdays, I guess.

The thing is, had the NCAA recognized how incredibly unfair it is to make billions off the efforts of young athletes while punishing them for accepting a couple bucks from a friend for lunch (yes, that did happen to a Boise State player) then we may not be in this position. Even the Olympics--notoriously corrupt as it is--recognized this years ago when it started allowing pro athletes in, though of course that was more because of the increased television and marketing that it would get out of it than for any noble purpose. But this is the new reality, one that will gradually be woven into the fabric of college athletics and become an accepted part of it, and those pre-NIL days will eventually be looked upon the same way as leather helmets and the wishbone.

Funny thing is, that Alabama-Texas game could very well not be a non-conference game by the time September gets here.

The reason why people are complaining is simple: it's all about the ratings. Two SEC teams in the final game? No one outside the SEC footprint is going to watch. But an SEC/Big Ten final? Or an ACC/PAC-12 one? Everyone will watch! (Though somehow I doubt you'd hear the same grumbling if the final were Ohio State and Michigan in a rematch.) Always remember that the Mouse loves to encourage this whining because in the end it's all about adding to its bottom line and not because it really cares about getting the two best teams into the championship game.

Who's in the CFP...and who isn't?

So my question for the author is: just exactly what happened to FSU once Jameis Winston graduated? Yeah, the 'Noles began collapsing, Fisher got out of Tallahassee before the program became a total dumpster fire, and FSU hasn't recovered since. And what happened to TAMU around that stunning win over Alabama this year? 7-4 against everyone else...including a loss to a bad LSU team riddled with injuries to end the season. Just admit it: like South Carolina in 2010, TAMU played the game of its collective life against Alabama back in October. Everyone played above their abilities, and the Aggies caught an overconfident and underprepared Tide team at just the right time. TAMU has superior facilities and money to spend compared to Alabama? And this is different than EVERY OTHER YEAR how?? Before we start crowning Fisher as the conqueror of the GOAT and the ender of the dynasty, how about he actually proves for the first time in his career he can actually do more than ride a phenomenal QB to success and sustain it for more than a season or two.

LOL! In our heads? Hardly. More like a bit of a laugh at his expense that the guy who turned down the Alabama job in 2006 (and trust us, we're happy he did) because his wife didn't want to live here is now taking over a FCS team rising to FBS in a town much smaller than Tuscaloosa. Just some schadenfreude at how he went from one of the hottest names in college football to taking a small school position because he has fallen off the radar that badly.

Alabama has played close games all season and won all of them but one, and even then it came back from a game-long deficit to take the lead before A&M made their own comeback. Georgia has not played a single close game all season; you can point to Clemson but that Tiger offense was so bad that there was no way they were coming back. That experience for the Tide may be a deciding factor should this be a close game going into the fourth quarter. 'Bama is used to it; the Dawgs, not so much. We'll see what unfolds.

How is a three-loss Clemson team in the top 10? Or an Auburn team that is 6-6 and lost four in a row in at #19? And that is in addition to what everyone above me here has already pointed out.

Well, first of all, Young hasn't won anything yet. But even so, who else this season deserves it? No one on the offensive side of the ball has really separated themselves from the others as you normally see. If anything, the Heisman should probably go to the Tide's Will Anderson, but defensive players don't win the award (and while Charles Woodson was primarily a defensive player, he was also a kick returner occasional a received and made numerous spectacular plays doing both, as well). Young may not compare well to other recent winners in the stats category, but there isn't anyone else this year that does, either. And he's competing against this year's candidates, not those from previous years.

You...you do realize he was being completely sarcastic, right?

Our offense is really not that up-tempo, and certainly not compared to the last few years where we could score in five plays or less regularly so the defense was right back out on the field. This offense is more ball-control oriented with fewer long scoring plays than it was under Kiffin and Sarkesian, so the defense isn't getting that kind of pressure this year. It's just simply defense that isn't as good as advertised, as Tennessee showed by embarrassing our secondary for not even being ready on a couple occasions. There's plenty of talent, but not enough experience or coordination.

I think this is overemphasizing the "short leash" for Orgeron from an on-field perspective. While there's no doubt LSU fans are not happy with how the team has performed on the field the last two years, it's not the epic collapse we saw at Auburn with Gene Chizik in 2011-12 who still had his doubters after a 5-19 head coaching record before arriving on the Plains. Orgeron was fired/forced to resign because of the Title IX lawsuit about to hit the university over the allegations he failed to report or covered up rape charges against at least one of his players. If not for that, Orgeron would have a warm seat but would have at least another year to turn things around. As for Swinney: don't bet against him being interested in the LSU job. While one sour season by itself may not seem like much to be concerned about, there does seem to be an air of staleness around the Clemson program. Runs like Swinney has had usually last about 5-7 years before the game changes and your opponents figure out ways to stop you, especially when you've had as little coaching turnover as Swinney has had. It just could be that Dabo comes to the realization that he's done all he can for that set of Tigers and it's time for a new challenge with another set in Baton Rouge.