SBNation.com User Blog: JKCarp1230

POLL: Who Is Nick Saban's Coaching Rival?

JKCarp1230 — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 23:25:07 -0000

Two years ago, I wrote a FanPost asking if Nick Saban vs. Les Miles would become the next big coaching rivalry. In that FanPost, I linked a Rivals.com article that suggested Saban vs. Chizik was likely to become a modern day Hayes vs. Schembechler.

After you've stopped laughing at that idea, you should realize that a plurality of RBR readers felt that, indeed, Gene Chizik was the most likely coach to rival Coach Saban.

via cstv.com

Now that the Southeastern Conference has experienced tremendous turnover in the coaching ranks, I feel it's appropriate to conduct another survey. I have included the coaches from our chief division and conference rivals along with some promising upstarts within the SEC.

Kevin Sumlin had a successful first year in the SEC and was the only coach to best Nick Saban in 2012.

Les Miles' LSU team has faced the Crimson Tide thrice in the last two years, winning once in Tuscaloosa and losing twice within Louisiana. By far, the games between LSU and Alabama in the last two years have had the highest stakes of any between two rivals.

Hugh Freeze is better than his predecessors, and Ole Miss fans were pleasantly surprised after only losing to Alabama by 19 points last September.

Will Muschamp had his team in the exact same position following the 2012 regular season as Nick Saban had the Crimson Tide after the 2011 regular season. Things didn't quite work out the same.

Bret Bielema likes to run the ball.

Butch Jones will have an opportunity to prove he can be successful without Brian Kelly setting the stage.

Gus Malzahn was, like, shut up!

Vote away!

After you've stopped laughing at that idea, you should realize that a plurality of RBR readers felt that, indeed, Gene Chizik was the most likely coach to rival Coach Saban.

via cstv.com

Kevin Sumlin had a successful first year in the SEC and was the only coach to best Nick Saban in 2012.

Hugh Freeze is better than his predecessors, and Ole Miss fans were pleasantly surprised after only losing to Alabama by 19 points last September.

Will Muschamp had his team in the exact same position following the 2012 regular season as Nick Saban had the Crimson Tide after the 2011 regular season. Things didn't quite work out the same.

Bret Bielema likes to run the ball.

Butch Jones will have an opportunity to prove he can be successful without Brian Kelly setting the stage.

Gus Malzahn was, like, shut up!

Vote away!

Poll

Which SEC coach do you think emerges as Saban's chief "rival" in the near future?

Kevin Sumlin

18 votes

Les Miles

71 votes

Hugh Freeze

3 votes

Will Muschamp

9 votes

Bret Bielema

1 votes

Butch Jones

1 votes

Gus Malzahn

3 votes

None of the Above (I have explained myself in the comments.)

13 votes

119 votes | Poll has closed

New Military Walk of Honor at UA

JKCarp1230 — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 16:34:24 -0000

I know we have lots of military folks here at RBR, and even more who have a proud military family heritage. I'm a third-generation veteran and have become very involved with the unique community of veterans, service members, dependents, and survivors (VSDS) we have at the University of Alabama. Currently I am the president of the UA Campus Veterans Association, a student organization that seeks to foster the existing community through social events & service opportunities. Additionally, I am a VA student-worker in the newly created Office of Veteran and Military Affairs that is busy processing the nearly 1,500 students who have been accepted to UA and will be using VA benefits this fall.

Many of you may not know about the UA Veterans Center that is currently under construction at the Capstone. What used to be the basement of B.B. Comer will now be a comfortable facility that offers a lounge, computer lab, and one-stop service to address the unique needs of those in our community. As a way to mark the area with distinction, brick pavers will be placed outside the entrance. The Veteran and Military Affairs (VMA) Honor Walk is a way for individuals to support scholarships* for active duty, veterans, dependents, and spouses in all branches of the military. VMA Honor Walk is a way to cement your personal message, honorarium, memorial, or general support of the Capstone.

Pavers for the Veteran and Military Affairs Honor Walk will be located in front of the Veteran and Military Affairs Center in B.B. Comer. Each 8x8 brick will contain five lines with a limit of eighteen characters for each line. Cost for each paver is $200, which is tax deductible. All pavers will be engraved fall 2012.

