Having just returned from New Orleans and watching our beloved Tide bring home number 14, I feel it is time to revisit a personal National Championship tradition....

First and foremost: To Tim Brando, Gary Danielson, and the rest of you blowhard talking heads who spent weeks bemoaning Alabama being awarded a chance to play for the National Championship, insinuating we didn't belong, and who are even now saying that LSU's game plan was the reason that they could not move the ball against Alabama, I give you a team that dominated every team they played except for Alabama - scoring 35 points per game....against the Alabama defense, they ran 44 plays, gained 92 yds, and scored zero points.

To the LSU fans, who I observed on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday leading up to the game screaming, drunkenly accosting every Alabama fan you came in contact with yelling tiger bait tiger bait, I want you to know how much I thoroughly enjoyed your silence on Tuesday morning. You spent the weekend partying like you had already won the game - yes, we Bama fans drink, but we were also there on a business trip - and you were there to prematurely anoint yourselves champions. I wonder if you feel it was better to win the party than the game.

To the Honey Badger....I wonder how it felt to get burned and burned and burned by our second string wide receivers? Remember how you took a cheap shot on Dre Kirkpatrick on Nov. 5? I wonder how it felt when he treated you like the bitch you are on that last punt return.

To the rest of the whiners amongst the LSU players - whether you are whining about referees or whatever - I would like to apologize to you. Because we played such a sloppy game on Nov. 5th, we may have mistakenly given you the impression that you were the better team, and if we did create such delusions for you we do apologize. You may even be laboring under the delusion that shit talking and cheap shotting is the way to championships. In this you are gravely mistaken. We happily showed you last night what it takes to win the National Championship - we hit you in the mouth, you talked back - so we hit you in the mouth again, and to your credit, you kept talking and talking - but somewhere in that fourth quarter, we hit you in the mouth one more time, and instead of talking you did what all punk ass, thuggy little boys do.....you quit....in the National Championship game.....I wonder if you will ever be able to forget: that on the biggest stage, with everything riding on the line, with the crowd in your favor, your hated rival and your former coach MADE YOUR ASSES QUIT.

To those who yammered on and on about how Les Miles outcoaches Nick Saban on a regular basis, I wonder if you still feel that way after Coach Saban designed a game plan that Miles couldn't understand, much less find a way to defeat.

To all the scum sucking, pathetic auburn fans who have been whining for weeks about Bama playing for it all, I say go back and sit in your place, little brother, because your brief little shining hope of having an elite program has been snuffed out......again......by Alabama.....again....

To anyone who doubts that Nick Saban is the best coach in the country, well, I don't care what you think because if you cannot see that the man is the epitome of elite, then you are a Tammy level idiot....

To the Oklahoma State fans who want a share of our National Championship, I say pick a time and a place, and we will be there - and you WILL understand that you only think that you are in our league.

To the Alabama fan base. We are the best group of fans in the country, and I think we will only get better and stronger as time goes on - as will our football program.

To Coach Saban and the rest of the coaching staff.....what can I say? You are without a doubt the best, brightest, most innovative, D-I-S-I-P-L-I-N-E-D coaching staff in the country. I, and the rest of the fans of Alabama cannot possibly thank you enough for all the hard work and expertise you bring to the table when creating a game plan - and the defensive and offensive game plans for the BCSNCG were the best I have ever seen - and I was in that same building when Bill Oliver's defense dismantled Miami. The best compliment I can give you is: there is no other coaching staff in the world that I would rather have at Alabama.

To Miss Terry, I first want to say thank you for sharing your husband with us - I know it must not be easy on you to have your husband away so much. But that being said, I want to thank you from the bottom of this lifelong Alabama fan's heart for the way in which you represent our University. You are the epitome of class in every way, and the lives you have touched in our community will carry on for years to come. You truly are a classy genuine person, and the Alabama family loves you very much.

To the Players on the University of Alabama football team: you have given us your blood, your sweat, your tears; you have fought through injuries that would hav crippled many of us fans, and you have made us once again so proud of you that words fail me. All of you have not just played football at the highest level that it can be played at, you have done it with honor, and you have done it the right way. I wonder if you truly know how much we do care about you, and not just whether or not you can win us championships, but that you succeed in every facet of your lives. And watching you all mature through the years, I know that you will all be successful in any endeavor you attempt in the future. We, the fans of Alabama football, love you guys....for real....

