ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE FOOTBALL

University of Alabama football news, schedule, recruiting, stats & more

So, this Alabama-Clemson game is a good thing for both teams, right? National exposure, big-time competition, great recruiting tool, etc... Right?

Turns out, there is more to it than just that. The teams also get money. A story is being posted on the Birmingham News breaking news page about this now.

Want to know much? Want to know one more huge detail?

Here is the beginning of the story:

The University of Alabama and Clemson University are each expected to receive a payout of just under $2 million for their season opening game, according to contracts obtained Wednesday by The Birmingham News.

When the teams play on Aug. 30 in Atlanta's Georgia Dome and on ABC Sports, they will split $3,832,060, the anticipated profits for the game. That equals $1.9 million per team.

According to the contracts - obtained using a public records request - beer will also be available at the concessions stands. Sales will be cut off at halftime.

That's right... beer!

Continue reading "Alabama, Clemson will earn nearly $2 million each for season opener" »

So, the room is emptying here at SEC Kickoff 2008, and I'm writing the words that will appear in tomorrow's Birmingham News. But first, I did a quick scan through some of the transcripts. And you know what I found?

An odd reference from your favorite hat-wearing coach, Les Miles. The LSU coach was discussing how much he appreciates the rather handsome salary he earns. And he was looking back at his own career.

Then he said this:

"I think college football has changed in that position," Miles said. "My coach, who I think was the greatest coach ever, Bo Schembechler would have made ... the most in my opinion. (He would have been the) most highly paid coach in the country."

And that's where I stopped. Greatest coach in the county? Huh? Am I crazy, or did Bo Schembechler win zero national titles?

What about Paul "Bear" Bryant? Does his record not earn him that honor?

What about Joe Paterno? Bobby Bowden?

I thought it was noteworthy, at least. OK, back to writing...

The more things change ...

Yes, the second question offered during LSU coach Les Miles' appearance at SEC media days dealt with Alabama. It was predictable, since Miles reportedly ribbed the Crimson Tide during a recent speaking engagement before Tigers fans in New Orleans.

The New Orleans Times-Picayune quoted Miles in regards to the Alabama game as telling fans to "not to make too much of that game, as it seems like a lot of teams in Louisiana beat that team."

Miles, of course, was referring to Alabama's home defeat to Louisiana-Monroe last November.

His answer today ...

"I want you to know something. I have a great respect for the University of Alabama, the history they have represented to college football, the competition they put on every time they take the field. I promise you that any fun and entertainment I have with supporters is very respectful."

So there you go.

The Hat is having his turn right now. And he's going through basically LSU's entire roster. After listening to Urban Meyer and Sylvester Croom, let's just say the juice in the room has diminished. No slight to Les Miles. But those guys are tough to beat as far as public speaking.

But hey, remember that little thing Miles mentioned about Alabama?

Here's what we wanted to know:

A reporter: "The state of Louisiana has 12 teams. What do you think Alabama's record would be if it played all 12 of those teams in a schedule?"

Miles (laughing): "Let me just say, I have great respect for Alabama. The history, what they have represented to college football, the competition they put on. I promise you, any fun and entertainment I have with supporters (about Alabama) is very respectful. I love college football."

So there you go... He was joking. Two years in a row, he was joking. Or something.

Mississippi State coach Sylvester Croom, the reigning Southeastern Conference coach, is on the microphone right now. And he's breaking it down like he always does. He's pretty good up there.

One great thing about him is that it appears he's ready for any question.

Wondering about the offense opening up? "We're definitely going to open it up," Croom said.

How about the trend of early commitments? "When I came to Mississippi State, I was one of the guys who wanted to wait to offer until we saw a guy in high school. If we'd done that, we'd have (missed out). I got a letter the other day from a ninth grader asking if I was going to offer him a scholarship. I hope it doesn't get to that point."

How about how far he looks ahead? "Last night, I was working on the 2010 depth chart."

Why did he bring sophomore Wesley Carroll to media days and not a senior: "He knows how to win."

On whether he is crazy for setting a goal of winning the SEC title: "I don't know if we'll be good enough. At the end of the day, we might not be. I think we have a chance to do that. Every year, we've played as good as we can. But our goal is to win the conference championship. I don't know any other way to do it, if you want to be the best."

He's a pro. And only eight references to Alabama and his playing days.

I had to know. The Heisman Trophy is sitting in on level two of the Wynfrey Hotel. What's it doing there?

So while Tim Tebow is standing on the dais at SEC Kickoff 2008, I had to ask:

Me: "Do you bring the Heisman Trophy with you wherever you go?"

Tim: "Everywhere."

Me: "What went into bringing it here, to SEC Media Days?"

Tim: "It's here?"

Me: "Right outside these doors."

Tim: "Last I checked, mine is back at my parent's home in Jacksonville. Maybe that's the University of Florida's copy..."

Then Chuck Dunlap of SEC media relations stepped in: "To clarify, Nissan, an SEC sponsor, brought that."

Cue hilarious laughter.

So there you go....

Florida coach Urban Meyer is up at the dais doing his thing, talking about if he has the fastest team in America and describing how Chris Rainey beat some world-class sprinter in a race behind the dorms.

"I would've liked to have seen that," Meyer joked. "We could've sold 10,000 tickets to it. ESPN Gameday probably would've showed up."

In the meantime, I'm scanning through my first look at the Alabama media guide. Not a bad looking guide, if you ask me. While last year's featured a monster picture of coach Nick Saban walking on (what looked like) water, this year's is player-focused.

The 2008 cover has a bright, shiny picture of quarterback John Parker Wilson throwing a pass, though it looks oddly like the cover of an EA Sports game.

[EDITED AT 6:15 p.m.: I'm told there are different covers, so not every guide has JPW.]

The back has another bright, shiny picture of Bryant-Denny in a pre-game setting, as the players are doing their entrance.

It also has three numbers: 12 (national titles). 92 (All-Americans). 21 (SEC titles).

Continue reading "Scanning through the Alabama media guide..." »

Greetings from SEC Media Days. ... and farewell to Crimson Chatter.

SEC Commissioner Mike Slive has just stepped to the podium to give his annual State-of-the-SEC address. But before things really get cranked up here at the Wynfrey, I wanted to fill the Chatter crowd in on what's going on and, obviously, say so long.

The details are still being worked out but here's the deal:

I'm no longer going to be the Alabama beat writer for The Huntsville Times. Instead -- and, like I said, details are still being worked out -- I'm going to be spending my football season covering the SEC as a whole for The Times. The bylines will still be frequent and I hope you find your way to our newspaper and our corner of the Information Superhighway.

Since I'm not going to be covering the Tide every day, Crimson Chatter will close its doors after posting 576 blog entries since it started in the spring of 2007.

Continue reading "Hello. ... I must be going" »