All text will be centered on the finished paver. Each line may have up to 18 characters. Each letter, digit, space and punctuation mark counts as one character. Characters may include Greek capital letters, numbers, spaces and the following punctuation marks: period, comma, dash, slash, ampersand (&), apostrophe, quotation marks, colon, semicolon, parentheses, question mark and exclamation point.

Please return this form with $200 cash or check made out to the University of Alabama to 355 Ferguson

or mail to:

University of Alabama

ATTN: Alex Karagas

Box: 870292

Tuscaloosa, Al 35487

*My studies are paid for with the Post-9/11 GI Bill, an extensive educational benefit program that covers the cost of tuition, fees, and books while providing a monthly housing stipend. One of the best things about the Post-9/11 GI Bill is that it can be transferred to the children and/or spouse of a veteran for their use. For those of us using it, we don't have much to worry about. However, there are always students who fall through the cracks--some have school remaining after the 36 months of benefits run out, others are splitting the 36 months with multiple siblings, etc.

Booger Eatin' Tweets

JKCarp1230 — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 22:40:51 -0000

On a lazy, rainy afternoon in Tuscaloosa following the second-largest defeat in the series since 1976 and the most lopsided ever at Jordan-Hare Stadium, I was basking in the thrill of victory. I believe I've read every article about the game, watched every replay, and listened to/watched every version of Rammer Jammer out there.

Then I got started on Twitter. After perusing my friends' feeds who made it to the game, I took a look at the profile of the auburn athletic department. It seems that a few fans decided to tweet straight to the top, both during and after the game; here are a few of my favorites:

First is a booger eater named Tim, who is frustrated by the negative exposure generated by the Youtube video of Kristi Malzahn (Gus's wife) saying anything and everything that comes to her mind. He tweets multiple auburn-related accounts about this issue, including Kristi's (which has been deleted):

@macrod01: @AUAthletics - you need to get someone to get out in front of the Kristi Malzahn interview because it's now gone viral. Makes AU look bad.

(http://twitter.com/#!/macrod01/status/140637314564096001)

@macrod01: @kristi_malzahn - what is up with the video of you that's now gone viral? Really makes the staff look bad at AU. #wareagleanyway

(http://twitter.com/#!/macrod01/status/140638162581069824)

Next we have a couple of boogs who are less than satisfied with the performance of their paper tigers in the last two contests against the Crimson Tide held in Jordan-Hare Stadium. They tend to think a more hostile treatment of the visitors in crimson would make their experience more enjoyable:

@TheMatt_S: @AUAthletics It really is time to start putting visitors in the upper deck

(http://twitter.com/#!/TheMatt_S/status/140542236009041920)

@TracyDaniel: @AUAthletics Next time Bama comes to Jordan Hare play music over the PA during TV timeouts. Can't take that band of theirs. Srsly.

(http://twitter.com/#!/TracyDaniel/status/140619698193698816)

Finally, there were a few boogs who simply couldn't take the pounding and they were out for blood:

@HollywoodToddM: I am a huge @AUAthletics fan but after that mess I'm done with #NCAA football till next year. I'm sick of getting beat like that. C-ya n sep

(http://twitter.com/#!/HollywoodToddM/status/140598252163698689)

@gxknight: @AUAthletics please tell the coaches and players they all suck!

(http://twitter.com/#!/gxknight/status/140592245920370688)

@BradWhetstone: @AUAthletics Please fire the fuck out of Ted Roof!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(http://twitter.com/#!/BradWhetstone/status/140576278960021505)

Roll Tide, y'all.

Beat Auburn or Bust?

JKCarp1230 — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 04:36:18 -0000

I know we have long debated the significance of our rivalry with the Auburn Tigers. While I have no problem expressing how I feel about those gravy-sweating cousin lovers, I've often wondered how I would feel if we won every game except the Iron Bowl.

Playing in the same division as LSU has really screwed us this year. The possibility still exists that we could back our way in to the SEC Championship Game and/or even the BCS title game, but we have to rely on other teams to do the dirty work for us.

My question is simple:

Poll

Would you trade a victory over LSU for a loss to Auburn in 2011, considering that would get us into the SEC Championship Game and put us in the driver's seat for the BCS Championship Game?