To those families and friends who I know are still hurting after the awful events of April 27th, I know that no mere game can bring back your loved ones or the possessions of a lifetime that you lost. But if you can take comfort in what our football program has accomplished - because I know that Tuscaloosa and Fultondale along with all of the other cities and towns that were devastated that day, were on the minds of the young men that wore the Crimson and White throughout the season - and they played in remembrance and honor of those who were lost; they played for Carson Tinker, who played every game while his heart must have been torn to pieces; they played for the city of Tuscaloosa, for the citizens of the state of Alabama, and they redeemed with honor the burden placed upon them:

Ladies and Gentlemen Let's hear it for Number 14, let's hear it for a team that came back and fought for all of us, fought to win what was very nearly taken from them on November 5......and let's celebrate the 2011 BCS National Champion ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE!!!!!

"Even if it is done, we would put a plan into action and try to work him into shape. He probably wouldn't have a lot of opportunity in this game. We would try to use this week to help him implement into what he needs to as a football player to try to get ready for some time down the road. Maybe a week or so from now, he could be a guy that could work his way into something if he performs well."

That's part of Coach Saban's statement at his presser today speaking of Duron Carter.  This was obviously before he was sure that Duron would be able to practice today.  I'm wondering what everybody thinks his impact on the receiving corps will be this season.  If you had asked me during the summer, I would have said that he would definitely be a starter and would have a chance to be our best receiver.  Now, I'm not so sure - It is difficult to pick up the offense so quickly , though I'm fairly certain that he has had a playbook for a while now and I know that he participated with the quarterbacks and other receivers in passing drills this summer.  We sure could use somebody with that big physical presence that Julio brought us for the last few years, and I was rather counting on Duron to bring that to the table.  I tend to think that it will take him 3-5 games to get to a point where he can be counted on to know where to be, and for he and the quarterbacks to get on the same page.  What do y'all think?

My dad sent me an email today that he got from a Michigan State buddy of his who was on a MSU board during the game........unlike the LSU/Texas meltdowns, these are pretty much safe viewing, but funny nonetheless......enjoy.......

QUOTES FROM MICHIGAN STATE U DISCUSSION BOARD DURING BAMA GAME
 
 "Julio takin' us to schoolio
 
" why are they allowing Alabama to play with 35 players on defense?"
 
"If we played 10 times, they would win 15"
 
"We need much more to compete against a true BCS team. We need a couple
of CBs, safeties that can tackle, and a pass rush. That's just defense."
 
"If Cam Newton costs $200,000 for a season, how much is a 2nd half
rental?"
 
"and now cousins is dead"
 
"If I was our QB i would hire an attorney and sue them for negligence or
intentional infliction of physical and emotional distress."
 
"I'm ready to accept MSU boosters paying for an offensive line. If we
get caught I can deal with it."
 
"This is getting out of hand . . . an Alabama d-lineman just popped out
of my TV and threw me 10 yards behind my couch."
 
"Do you think this is how Custer felt?"
 
"We're going to have a wing named after us at Orlando Regional Medical
Center by the time this game finishes." 
 
"well we kept it under 50."
 
"I want to know how many times in the history of organized football that
teams have punted on 4th and goal"
 
"SO THIS IS WHAT THEY MEAN BY TEAM SPEED"
 
I can't believe Saban let the 4th stringers play for a quarter and half
and didn't put in the 5th string.  PO ..S
 
"this just not even fair...why is MSU playing an NFL team???"
 
"if we were in a bcs game, we'd have a much easier opponent"

As much as I love this website all throughout the year, I felt the urge, to kind of explain to the newcomers to RBR some of the reasons why I think they should make this their home base for football season.

First of all, a little self-promotion of my history here at Roll Bama Roll.  I stumbled across this website several years ago while googling information about Alabama football to try to find more information and commentary than I had been able to glean off of al.com and other such sites.  At the time, OTS still had his own blog and I believe it was really only Todd here, though OTS made frequent guest posts (junta, if I'm wrong on this, feel free to correct).  I immediately really fell for the tone of the blog - it was fun and lighthearted, but still managed to deliver hard hitting information and commentary.  I lurked for a year or two before breaking the ice with my first scoop......reporting that Eddie Lacy had qualified.....and being the third one to do it.  As you know, this inevitably resulted in my taking a fair amount of abuse for my first post, and though the rebuke made me feel a little idiotic I have come to appreciate the way that this community's standards for non-repetition and high quality writing even by random posters keeps RBR on the cutting edge of opinion and information.  My next post was a fanpost called "To the Naysayers" and it was, thankfully, received with acceptance and since then I have mainly just dabbled in the commentary here and there.  I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the different and learned opinions of the junta as well as the fans of the site.

