Tag Archives: T.J. Yeldon

A-Day 2013: Final Stats

Posted on April 20, 2013 by | Comments Off

Passing

AJ McCarron (White): 19-30, 223, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions.
Alec Morris (Crimson): 10-18, 141 yards, no TDs, no INTs
Blake Sims (Crimson): 5-10, 52 yards, no TDs, 2 INTs
Luke Del Rio (Crimson): 2-3, 38 yards, no TDs, no INTs
Parker McLeod (White): 1-2, 19 yards, no TDs, no INTs
Phillip Ely (White): 2-4, 8 yards, no TDs, no INTs
Cooper Bateman (Crimson): 1-3, 3 yards, no TDs, 2 INTs

Rushing

T.J. Yeldon (White): 15 carries, 69 yards, 1 touchdown
Kenyan Drake (Crimson): 8 carries, 33 yards
Trey Roberts (White/Crimson): 6 carries, 23 yards
Blake Sims: 3 carries, 7 yards
AJ McCarron: 2 carries, 3 yards
Cooper Bateman: 1 carry, 2 yards
Dee Hart: 2 carries, -1 yard

Receiving

Kenny Bell: 3 catches, 71 yards, 1 touchdown
DeAndrew White: 3 catches, 62 yards
T.J. Yeldon: 7 catches, 60 yards
Christion Jones: 3 catches, 55 yards
Chris Black: 3 catches, 51 yards
Raheem Falkins: 3 catches, 43 yards
Trey Roberts: 1 catch, 31 yards
Brian Vogler: 4 catches, 24 yards
O.J. Howard: 3 catches, 22 yards
Amari Cooper: 4 catches, 21 yards
Kenyan Drake: 4 catches, 18 yards

Defensive

C.J. Mosley (Crimson): 9 tackles, 0.5 for a loss, 1 fumble recovery
Tana Patrick (Crimson): 8 tackles, 1 forced fumble
HaHa Clinton-Dix (Crimson): 6 tackles, 1 pass break-up, 1 fumble recovery returned for 55 yards
Landon Collins (White): 5 tackles, 1 interception returned for 28 yards
Ed Stinson (Crimson): 5 tackles
OTHER NOTABLES
Dillon Lee (White): 4 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, 2 pass break-ups
Deion Belue (Crimson): 4 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 3 pass break-ups
Nick Perry (White): 3 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 interceptions returned for 42 yards, 1 pass break-up
Vinnie Sunseri (Crimson): 3 tackles, 0.5 for a loss, 1 interception returned for 86 yards and a touchdown
Dalvin Tomlinson (White): 2 tackles, 1 sack/tackle for loss

Kicking

Cade Foster
– Field Goal: 1-1, 29 yards
– Extra Points: 2-2
– Kickoffs: 4 for 260 yards (65 yards per kick), 1 touchback

Adam Griffith
– Field Goal: 0-0
– Extra Points: 2-2
– Kickoffs: 2 for 130 yards (65 yards per kick), 1 touchback

Punting

Cody Mandell: 7 punts, 236 yards (33.7 per punt), long of 62, 3 inside the 20
Worth Gregory: 1 punt for 26 yards

Scoring Plays

12:05, 1st Quarter, White Team: AJ McCarron to Kenny Bell for 40 yards. 7-0 White.
7:09, 1st Quarter, White Team: Cade Foster 29 yard field goal. 10-0 White.
0:00, 2nd Quarter, Crimson Team: Vinnie Sunseri returns an interception for 86 yards and a touchdown. 10-7, White.
2:01, 4th Quarter, Crimson Team: HaHa Clinton-Dix returned a recovered fumble for 55 yards and a touchdown. 14-10 Crimson.
1:04, 4th Quarter, White Team: T.J. Yeldon runs for 7 yards. 17-14 White.