Absolutely; winning championships is more important than our record against any one team

95 votes

No way; we have to take care of business against our in-state rival before I can celebrate other accomplishments

142 votes

237 votes | Poll has closed

They got used to winning, so they started playing to win rather than playing to a standard. When...

JKCarp1230 — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 22:15:43 -0000

They got used to winning, so they started playing to win rather than playing to a standard. When you don't play to a standard, trying to be the best you can be in every game, you put limitations on yourself. I hope we will have more maturity than that this year.

Nick Saban, speaking at the second annual Woods & Water Bass Invitational

Coach Nick Saban talks about the roles of Crimson Tide quarterbacks Phillip Sims and A.J. McCarron...

JKCarp1230 — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 18:47:50 -0000

Coach Nick Saban talks about the roles of Crimson Tide quarterbacks Phillip Sims and A.J. McCarron in 2011.

"I think both players can contribute to our team next year in some way. I don't think it's ever good to just have one good quarterback on your team...They both have to prove that they can go out and play winning football."

Is Bama undersigning?

JKCarp1230 — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 06:31:04 -0000

Because sleep evades me, I was perusing the oft-referenced oversigning.com site for the first time tonight. Boy, does that guy have a vendetta. His extreme bias notwithstanding, I found this post from 2 FEB 2011 to be quite interesting. It seems the author took Coach Nick Saban's statement "Nobody really knows for sure how many guys we had on scholarship last year" to mean that either a) There is a callous disregard for scholarship numbers in the University of Alabama Athletic Department or b) Saban intentionally keeps the scholarship numbers from the media so that he can't be pinned down on exactly how many players are "oversigned."

Saban's statements made during the NSD press conference were perfectly reasonable, given that there are a number of players from upper class families on the roster. I had always assumed that every player on the roster received an athletic scholarship, but it seems like a legitimate practice to have players who can pay their own way do so in order to free up scholarships for "riskier" recruits.

Additionally, if a football recruit qualifies for any of the academic scholarships offered by the University, would Coach Saban have an extra scholarship at his disposal?

It seems that the entire sports media universe is convinced that Coach Saban is an evil dictator just waiting to yank scholarships from poor little boys who always tried their best, but it seems just as likely that we actually remain perpetually undersigned so that we can always offer scholarships to the best players.

THE MAN IS A GENIUS.

Additionally, if a football recruit qualifies for any of the academic scholarships offered by the University, would Coach Saban have an extra scholarship at his disposal?

THE MAN IS A GENIUS.

Saban, Miles next great coaching rivalry?

JKCarp1230 — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 16:25:51 -0000

vs.

via larrybrownsports.com via www.blogcdn.com

Olin Buchanan of Rivals.com discusses whether the rivalry of Nick Saban and Les Miles could elevate to the level of the legendary Schembechler/Hayes rivalry of the 1970s. His short answer:

And though Alabama and LSU are rivals, especially since Saban took over in Tuscaloosa four years ago, Auburn remains the Crimson Tide's arch-enemy. Indeed, a rivalry between Saban and Auburn coach Gene Chizik may be developing that could be greater than any in college football today.

Buchanan also answers questions about bowl ratings, which coaches "care" about their players, and whether UGA can right the ship in 2011.

vs.

via larrybrownsports.com via www.blogcdn.com

Olin Buchanan of Rivals.com discusses whether the rivalry of Nick Saban and Les Miles could elevate to the level of the legendary Schembechler/Hayes rivalry of the 1970s. His short answer:

And though Alabama and LSU are rivals, especially since Saban took over in Tuscaloosa four years ago, Auburn remains the Crimson Tide's arch-enemy. Indeed, a rivalry between Saban and Auburn coach Gene Chizik may be developing that could be greater than any in college football today.

Buchanan also answers questions about bowl ratings, which coaches "care" about their players, and whether UGA can right the ship in 2011.

Poll

After reading Buchanan's theory, which SEC coach do you think emerges as Saban's chief "rival" in the near future?

