About the ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE

Good Evening, sorry that i have not put anything new up the last couple of days but my schedule has been pretty crazy. Anywho, lets take a look at THE GOAT'S version of the ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE in a three part series of the Alabama/Clemson Aug. 30th Match-up.


ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE

OFFENSE

Offensive Line-
93 combine starts....This is a veteran unit. They will be vital in protecting John Parker Wilson and opening holes for a great group of RB's to get loose and run wild. However, any injuries up front may pose a problem as this is not a very deep unit.

Running Backs-
Terry Grant is a 5'10, 180+ pound Sophomore from Lumberton, MS who can flat out fly. In 2007 Grant rushed for just south of 900 yards and 8 TD's. He also had 175 receiving yards out of the backfield and a score also. Grant should see a lot of touches this year if he can stay healthy.
Glenn Coffee is a 6'2, 195 pound Junior from Fort Walton Beach, FL. Although Coffee had to take 4 games off last season, he still accumulated 545 yards and 4 scores. Coffee is an animal to take down and should punish defenses all year. He has to stay healthy as well for this offense to get ROLL'N.
Roy Upchurch is a 6'0 190 pound Junior from Tallahassee, used mainly as a "scat" back. He is a speedy guy who can blow thru a hole and take it the distance at any time. He'll need to step up this year to really get a lot of looks and touches with the others that can run on this offense.

WR-
This is a real mystery to everyone outside of Tuscaloosa this year. Mike McCoy should be JPW'S favorite target outside of some guy named Julio Jones? I have never heard of this guy but everyone says he is the Randy Moss of the college ranks....and he's a FRESHMAN. Will Oakley should get some looks and the TE position will be key in setting this offense up for big gains over the top and the running the ball. I am interested to see how this group will stack-up against the SEC's elite as JPW will need all the help he can get. This position may be the down fall of the Tide this year after enjoying the likes of DJ Hall, Keith Brown, TY Prothro, and many others. OK, so i have heard of Julio Jones the "freshman phenom" who will also have a a lot of weight on his shoulders, and will be expected to live up to his billing of "Superman" early and often. His autographed jersey should be delivered via DHL in the next couple of days....THE GOAT is already on this guys band wagon. http://www.julioheismanwatch.com/ ......Starting it today.

QB-
John Parker Wilson is a 6'2, 213 pound gun slinger from Hoover, AL. JPW for short, completed 55.2% of his attempts last year and had 18 TD's as a Junior. The problem with JPW is he has a tendency to rush his throws when he feels pressure or try to make to much happen, which often leads to him throwing the rock to the other team. JPW had 12 picks last year vs. 18 td's, which leads Tide fans to wonder when lets the ball go....where is it going? Further, he cannot rely on a group of veteran WR's to bail him out if he gets in trouble. He will need to rely on quick dumps to the RB's out the back field and short routes, until he gets completely comfortable with his young group of WR's. He was sacked 27 times last year, so he will need to be more mobile this year and the line will have to give him more time to work. He has improved every year at Alabama and this year should be no different, provided his young Wide Receiving corp can help him out.


DEFENSE

Would love to break this defense down, however I have heard of two guys on this defense, Prince Hall and Rolando McClain. Good Luck this year. Could get rough...


Special Teams

The Tide, in the past, have held their respective breathes every time a kicker goes onto the field and this year will be no different. Leigh Tiffin is money inside of 30 yards, otherwise WATCH-OUT.