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Stats from second spring football scrimmage

Posted on April 13, 2013 by | Comments Off

Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper catches a pass in the second spring scrimmage. (Photo courtesy of UA Athletics)

Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper catches a pass in the second spring scrimmage. (Photo courtesy of UA Athletics)

Here are the statistical leaders from the second spring scrimmage for the Alabama football team, the last one before the open A-Day scrimmage. You can click here to see video from the open warm-up period and here for a photo gallery from the event.

Passing

A.J. McCarron – 23 for 28, 319 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INT
Blake Sims – 10 for 15, 183 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT

Rushing

T.J. Yeldon – 14 rushes, 101 yards, 2 TD
Derrick Henry – 17 rushes, 79 yards
Kenyan Drake – 12 rushes, 71 yards

Receiving
Chris Black – 10 catches, 113 yards
Amari Cooper – 6 catches, 108 yards, 4 TD
Christion Jones – 5 catches, 72 yards, 1 TD

Defense
HaSean “HaHa” Clinton-Dix – 6 tackles
Denzel Devall – 6 tackles, 1 sack
Ryan Anderson – 6 tackles
Deion Belue – 5 tackles, 1 sack
Vinnie Sunseri – 4 tackles, 1 PBU

Other notes

McCarron’s touchdown passes: 36 yards, 55, 18, 3 and 12.
Sims’ touchdown passes: 22 yards, 63 yards.
Alec Morris had one touchdown pass of 10 yards.
Parker McLeod had one touchdown pass of 23 yards.

Yeldon’s rushing touchdowns: 65 yards, 7.

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Countdown to Spring Football: Running backs Preview

Posted on March 8, 2013 by | Comments Off

T.J. Yeldon's game-winning touchdown in Death Valley cemented him in Alabama football history. His play for the entire 2012 season did the same thing for his starting job in 2013. (AP photo)

T.J. Yeldon’s game-winning touchdown in Death Valley cemented him in Alabama football history. His play for the entire 2012 season did the same thing for his starting job in 2013. (AP photo)

Daily Bama Blog correspondent Brett Hudson, like he did for the BCS National Championship Game against Notre Dame, will count you down to the beginning of spring practice with another series. Each day, Brett will break down a different position group going into spring practice until the beginning of practice on March 16. Here is the schedule.
Today: Quarterbacks (click here to read it)
Tomorrow: Running backs
Saturday: Wide receivers
Sunday: Tight ends/H-Backs
Monday: Offensive Line
Tuesday: Defensive Line
Wednesday: Linebackers/Pro Day
March 14: Cornerbacks
March 15: Safeties
March 16: Opening day of spring practice

Another year, another starting running back leaving early for the NFL Draft. As has been the case for the last two years, the Crimson Tide has a stable of bodies able to replace the lost back.

Following in the wakes of Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson, Eddie Lacy left his last season of eligibility behind to move on to the NFL and, just like Ingram and Richardson, will leave his spot to a group of breakout young backs.

As was the case with yesterday’s quarterback preview, there was one name that is seemingly set-in-stone for having a large role in the rotation: T.J. Yeldon.

Yeldon (freshman year highlights), a 1,131-yard rusher with 12 touchdowns as a true freshman in 2012, is the far-and-away shoe-in candidate for the No. 1 spot as a running back, or at least the 1A that Lacy was last year.

Again, like the quarterbacks, the biggest question is the No. 2, or for running backs, 1B spot.

The leading candidate judging from the 2012 season is Kenyan Drake (freshman year highlights), another true freshman on last year’s team that filled in during blowouts and gained valuable experience from it, carrying the ball 42 times for 285 yards and five touchdowns despite being suspended for the Western Carolina game.

However, Alabama has two players coming back from season-ending knee injuries: Jalston Fowler and Dee Hart. Hart will be coming back from a torn ACL for the second time in his short career at the Capstone, while Fowler was seeing time as a fullback and occassional ball carrier early in the season before his injury.

