The Daily Bama Blog

What Alabama’s win over Arkansas means

Michael Casagrande — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 02:36:13 +0000

AP photo

Every time you think you’ve seen Alabama do it all …

Tonight, the Crimson Tide cracked the code to winning in Fayetteville, 79-68, with an offensive outburst.Freshman Rodney Cooper came off the bench to score 17 while Andrew Steele had a career-high 15 points to pace the Tide (18-9).

It was Alabama’s first win at Arkansas in seven seasons. It was also the first 70-plus point game since suspensions of Tony Mitchell and JaMychal Green rocked the team a few weeks ago.

With it came an edge in the SEC standings. Alabama is tied with LSU and Tennessee for fourth in the league with identical 7-6 league records.

With three games left, the Tide faces nothing but teams with worse conference records. Mississippi State (6-7) comes to Tuscaloosa on Saturday followed by Auburn (4-9) and a road trip to Ole Miss (5-8).

The top four seeds get a bye in the SEC tournament. The road win can’t hurt Alabama’s NCAA at-large hopes either. Remember Arkansas had a 17-game home winning streak before Florida earned a 30-point win Saturday.

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Tagged: basketball

Viewing guide for Alabama at Arkansas hoops

Michael Casagrande — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 23:30:29 +0000

They’re reaching the stretch run and it’s anyone’s race. Alabama’s 6 p.m. visit with Arkansas will again be huge for the Tide’s postseason hopes. Here are a few details to keep in mind:

Alabama lineup: G Trevor Lacey, 6-3, Fr., 7.0 ppg., 3.2 rpg.; C Moussa Gueye, 7-0, So., 2.3 ppg., 2.1 rpg.; G Levi Randolph, 6-5, Fr., 5.9 ppg., 4.0 rpg.; G Trevor Releford, 6-0, So., 12.2 ppg., 2.0 assists; G Andrew Steele, 6-4, Jr., 6.6 ppg., 5.0 rpg.

Arkansas lineup: G Mardracus Wade, 6-2 So., 10.4 ppg., 2.0 rpg.; F Devonta Abron, 6-8, Fr., 5.9 ppg., 4.3 rpg.; G BJ Young, 6-3, Fr., 15.1 ppg., 3.1 rpg.; F Marvell Waithe, 6-9, Sr., 5.5 ppg., 3.4 rpg.; G Julysses Nobles, 6-1, Jr., 8.9 ppg., 3.3 assists.

Noteworthy: Alabama is 2-4 in SEC road games while Arkansas saw its 17-game home winning streak end Saturday in a 30-point loss to Florida. … The Tide hasn’t scored 70 points since beating the Razorbacks 72-66 in Tuscaloosa on Jan. 28. Alabama’s averaged 61.8 points in the five games since. … Alabama’s field-goal defense ranks eighth nationally by allowing 38.1 percent shooting on average. … Hog freshman BJ Young scored a career-high 31 in the loss to Florida. … Arkansas leads the league and ranks 11th nationally by averaging 8.8 steals per game. … Alabama has not won in Fayetteville since 2005 and neither team was won a road game in the series since 2007. … A Tide win would be coach Anthony Grant’s 60th at Alabama.

Please note lineups are projections based on the previous game.

Tagged: basketball

Fight for SEC tourney seed continues tonight

Michael Casagrande — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 14:45:48 +0000

They’re all huge from here on out. The final four regular season games for the Alabama basketball team starts tonight in Fayetteville. Read about it here:

TUSCALOOSA — They’ll wear crimson and the jersey will say Alabama, but the team entering Bud Walton Arena this evening won’t look a lot like the one Arkansas saw a few weeks ago.

The Razorbacks couldn’t keep pace with the full-strength Tide in a 72-66 loss Jan. 28 in Tuscaloosa. But Alabama has since has endured a February filled with suspensions.

Still, it won’t matter much that Tony Mitchell has been suspended for the season and JaMychal Green won’t make the trip with the Tide — at least not for Razorback coach Mike Anderson. He said preparations remain the same for the 6 p.m. rematch in Fayetteville.

Game film of big games from freshmen Trevor Lacey, Rodney Cooper and Nick Jacobs stands out, along with recent performances by 7-footers Carl Engstrom and Moussa Gueye.

“Now the young guys have chance to really show a lot of their ability,” Anderson said. “And they’ve done well. Of course when you have Trevor (Releford) running the show, you have a chance. And a guy like (Andrew) Steele, he’s an iron man. He just does the little things. They’ve held the ship together.”

With four games left before the SEC tournament, neither team can afford a slip-up.

Click here for the full story.

Tagged: basketball

NFL: Trent Richardson has minor knee surgery

Michael Casagrande — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:29:56 +0000

A quick three-paragraph story on NFL.com reveals an interesting footnote to Alabama’s BCS title game win over LSU. Trent Richardson, it turns out, injured his knee leading up to the game.

Click here for the story detailing the surgery that will take him out of on-field drills at this week’s NFL scouting combine. That will make his March 7 appearance at Alabama’s pro day even more important.

But what about the BCS practice? Check out a few videos I took the week before the game and see if you can spot any hint of trouble. He still ran for 96 yards on 20 carries including the 34-yard touchdown run to cap his Alabama career.

Now try this one.

Reports: Alabama lands football commit

Michael Casagrande — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 22:06:03 +0000

The recruiting sites are reporting on Alabama’s ninth commitment for the 2013 football class.

ESPN.com first reported Huntsville High offensive lineman Grant Hill gave his pledge to the Crimson Tide after attending junior day activities on Saturday.

Hill is a 4-star prospect according to Rivals.com. He stands 6-6 and weighs 315 pounds.

Click here for the story on ESPN.com or here for the Rivals.com version. You’ll need a subscription for both.

