Tuesday, November 12, 2013

The Crimson Crossover: UA enters raucous Starkville

Alabama - 2013

Record: 9-0
Conference Record: 6-0 (SEC Western Division)
Last Game: Alabama 38 LSU 17

Mississippi State - 2013

Record: 4-5
Conference Record: 1-4 (SEC Western Division)
Last Game: Texas A&M 51 Mississippi State 41

History lesson

Series: Alabama leads series 75-18-3 (First meeting in 1896)
Most Recent Meeting: Alabama 38 Mississippi State 7 (2012)

Setting the scene

Alabama vs. Mississippi State
Davis Wade Stadium – Starkville, Mississippi
Betting Line: Alabama -25 (as of 11/12)
Beat writer of the week

Matthew Stevens - Mississippi State beat writer for The Commercial Dispatch in Columbus, Miss.

Twitter: @matthewcstevens

Follow Matthew via Twitter to get the latest (breaking) news concerning the Mississippi State Bulldogs as they prepare for Alabama.

Mississippi State on the wire

*Helmet tap to Alabama beat writer Andrew Gribble for article accessibility*

>>Alabama presents different problem for Mississippi State

>>Mississippi State battered going into Bama

>> Scouting report: Mississippi State vs. No. 1 Alabama

>>(Dan) Mullen Monday press conference leading into Mississippi State’s game vs Alabama

The weekly quotable

Nick Saban would highly disagree...
The Crimson Elephant verdict

Mississippi State is a "scrappy" football team. Unlike the MSU squads from years gone by, the current edition of the Bulldogs seemingly have a "never quit" attitude. Granted, demeanor and emotion can only go so far, but Mississippi State, unlike other SEC teams, simply won't "roll over" for Alabama.

Quarterback Dak Prescott, who recently lost his mother to cancer, is nothing short of a "warrior," both mentally and physically. While Prescott is currently listed as "questionable" for the contest against Alabama due to an elbow injury, the "final verdict" in respect to game action will not be delivered until later this week. If Prescott is unable to participate, Tyler Russell will get the nod at quarterback. While Prescott, by most accounts, is the more viable option for the Bulldogs, Russell is a savvy veteran with ample experience.

The desire of an emotional and physical football team, coupled with rowdy "cowbell loving" fans, should keep MSU in the game for at least a quarter. Starkville has always been a "trap game" for essentially every "Goliath" for the better part of three decades.
Alabama is a far superior football team, but that is certainly not breaking news. The question come Saturday night will be how Alabama responds after an emotional victory over LSU. One needs to look no further than 2012 to see what can transpire one week after an emotional victory over the Tigers.

In respect to the present, Mississippi State has nothing to lose, while Alabama, well...the entire season is on the line.

Although not seen or even formally recognized most of the time, Nick Saban's best "coaching job" often comes not before the biggest game, but before the biggest trap. Don't think the best active coach in college football won't have his squad ready for the "kitchen sink" come Saturday night.

Alabama 35
Mississippi State 10

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Posted by The Crimson Elephant at 1:14 PM 0 comments

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Alabama’s physicality proves too much for LSU

While the Alabama football program is in “the process” of building the greatest dynasty in the history of the collegiate ranks, per some, the Crimson Tide still have something to prove.

While the “haters gonna hate” motif is about as worn as Miley Cyrus’ foam finger, if any program has ever had a legion of “haters”…it would be Alabama.
Yes, the disdain for the Alabama football program is strong, but as history now records, Alabama’s resolve against LSU…was far stronger. When the chips were down, the Crimson Tide successfully “processed” yet another opposition.

Leading 17-14 at intermission, with the game, and season, very much on the line, Alabama dominated the second half of play en route to a convincing 38-17 victory over the LSU Tigers.
Unable to sustain a ground attack, LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger was forced to drive the LSU car all by himself. The task would prove to be unfruitful, and by the latter stages of the contest, Mettenberger would be virtually eaten alive by the Crimson Tide defense. In his final snap of the game, a 4th and 28 scenario, Mettenberger would be crushed by a host of Alabama tacklers. In that moment, essentially a definitive summary of the second half for the Tigers, a physically wilted Mettenberger would limp to the LSU sideline.
While the Crimson Tide offense did have a rather balanced attack in the initial half of play, highlighted by touchdown receptions courtesy of tight end O.J. Howard and wide receiver Kevin Norwood, the second stanza offered far more physicality up front, and far more overall production.

In an age of aerial assaults and 400 yard passing performances, the Alabama offense relied on the ground attack. T.J. Yeldon, who delivered bruising run after bruising run, finished the game with 133 yards rushing and two touchdowns.