The addition of three more freshmen, only one in for spring training, makes the Alabama backfield a crowded bunch. Early enrollee Derrick Henry (high school highlights) has been the fan favortie, accruing numerous records and national player of the year awards in high school before coming to Alabama. Altee Tenpenny (high school highlights), one of the best prospects out of Arkansas, will be joined by Tyren Jones (high school highlights) and Alvin Kamara (high school highlights) as freshmen running backs from Georgia entering the program in the fall.

Breakdown: Five players (eight in the fall) vying for two and a half spots (1A, 1B, mop-up time). One senior (Fowler), one redshirt sophomore (Hart), two sophomores (Yeldon, Drake), four true freshmen (Henry in the spring; Jones, Tenpenny and Kamara in the fall).

Prediction: The battle for the 1B spot will fall to one of the following: Drake, Fowler, Hart. The losers of that battle will join Henry to battle it our for the mop-up position. The rest, most likely the true freshmen that did not enroll early, are likely due for a redshirt season.

As is the case with the quarterback position, Alabama could see a player, or possibly two, transfer away from the Tide for playing time in the next year or two.

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Odds for AJ, Yeldon to win the 2013 Heisman Trophy

Posted on February 4, 2013 by | Comments Off
Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron has led the Tide to national titles in 2011 and 2012. (AP photo by Bill Haber)

Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron has led the Tide to national titles in 2011 and 2012. (AP photo by Bill Haber)

Bovada of Las Vegas (www.bovada.lv) has made Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron a 12-1 shot for the Heisman Trophy this season. T.J. Yeldon is an 18-1 choice.

You can guess who the favorite is: 2012 Heisman winner Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M.

Odds to win the 2013 Heisman Trophy:
Johnny Manziel (QB, Texas A&M),4/1
Braxton Miller (QB, Ohio State), 7/1
Marquis Lee (WR, USC), 9/1
Aaron Murray (QB, Georgia), 10/1
De’Anthony Thomas (RB, Oregon), 10/1
A.J. McCarron (QB, Alabama), 12/1
Duke Johnson (RB, Miami), 12/1
Jadeveon Clowney (DE, South Carolina), 12/1
Tajh Boyd (QB, Clemson), 15/1
Taylor Martinez (QB, Nebraska), 15/1
Ameer Abdullah (RB, Nebraska), 18/1
Marcus Mariota (QB, Oregon), 18/1
T.J. Yeldon (RB, Alabama), 18/1
Brett Hundley (QB, UCLA), 20/1
Lache Seastrunk (RB, Baylor), 20/1
Everett Golson (QB, Notre Dame), 22/1
Stephen Morris (QB, Miami), 25/1
Blake Bell (QB, Oklahoma), 30/1
Jeff Driskel (QB, Florida), 30/1
Ka’Deem Carey (RB, Arizona), 33/1
Devin Gardner (QB, Michigan), 40/1
Stefon Diggs (WR, Maryland), 40/1

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Even with Lacy gone, Tide has plenty of fresh legs to fill in

Posted on January 15, 2013 by | Comments Off
Alabama running back T.J. Yeldon rolls into the end zone with the game-winning points against LSU. (AP photo by Gerald Herbert)

Alabama running back T.J. Yeldon rolls into the end zone with the game-winning points against LSU. (AP photo by Gerald Herbert)

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama — Alabama is losing an All-Southeastern Conference running back in Eddie Lacy, but the Crimson Tide won’t hurt for enough guys to carry the ball next year.

Lacy, who is bypassing his senior year to go to the NFL, said the Alabama running back situation might be even better next season, especially with someone like teammate T.J. Yeldon to help lead the way.

“However they decide to do it, I’m pretty sure they’ll be the same way T.J. and I were this year, if not better,” Lacy said.

Lacy (1,322 rushing yards this season) and Yeldon (1,108) shared the job during the 2012 national championship season, as Alabama coach Nick Saban prefers having two backs carry the load. Next year, Yeldon will be a sophomore. Kenyan Drake (281) will be a sophomore, and so will Dee Hart (88), who played only five games before injuring his knee.

Jalston Fowler is returning from a knee injury and is eligible for a medical redshirt for this past season after playing only two games and rushing for 85 yards. If he receives one, he will have two more years of eligibility remaining.