Les Miles

65 votes

Gene Chizik

79 votes

Will Muschamp

30 votes

Bobby Petrino

5 votes

Mark Richt

1 votes

180 votes | Poll has closed

RBR presence at Duke

JKCarp1230 — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 20:03:42 -0000

Fellow RBR beneficiaries,

I'm planning on making the 100-mile trek from Fort Bragg, NC to Wallace Wade Stadium this Saturday, and I'd love to know if any of y'all would be there as well. My previous experiences with Duke and Durham haven't been great, but I'm hoping that a solid Crimson Tide victory will leave me feeling much better about this trip.

I'm planning on beginning my tailgate around 10 a.m., and my tent will be open to any and all.

Sincerely,

animalcracker

RTR

via football.ballparks.com

Fellow RBR beneficiaries,

I'm planning on beginning my tailgate around 10 a.m., and my tent will be open to any and all.

Sincerely,

animalcracker

RTR

via football.ballparks.com

UPDATED: L.A. Times coverage of Bama

JKCarp1230 — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 04:04:28 -0000

The Times devotes significant coverage to college football, including the Rose Bowl and BCS Championship. Currently they have two stories about our beloved Crimson Tide.

This about Greg McElroy's Golden State roots and his patience while waiting to take the reins as QB1

and

This one about the team's first full day in California

SORRY! I had meant to be adding these updates as they became available. Unfortunately, I couldn't get to a computer for a few days. Here are some more:

Bill Plaschke's column on how Nick Saban is no fun

A great human interest story on how the Bryant Scholarship is still impacting lives today

Here's a story that focuses on our defense's approach to stopping the Horns, with a last sentence hat tip towards our tremendously improved graduation rates

You know they couldn't resist doing a story on everybody's favorite mountain, Terrence Cody

Varied updates on the Tide with a focus on placekicker Leigh Tiffin

Details of Mark Ingram's unselfish attitude accompanied by another bit of "writing"by Plaschke

A story on the epic clash (AARRGGH!) that will take place when our stiff-arming wrecking ball meets UT's stellar rushing D

It's interesting to read about the players we know so well in the words of foreigners, and I will be monitoring their site for any new stories leading up to Thursday's game.

Enjoy!

The Times devotes significant coverage to college football, including the Rose Bowl and BCS Championship. Currently they have two stories about our beloved Crimson Tide.

This about Greg McElroy's Golden State roots and his patience while waiting to take the reins as QB1

and

This one about the team's first full day in California

SORRY! I had meant to be adding these updates as they became available. Unfortunately, I couldn't get to a computer for a few days. Here are some more:

Bill Plaschke's column on how Nick Saban is no fun

A great human interest story on how the Bryant Scholarship is still impacting lives today

Here's a story that focuses on our defense's approach to stopping the Horns, with a last sentence hat tip towards our tremendously improved graduation rates

You know they couldn't resist doing a story on everybody's favorite mountain, Terrence Cody

Varied updates on the Tide with a focus on placekicker Leigh Tiffin

Details of Mark Ingram's unselfish attitude accompanied by another bit of "writing"by Plaschke

A story on the epic clash (AARRGGH!) that will take place when our stiff-arming wrecking ball meets UT's stellar rushing D

It's interesting to read about the players we know so well in the words of foreigners, and I will be monitoring their site for any new stories leading up to Thursday's game.

Enjoy!

Clemson commit loved BDS

JKCarp1230 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 03:36:23 -0000

I always enjoy reading the recruiting news that Andrew Bone reports for the Tuscaloosa News, and this quote from a visitor to the LSU game made me chuckle:

I have been to a lot of college games, but I forgot how crunk it gets down at Alabama. It was so loud. Those LSU fans tried to get crazy, but the Alabama fans came right back at them. They didn’t say a word in that fourth quarter.

Clemson commitment Desmond Brown said that. Wish I could've been there...

I always enjoy reading the recruiting news that Andrew Bone reports for the Tuscaloosa News, and this quote from a visitor to the LSU game made me chuckle:

I have been to a lot of college games, but I forgot how crunk it gets down at Alabama. It was so loud. Those LSU fans tried to get crazy, but the Alabama fans came right back at them. They didn’t say a word in that fourth quarter.

Clemson commitment Desmond Brown said that. Wish I could've been there...