I have found myself thinking, with the explosion in popularity of this site, what really is so special about it?  After turning this over in my head I have come to the conclusion that the reason for RBR's success is without a doubt the guys who run it.  Todd's vision of what a Bama blog should be, and his sacrifices for and obvious love of Alabama, really make the site what it is.  This site was great when it was Todd plus a bunch of guest contributors.  However, it was missing something, and that something was the truly insightful writing of OTS.  If you can find someone on the internet who knows more about the workings of the Alabama football program and who is right about what he says more than OTS, well, don't tell me cause I'm not switching anyway.  Nico 2.0 brings a bit of popular culture to the equation, and kind of a funky counterculture type aspect to RBR, and I have always appreciated his different views. 

Where Todd, OTS, and Nico2.0 leave off, the incredible writers here have picked up.  Go ahead, I dare you to find someone on the interwebs who knows more about NCAA rulings and the way things work politically around college football than PeteHoliday......go ahead....I dare you.....and you can tell Pete.  Matt Dover is always bang on in any subject he writes about, and usually entertaining to boot.  The Rolando McClain of the writing staff, though, is Kleph.  I mean, this guy can write about any subject concerning Alabama football (and some about other things), and have the article sound better than any crap they publish in Sports Illustrated or any other such publication. 

Though I know we have had our discussions about coming down too hard on newbies and trolls here lately, one of my favorite parts of this site is the lively debates that inevitably follow any serious post on RBR.  There is no doubt that the community here is composed of simply the most knowledgeable and funny fans on SB Nation.  I love how we quibble amongst ourselves over small things - but have a rival troll come in and BAM.....we circle the wagons and shoot em down.  All of the posters on here make this place unrivaled for a sense of community in the blogosphere. 

As much fun as we have ragging on each other and screwing around on here it is the combination of that with the seriousness of the information here that make this the absolute best  source for Alabama football talk.  There never seems to be a case where RBR is not the first Bama site to post a breaking bit of news about our beloved team.  Not only this, but whenever I hear that something is happening from another source, the first thing I do is sit down at the computer to see what OTS has to say about it.  Aside from that, I love coming to RBR before a game to see what OTS is going to be right about this week.  For those of you that missed last season here and Todd's battle with strange food items from around the world, for God's sake YouTube it........it was some of the funniest content ever on RBR and no doubt contributed heavily to our 13th National Championship.  Another thing I love is Kleph's historical pieces during the off-season - they have enlightened me on so many things that I didn't know about Alabama's tradition.  The only regret I have about RBR is that I don't get to participate in the Open Threads on the Alabama games very often.  I haven't missed an Alabama home game since Van Tiffin's Kick in 1985, and I don't plan to start now.  However, the times when I have been able to tune in to the Open Thread, I have found it a really exceptional addition to my enjoyment of watching Bama on TV.  It is almost like being in the stadium, as the back and forth commenting with people around you who love Alabama as much as you do is one of the things that  makes going to a game in person so much fun - and the Open Threads almost re-create that feeling, with the added bonus of getting some on the fly insight from OTS and some usually hilarious stress reactions from Todd.

These are a few of the reasons that I love RBR so much, and I hope in the comments you guys will pitch in some of the reasons why you do too.  My enjoyment of football season would be dramatically decreased if RBR were not around, so I'm thankful to the junta and our fearless leader for making it what it is.  I know this was getting a little long winded, but thanks for reading it, I felt like I needed to express to everyone how much I enjoy Roll Bama Roll.  Keep up the good work guys, there are a lot of us out here in the Interwebz that can't go a day without our RBR fix.

Roll Tide

Philip August III

Kevin Scarbinsky writes in this article that the Football Writers Association of America is considering awarding Auburn the 2004 National Championship due to USC's recent trouble with the NCAA.  I'm not sure how I feel about this (though, of course, my immediate gut reaction is screw that), we claim several National Championships that were awarded retroactively.  This has always been a major point of contention with boogs, as they like to crow about how we claim NC's that we really didn't win.  Of course, there is not truly a direct relationship between the championships we claim from the '20s and '30s and Auburn's potential '04 FWAA NC.  The 2004 championship is vacated, which none of the ones we claim were, and therefore poses some interesting questions to me.  If the Barn family accepts this championship as their own, would they be able to say anything to us regarding our 13 titles anymore?  Would the acceptance of this title open them up to praise or derision?  To me, it would be the latter, as claiming the '04 title would just reinforce my opinion of the barn as a third rate joke of a program.  I'm interested to see what the RBR family thinks about this, because the usual suspects here always seem to have the most intelligent and informed opinions that I have found anywhere on the internet.  So, which is it? An honor for the barn? Or a complete joke?