Derrick Henry (2) is headed to Alabama next season. (AP photo by Will Dickey of the Florida Times-Union)

Derrick Henry (2) is headed to Alabama next season. (AP photo by Will Dickey of the Florida Times-Union)

In addition, Alabama is set to bring in as many as three running backs in its 2013 recruiting class, including MaxPreps.com national player of the year Derrick Henry, who is from Yulee, Fla. Altee Tenpenny of North Little Rock, Ark., and Tyren Jones of Marietta, Ga., also have committed to Alabama.

No matter who rises to the top, they’ll share carries, because that’s how Saban has said he wants to do it.

“That’s one of the best ways as a running back to handle that position,” Lacy said. “Like I was saying plenty of times before, it helps you as far as recovery and lasting long during the season because you don’t take as many hits. Splitting carries is much better than being one back and taking all of those hits week in and week out.”

Lacy is following a strong recent line of running backs. Of Alabama’s previous six leading rushers, five have played in the NFL: Trent Richardson (leading rusher in 2011), Mark Ingram (2009-10), Glen Coffee (2008), Ken Darby (2004-06) and Shaud Williams (2002-03). Lacy could make it six of the past seven.

The only one who hasn’t played in the NFL is Terry Grant, who led the team in rushing in 2007, although he is playing in the Canadian Football League.

“We’ve been very fortunate to have some very, very talented players at that position,” Saban said. “They’ve been very productive, and I think they’ve been very productive because they’ve played with a lot of good players around them that have helped them productive. I think they would be the first guys to tell you that.”

And Saban wants the pipeline to stay in place, producing talent at the same rate.

“We want to continue to have those kind of players at that position in our program,” Saban said. “I think having a great runner and great quarterback is probably the ingredients that create a starting point that give you a tremendous chance to be successful offensively.”

As for Lacy, he said he doesn’t feel any pressure to follow what previous Alabama running backs have accomplished in the NFL, including former teammates Richardson and Ingram.

“I just know, like they did, I have to come out and do what I do to the best of my ability,” he said.

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Countdown: One day until the BCS National Championship Game

Posted on January 6, 2013 by | Comments Off

Each day until the BCS National Championship Game, Daily Bama Blog contributor Brett Hudson will count down to kickoff, giving us bits and pieces of that day’s significance to Alabama and Notre Dame. Today is one day until the game, which means Brett is examining the number “one.”

–Both Alabama and Notre Dame have one kickoff return for a touchdown on the season. Alabama’s came from Christion Jones, which wiped away the only lead of the game for Ole Miss in a mere 15 seconds.

–Notre Dame is No. 1 in the nation in points allowed with 10.3. Alabama comes in second with 10.7.

–Alabama has gone for a 2-point conversion twice, getting it once. Alabama’s successful attempt came with 4:29 left in the third quarter against Georgia, as T.J. Yeldon ran in for 2 to give Alabama a 21-18 lead after Yeldon scored the touchdown on
a 10-yard run.

–Alabama has had one opponent go for two, unsuccessfully. Texas A&M tried to take a 31-17 lead with 8:37 left, but was held short.

–Alabama earned only one first down in the first quarter of the Texas A&M game. After that first down, the Tide punted three plays later.

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Barrett Jones, his protege receive postseason honors

Posted on December 6, 2012 by | Comments Off

Alabama center Barrett Jones received another award today when he was selected Capital One Academic All-American of the year for Division I. The College Sports Information Directors of America made the selection.

This past week, he also has won the SEC’s scholar-athlete award and the William V. Campbell Trophy, which is considered the academic Heisman.

However, the teammate Jones calls his protege also received an honor today. Backup center Ryan Kelly made the Southeastern Conference all-freshman squad today, along with three teammates: receiver Amari Cooper, running back T.J. Yeldon and defensive lineman D.J. Pettway.