The list of high school juniors who’ve made public commitments now includes the following:

OL Bradley Bozeman, Roanoke, Ala.
DB Artie Burns, Miami, Fla.
WR Raheem Falkins, New Orleans, La.
LB Reuben Foster, LaGrange, Ga.
OL Grant Hill, Huntsville, Ala.
TE OJ Howard, Autauga, Ala.
RB Tyren Jones, Marietta, Ga.
ATH/WR Ardarius Stewart, Fultondale, Ala.
RB Altee Tenpenney, Little Rock, Ark.

Tagged: football, recruiting

Iron Bowl of budgets: Who makes more, spends more?

Michael Casagrande — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 20:36:08 +0000

Alabama and Auburn compete in everything. Why not include athletic budgets of the two sides of the Iron Bowl? Through the magic of open records requests, I have spreadsheets for days of both schools’ budgets from documents they submit to the NCAA.

First take a look at the revenues reported from 2011 broken down by category. Look below for a few observations.

Click to enlarge.

In chart form, it looks like this:

Next there is expenses. Again, each category is listed.

And for the visual learners …

And for the grant totals …

A few thoughts to ponder:

Alabama does not charge a student fee like Auburn does, but revenue does include “direct institutional support.”
Alabama still made about $2.5 million more than Auburn in the year the Tigers won a football national championship. Alabama $9.2 million in that category after the 2009 title while Auburn made $5.2 million last year.
Alabama’s endowment investment income dwarfs Auburn’s ($7 million to $1.9 million).
Programs, concessions, etc, brings in $2.2 million for Auburn and only $111,731 for Alabama.
Alabama had $10.9 million in other revenue compared to Auburn’s $1.3. That always confuses me.
Auburn spent more in coaches salaries thanks in part to major raises within the football program. Gene Chizik and his nine assistants made $4.8 million more in 2011 than 2010.
The Alabama football program spent $980,882 on recruiting last year compared to Auburn’s $950,378.

I hope you love numbers as much as I do. If you made it this far, you must be somewhere in my realm of dorkiness. Sorry about that.

Tagged: $$$

The final ‘Rammer Jammer’ video mashup from 2011

Michael Casagrande — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:18:57 +0000

It took long enough to remember this, but it’s finally here. The mashed up version of all the loudest “Rammer Jammer” cheers is done. It now includes the Iron Bowl and the BCS national championship. Enjoy.

Tagged: football, Rammer Jammer, video

Moussa Gueye tells story of ‘miracle’ comeback from torn ACL

Michael Casagrande — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:45:12 +0000

Alabama’s 7-foot center Moussa Gueye didn’t take the easy path to the starting lineup. He missed all of last season with an injury before tearing his ACL in August. Gueye sat down with us the other day to talk about the “miracle” comeback in such a short time. Read about it here:

The excitement was killing Moussa Gueye this August. The Senegal native had sat out an entire junior season with a stress fracture in his leg, and Chris Hines’ graduation left a definite role for him at Alabama.

AP photo

Then he stepped on a teammates’ foot in an August practice. He immediately knew something was wrong.

Doctors said it was a torn knee ligament and told him six months was the minimum recovery time. Eight months was more likely.

“My world crashed down,” Gueye said. “I was amped up to play at 100 percent and excited about the team we had.”

So he worked and worked to strengthen the knee. Gueye and his extended crutches made the back and forth from the clinic in the football complex across the street to Coleman Coliseum daily. Watching teammates in practice fueled his recovery.

And four months later, he was back on the floor. Was he surprised? Hardly.

He smiled while talking about his first practice back.

“I didn’t even worry if I touched the ball,” Gueye said. “It was just great to have that feeling of running up and down again.”

Click here to read full story about Gueye and fellow 7-footer Carl Engstrom.

Tagged: basketball

JaMychal Green will not play at Arkansas

Michael Casagrande — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 20:00:07 +0000

Two days before a huge road game at Arkansas, Alabama coach Anthony Grant sat down with reporters. You can only guess what the main topic was.

JaMychal Green will not be playing Thursday at Arkansas.

“We’ll see how the week goes and we’ll make some decisions after Thursday,” Grant said about Green’s availability moving forward.

Junior guard Andrew Steele said it’s nice to have Green back around the team.

“It gives us a down-low post presence,” Steele said. “And like I’ve said, I feel like he’s one of the best players, not only in the SEC, but in the country. I only see positives coming out of it.”

Grant was also asked about Tony Mitchell and if he’d return for his senior season.

“I don’t know,” Grant said.

Steele called that news “disappointing.”

“Obviously he could help our team with the talents that he has,” Steele said. “But we understand it was coaches’ decision to make and we have to stand behind it.”

Yesterday, the program announced Mitchell’s suspension will last the rest of the season while Green will resume practicing this week.

The other player who didn’t play in Saturday’s win against Tennessee was also discussed today. Grant said Nick Jacobs practiced yesterday and should be good to go after an infection left him with a fever Saturday.

Tagged: basketball

See the video of ‘The Face’ on the Today show

Michael Casagrande — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:58:50 +0000

The photo that started it all. (Hal Yeager/Birmingham News via AP).

Update: Through his Twitter feed, Blankenship says he will also appear on the Jimmy Fallon show tonight.

—-

Original post: We all get our 15 minutes, I guess. Alabama freshman Jack Blankenship used about 3.5 this morning when he appeared on the Today show in New York.

Click here if you need the back story, but if you’re even vaguely familiar with the past week of Alabama athletics, it won’t be necessary.

We all take ourselves too seriously sometimes. Blankenship certainly does not. That’s his contribution to society.

That makes his 15 minutes worthwhile.

Click here for the video from the Today show appearance he made this morning.

Tagged: basketball