     To those who had written off one of the most storied programs in the history of college football, I wonder how you are feeling in the new light of this Crimson Dawn.

        To Colin Cowherd, Clay Travis, Jim Rome, et al, who mocked us, saying we were finished, that we could never attract a top tier coach - and then feigned outrage at the amount we were willing to pay, I wonder if you feel that our investment in Coach Saban has paid off.

     To the LSU fans, who said Coach Saban could not recruit at Alabama the way he could in Baton Rouge, I give you back to back #1 recruiting classes - with a potential third in the works.  To those of you who reveled in our loss to Louisiana-Monroe, and claimed it as proof that Les Miles was superior to Coach Saban in every way, I wonder if you still feel that way.

     To the Auburn fans, who railed on and on as to how Alabama could never come back, that the tide in this state had irrevocably turned, I give you 36-0 and The Drive.  To you who vociferously stated that stars don't matter, and that Auburn finds the diamonds in the rough, and turns 2 stars into 5 stars, I give you Nick Saban, the best evaluator of talent in the country - evidenced most strongly by a 3 star running back who very few coaches paid much attention, and who brought home Alabama's first Heisman Trophy.

     To Tennessee, who thought they had destroyed the Alabama football program by giving secret testimony to the NCAA in order to bring us down, I say, you failed.  And perversely, by doing so, you set in motion a chain of events that brought Nick Saban to Alabama - as they say, you reap what you sow.  To those of you who revel in the machinations of your whiny, petulant coach, I give you Nick Saban - a man who never whines about bad calls or tin foil hat conspiracies, who just simply goes in every day and flat out works everyone else - and this season shows what happens when expertise combines with exceptional effort.

     To all of you who kicked us while we were down, celebrated our misery, and deluded yourselves into thinking that we would never come back, I give you the undefeated, 2009 SEC and National Champion Alabama Crimson Tide.  In doing so, I remind you of the reality of this conference, that we are now, and always have been the dominant program in the SEC.

     To our coaching staff, I thank you profoundly for your tireless efforts to bring the Alabama football program back to where it is supposed to be.

     To Coach Saban, of course we are grateful to you for your peerless knowledge, and for your assembling one of the best staffs to ever coach at Alabama.  But what I, and all Alabama fans thank you for the most, is for reminding us of who we are.  For reminding us that championships are not awarded, they are earned, and to be a champion means that you do even the little things the right way, and that there is no substitute for simply working harder than everyone else.  For reminding us that complex schemes and fancy bells and whistles are no substitute for simply out executing your opponent, and working every minute of every day and on every play to dominate your opponent.  Finally, I thank you for how much you care about, and how much effort you give towards not only making our players the best football players they can be, but the very best people and students that they can be.  This is an attribute that you share with our most beloved coach, Paul Bryant, and it is why Coach Bryant's former players speak so highly of him, and why they loved him as I know our guys love you.

     To our players - you have sweated, toiled - bled for us and none of us, the fans, can ever thank you enough for all your hard work.  You have made us more proud of you than you can ever know.  You have exemplified everything that the proud tradition of the University of Alabama stands for.  Not only have you overcome challenge after challenge on the field, but you have made us all so very proud by being great citizens off of the field.  You have earned the right to take your place along with the greatest teams to ever wear Crimson.  In particular, I want to thank this incredibly special senior class.   You came to the University of Alabama when most players of your caliber would have nothing to do with us.  You went through some very tough times, and came out champions.  For this, and for your leadership, your character, your toughness, and for everything you have done for us, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.  I, for one, will always remember your love and dedication to the University of Alabama - you forever have an honored place in Alabama football history. 

     Never in my 30 years of loving Alabama football, have I been more proud of a team than I am of this one.  They are everything a team is supposed to be, and more.  Here's to #13 and starting back to work to dominate the SEC and the Nation on our way to winning #14.

     ROLL TIDE ROLL

Eddie Lacy got approval from the NCAA Clearing house today and is headed to Tuscaloosa to report.  I know everyone has been caught up in Trent Richardson, and with good reason.  However, Lacy had some of the most impressive films of any back coming out of high school last year.  Though he doesn't have the brute power of Trent Richardson, Lacy appears to have similar size, and also seems to have a little more speed. Either way you look at it, the TR/EL battle should give us all something to enjoy for at least the next three years.  Our running back depth chart is looking meaner and nastier by the minute, and if we can just find a way to give these guys a little bit of blocking, our offense should be able to run it down the throat of any team we play.........it's getting close.......RTR