The complete team:

Offense
TE: Jerell Adams, South Carolina
OL: John Theus, Georgia
OL: D.J. Humphries, Florida
OL: Brandon Shell, South Carolina
OL: Vadal Alexander, LSU
C: Ryan Kelly, Alabama
WR: Amari Cooper, Alabama
WR: Mike Evans, Texas A&M
QB: Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M
RB: Todd Gurley, Georgia
RB: T.J. Yeldon, Alabama
AP: Trey Williams, Texas A&M

Defense
DL: Dante Fowler, Florida
DL: Jonathan Bullard, Florida
DL: Issac Gross, Mississippi
DL: D.J. Pettway, Alabama
LB: Denzel Nkemdiche, Mississippi
LB: Benardrick McKinney, Mississippi State
*LB: A.J. Turner, Arkansas
*LB: Otha Peters, Arkansas
*LB: Antonio Morrison, Florida
DB: Jalen Collins, LSU
DB: T.J. Gurley, South Carolina
DB: Rohan Gaines, Arkansas
DB: LaDarrell McNeil, Tennessee

Special teams
PK: Andrew Baggett, Missouri
P: Landon Foster, Kentucky
RS: Trey Williams, Texas A&M

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Final results of The Daily Bama Blog’s MVP poll

Posted on December 5, 2012 by | Comments Off

Daily Bama Blog readers picked AJ McCarron as the most valuable player of six Alabama games this season. (AP photo by Dave Martin)

Daily Bama Blog readers named Alabama’s Eddie Lacy as the most valuable player of the Crimson Tide’s 32-28 win over Georgia, which is the third time he has taken the honor.

However, one of his teammates got the most mentions in the weekly poll this year: Tide quarterback AJ McCarron. Giving three points for every first-place finish in the weekly voting, two for second place and three for third, McCarron compiled the most points with 23.5. (He tied for second one week, resulting in the .5).

The complete list
Player (first-place finishes), points total
AJ McCarron (6), 23.5
Eddie Lacy (3), 16
Amari Cooper (3), 13
T.J. Yeldon (1), 9
C.J. Mosley, 4

Click here to read the results of each of The Daily Bama Blog’s weekly polls.

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Thoughts from watching the Alabama-Georgia replay

Posted on December 3, 2012 by | Comments Off

T.J. Yeldon rolls for yards. (Copyright photo by Gary Cosby Jr. of The Decatur Daily)

I watched the SEC Championship Game replay tonight on CSS. Amazingly, Alabama won this time, too!

The CSS announcers called the game, with some guy I didn’t know doing play-by-play and former Alabama quarterback Tyler Watts and former Georgia quarterback Buck Belue giving color analysis.

Just a few thoughts:

–Before the season, Georgia observers compared freshman running back Todd Gurley to former Tide star Trent Richardson. It’s a fair comparison. Gurley certainly enjoys contact, just as Richardson did with Alabama.

–It’s amazing how Amari Cooper can catch a swing pass at about the line of scrimmage and wind up gaining about 10 yards.

–On McCarron’s 22-yard scramble near the end of the first half, he put a nice move on Georgia defensive back Bacarri Rambo.

–Right guard Anthony Steen, the least celebrated offensive line member, seemed to play awfully well on the downs in which I watched to see what he did. A couple of times, Eddie Lacy ran through huge holes Steen helped create.

–Is it me or has Lacy run harder and harder each week?

–T.J. Yeldon seems to have the same kind of vision for cutting back and finding a hole as Shaun Alexander did for Alabama in the 1990s.

–On the punt return that set up Alabama’s winning touchdown drive, Christion Jones fielded the ball after it had bounced and did it with one hand to his right side. That’s probably not how his coaches would like him to do it.

–The game took 3 hours, 42 minutes to complete. CSS took out most of those TV timeouts and managed to show it in fewer than three hours, not cutting a play.

–When Dee Milliner‘s interception on the last drive through replay, Alabama’s defense lost some gas. If the Tide had tipped away the ball and hadn’t come close to catching it, would Georgia have come close to the end zone as it did?

–Steve Spurrier is right when he says Georgia should’ve spiked the ball at the end when the Bulldogs got to the Tide 8 with 15 seconds left. Georgia coach Mark Richt said afterward the Bulldogs planned to throw to the back of the end zone, but there was nobody back there.

–After a second viewing, I feel the same way as I did the first time: This was one of the fiercest, best college football games I’ve seen.

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Alabama vs. Georgia, game analysis

Posted on December 1, 2012 by | Comments Off

Alabama running back T.J. Yeldon needs 44 rushing yards to tie the school freshman season record. (AP photo by David Goldman)

No. 2 Alabama (11-1) VS. No. 3 Georgia (11-1)

When: 3 p.m., today
Where: Atlanta
Line: Alabama by 7.5
TV: CBS

Four-down territory
1. Stakes: The winner will go to the BCS National Championship Game and play No. 1 Notre Dame. There are more games on the schedule and another round of polls and computer rankings, but even a lightning strike of those computers won’t change that. Both Alabama and Georgia have a history with Notre Dame. Alabama lost to Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl on Dec. 31, 1973, to lose The Associated Press national title. Seven years later, Georgia beat Notre Dame in the same bowl to clinch its last national crown.

2. Efficient quarterbacks: Georgia’s Aaron Murray ranks first nationally in passing efficiency with a 177.15 rating, while Alabama’s AJ McCarron sits at No. 2, not far behind at 176.26. For comparison, when Florida’s Tim Tebow led the nation in that statistic in 2009, his rating was 164.17. If McCarron has an edge, however, it’s in interceptions. Murray has throw 29 in 39 career starts, including seven this year, while McCarron has seven in 25 starts, with only two this season.

3. Keep up with Jones: Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones ranks fourth in the nation with 10.5 quarterback sacks, although Alabama coach Nick Saban said it’s just as important how often he affects the quarterback. He has 30 quarterback pressures. Although that’s a statistic that rarely is scored the same from school to school and game to game, consider that Alabama’s leader is defensive end Damion Square with eight. Alabama faced the nation’s leader in sacks, Western Kentucky defensive lineman Quanterus Smith, who got three of his season total of 13 against the Tide.

4. Stopping the run: These two teams have the two top running back combos in the SEC. Georgia’s Todd Gurley (1,138 rushing yards) and Keith Marshall (720) have only 10 more yards combined than Alabama’s Eddie Lacy (1,001) and T.J. Yeldon (847). The Crimson Tide has an advantage, however: Alabama is ranked No. 2 nationally in stopping the run, while Georgia is 67th.

Key matchup
Alabama center Barrett Jones vs. Georgia noseguard John Jenkins: This matchup probably won’t decide the game, but it might be the most interesting and intriguing. Jones at 6-foot-5 and 302 pounds, while Jenkins is 6-3 and 351 pounds. If nothing else, they’ll throw a lot of weight around. But they also are two of the best at their positions. Jenkins hasn’t faced a center as good, smart and sound as Jones. Meanwhile, Jones hasn’t faced a noseguard as active and productive as Jenkins. If the rest of the action didn’t promise to be so exciting, it would be fun to keep the cameras trained on these two guys going at it.

Player of the week
AJ McCarron, QB, Jr., 6-4, 210: McCarron hammered away at a reeling Auburn squad last week by completing 15 of 21 passes for 216 yards and four touchdowns. It marked the fourth time in two years he has thrown four scoring passes in a game, which is his career high. Most importantly, he quarterbacked seven series, and Alabama scored a touchdown on all of them in a 49-0 win.

By the numbers
2: Today marks the second time these two teams have met while both are ranked in the top three. In 1942, No. 2 Georgia beat No. 3 Alabama in Athens 21-10. The Bulldogs went on to win the Rose Bowl.

6: If you don’t like Verne Lundquist and Gary Danielson, this hasn’t been a good season for you. Today is the sixth time they’ll broadcast an Alabama game this season for CBS.

44: Yeldon needs that many yards to match Terry Grant‘s school freshman rushing record, which was set in 2007.

70: Successful kicks out of 70 tries by Alabama’s Jeremy Shelley, including 60 extra points and 10 field goals. To be fair, he doesn’t attempt field goals of more than 45 yards, which are left to Cade Foster, who has made 4 of 8.

Prediction
This game has the makings of one of the best SEC Championship Games, matching up with Alabama’s 28-21 win over Florida in 1992, Florida’s 24-23 win over Alabama in 1994 and Tennessee’s 30-29 win over Auburn in 1997. Both teams are good and play similar physical styles with balanced offenses. They’re playing for a spot in the national title game, just just the conference crown. This should prove a terrific showcase for SEC football. Alabama 24, Georgia 23

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Thoughts from Wednesday’s Alabama practice

Posted on November 28, 2012 by | Comments Off

Alabama’s offensive linemen during Wednesday’s practice.

Chance Warmack (65) with Cyrus Kouandjio (71).

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama — The Crimson Tide worked out inside its indoor practice facility for the third straight day. With Saturday’s game in the Georgia Dome, Alabama is committed to practicing inside for the week.

The Crimson Tide worked out in full pads for the second straight day. The only player who appeared slowed by an injury was noseguard Brandon Ivory (ankle), who was dressed out but didn’t participate in drills during the media viewing period.

Running back T.J. Yeldon (ankle) look good in the running back drills. Watching him also gave us time to notice walk-on Ben Howell (5-9, 194) wore No. 3 today for his scout-team duty. Georgia running back Todd Gurley (6-1, 218 pounds) wears No. 3.

Offensive guard Chance Warmack still has the heavy tape job on his left hand to protect his ring finger, which he injured against Auburn. We’ve got a couple of photos for you, although they’re from my phone, and the line practices pretty far from where we stand.

The receivers looked fine, and if Alabama wants to play Chris Black, he looks ready to go. Of course, it’s always different when a player gets hit for the first time in a game. He has some sort of brace underneath his pads for his shoulder, which he injured in the preseason.

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Finally healthy, Lacy shows what he really can do

Posted on November 28, 2012 by | Comments Off

Alabama running back Eddie Lacy has rushed for 1,001 yards this season. (Copyright photo by Gary Cosby Jr. of The Decatur Daily)

This is my story for today’s print editions:

—

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama — Crimson Tide running back Eddie Lacy has gained a whole new perspective on turf-toe injuries.

After recovering from one for about a year, he appreciates how good he feels these days. As second-ranked Alabama (11-1) prepares to face No. 3 Georgia (11-1) in Saturday’s SEC Championship Game, Lacy is healthy and running like it.

In the last four games, he has rushed for 405 yards, even though he splits carries with talented freshman T.J. Yeldon, never getting more than 19 carries in a game.

“I feel a lot better now than I did then,” Lacy said. “We just have to continue the process. But I feel a lot better.”

Lacy’s troubles go back to the fourth game of last season when Alabama beat Arkansas. That’s when he suffered his turf toe injury, which he said he wasn’t sure there was such a thing until he actually endured it.

Although he was able to play, it bothered him for the rest of the season. Typically, he struggled after his fourth or fifth carry of the game.

After off-season surgery, he missed spring practice. He also was limited at the start of August practice. On top of that, he sprained his knee in a preseason scrimmage, adding to his problems.

As a result, he averaged only 42 yards a game in the first three contests. Now, he’s running the way people remember. He said it helps that he doesn’t have to carry the load. Yeldon has carried the ball enough to gain 847 rushing yards.

Combine that with Lacy’s 1,001 yards, and they’re the second most productive running back tandem in the SEC.

Georgia’s Todd Gurley (1,138) and Keith Marshall (720) have combined for 1,858, which is 10 yards more. The most productive running tandem is Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel (1,181) and running back Ben Malena (752), which has 1,933.

“Coach (Nick) Saban and the offensive coordinator (Doug Nussmeier) have been doing a great job with the rotation and I’m happy with the rotation,” Lacy said.

Saban said he prefers having two running backs rotate anyway, regardless of Lacy’s injuries. Rather than have a guy carry the ball 36 times a game and get hurt after six games, he would rather have him carry 18 times a game and be ready every day.

That’s made Yeldon’s development even more important. With Lacy needing time to recover from surgery, he carried a bit more of the load early. As Yeldon has dealt with the college workload and a recent sprained ankle, Lacy has taken the lead.

“T.J.’s a tough guy,” Saban said. “Hopefully, he’ll continue to get better and play well this week.”

Lacy said Yeldon is phenomenal.

“He’s putting in work like the rest of us,” Lacy said. “He’s holding up, his body’s great.”

For Lacy, having Yeldon means he doesn’t have to stress his repaired turf toe. Also, he said rotating with the freshman means he doesn’t get worn down as quickly.

“We wear the defense down and we rotate, so we don’t really get tired, then we come in late in games and continue to pick up where we left off,” he said. “It’s a great help for the offense.”

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Halftime at the Iron Bowl: Notes and bits and pieces

Posted on November 24, 2012 by | Comments Off

Eddie Lacy already has two touchdowns. (AP photo by Butch Dill)

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama — The Crimson Tide leads 42-0 at halftime, which is the same score it had at intermission last week against Western Carolina. Some notes to hold you over until the beating continues:

–Alabama’s biggest Iron Bowl win came in 1948 when it won 55-0.

–Eddie Lacy has a pair of rushing touchdowns, and T.J. Yeldon has one. AJ McCarron has thrown three touchdown passes, including two to Amari Cooper and one to Kevin Norwood.

–McCarron now has 43 career touchdown passes. He passed Brodie Croyle (41) for second place. John Parker Wilson has the school record with 47.

–Alabama has outgained Auburn 328-99.

–Alabama has six touchdowns, while Auburn has five first downs.

–Robert Lester leads the Tide in tackles with five.

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Thoughts from Wednesday’s Alabama practice

Posted on November 21, 2012 by | Comments Off

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama — The Crimson Tide practiced outside in full pads today, and it looked like a typical Wednesday practice.

During the time we were allowed inside the gates, the only hiccup appeared to come after a defensive backs drill when the position coach got angry and made his players run through it again. He yelled they weren’t getting anything out of it.

You probably can guess the position coach: Nick Saban.

All of the injured players ran and looked athletic, including cornerback John Fulton (turf toe), running back T.J. Yeldon, and receivers Kenny Bell (foot) and Kevin Norwood (leg). There’s no reason to think they’ll be limited in Saturday’s game against Auburn.

We have video for you of Saban working with the defensive backs. He stopped the work for a moment at the beginning to yell and make the players do the drill again.

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Thoughts from Tuesday’s Alabama practice

Posted on November 20, 2012 by | Comments Off

Guess who usually parks in this space?

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama — Yes, that’s a photo of an empty parking space above.

It caused a bit of confusion today while waiting for the Crimson Tide to open the gates so we could enter practice. Nick Saban parks in that spot. Always. And since August, I’ve never seen that space empty. Never.

Apparently, he’s getting his car worked on, because he was at practice today as usual, wearing the same straw hat he always does.

Alabama practiced outside in full pads, and everything went as you might expect. All the injured players practice. Wide receiver Kevin Norwood (leg) and Kenny Bell (foot) didn’t sit out any of the drills that we saw during our viewing period. Cornerback John Fulton (turf toe) went through drills, too. Running back T.J. Yeldon (ankle) looked fine, but then again, Saban said after the freshman was hurt Saturday that it wasn’t serious.

On the scout team, it’s typical for players to wear the jersey number of the primary players for the other team. This week, that means at least three guys are wearing No. 80 for Auburn’s Emory Blake, who leads the Tigers with 47 catches. Even freshman Chris Black, who rejoined practice three weeks ago, is wearing No. 80 instead of his customary No. 5.

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