The more physical tone, displayed on both sides of the ball, appeared to visually increase the confidence of the entire Alabama squad, while mentally and physically draining the life out of LSU.
When the clock finally hit zero, Nick Saban and AJ McCarron shared an embrace, and the Alabama detractors, more than likely, downed another drink. Perhaps, just perhaps, a portion of the “process” is about teaching people to be tolerant of the success and achievement of others.

With the victory over LSU, Alabama improves to 9-0 on the season and 6-0 in the SEC.

---Complete Stats---
TomTom Go Confidently
Posted by The Crimson Elephant at 3:31 PM 0 comments

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Crimson Commentary: The life of a hardcore fan

If you're a hardcore fan of the Alabama Crimson Tide football program, the season, while exciting, has the potential to pose some hardcore stress that can be, at times, an equal to the fandom itself.

For the novice and casual Alabama fan, the entire football season, and the entire football fandom, is literally reduced to the three or four hour period of the actual game. Once the clock strikes zero, the love for Alabama football is placed in a box, and then reopened just in time for opening kickoff the following weekend.

Us hardcore folks, well, our "gameday" doesn't end when the lights go out in the stadium. The "season" for the hardcore fan is essentially a nonstop "grind" of fandom that will never expire until we exit the earth.
So where's the stress and anxiety? The "professional fan" is always "on" when it comes to following Alabama football, and due to that reason, the collection of news, the expression of opinion(s), and the pontification of current and future events is as certain as death and taxes.

When the "concerns" and anticipation of an Alabama football related issue impacts your day-to-day life, you're officially a professional hardcore fan. When you stop your day on a random Tuesday morning to load a live video stream of a recruit giving his verbal commitment to Alabama, yeah...you're a professional fan. The examples are endless, but the point is quite clear.

With the evolution of social media, most notably Twitter, the hardcore Crimson Tide fan is always in a race to read the latest practice report, latest injury report, latest recruiting update, latest pundit opinion, and quite obviously, the latest "troll" by some less than impressive "expert" of the game. The constant rumors, rival fan innuendo, and just the basic "formula" of turning something minuscule into a "doomsday" prophecy, is what keeps the hardcore Alabama fan on edge, yet at the same time, very much excited.
The Alabama "professional fandom" is as prevalent as a beauty mark. Granted, the obsession could cause you to lose your marriage, jeopardize your occupation, and potentially pose a personal health risk, but whatever...right? Alabama football is forever, and forever is quite a long time.

Cheers to the unabashed hardcore fan. Wear your stress and anxiety with pride, and keep rolling with the Crimson Tide!

Now, please return to Twitter to check for the latest updates. Will Alabama be able to focus on the LSU Tigers now that Nick Saban has officially announced his departure for the University of Texas?

Lulz...
Posted by The Crimson Elephant at 2:21 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

The Crimson Crossover: LSU looks to derail Alabama

LSU - 2013

Record: 7-2
Conference Record: 3-2 (SEC Western Division)
Last Game: LSU 48 Furman 16

Alabama - 2013

Record: 8-0
Conference Record: 5-0 (SEC Western Division)
Last Game: Alabama 45 Tennessee 10

History lesson

Series: Alabama leads series 47-25-5 (First meeting in 1895)
Most Recent Meeting: Alabama 21 LSU 17 (2012)

Setting the scene

LSU vs. Alabama
Bryant-Denny Stadium – Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Betting Line: Alabama -12.5 (as of 11/5)

--CLICK HERE TO TRACK THE LINE--
Beat writers of the week

Randy Rosetta - LSU beat writer for The New Orleans Times-Picayune and NOLA.com.

Twitter: @RandyRosetta

Jim Kleinpeter - Sports writer for NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune since 1984.

Twitter: @JimKleinpeter

Follow Randy and Jim via Twitter to get the latest (breaking) news concerning the LSU Tigers as they prepare for Alabama.

LSU on the wire

>>Transcript of LSU coach Les Miles' Monday press conference (Alabama week)

>>LSU prep starts in earnest for Alabama

>>Harris: LSU treks to Alabama for latest test of faith

>>Alabama-LSU tops the national rivalry list

>>Alabama-LSU still big even if it's no 'Game of Century'

The weekly quotable
The Crimson Elephant verdict

In many ways the “verdict” of the 2013 edition of the LSU/Alabama contest feels eerily similar to the 2012 breakdown. During that week, the story was LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger, and his massive underachievement. The “verdict” was that unless the LSU signal caller had a career game, the Tigers had very little chance to beat Alabama.

What transpired?

Mettenberger had the game of his life against the Alabama defense, and LSU fans, for the first time, got a glimpse of the quarterback the Tigers had signed, the quarterback with all the hype, the quarterback with the accurate arm. For the first time, Zach Mettenberger proved his worth.

However, as history records, Mettenberger’s phenomenal effort wasn’t quite good enough, but to the objective eye…it should have been. Alabama pulled out a miraculous final drive, but Mettenberger, by all accounts, couldn’t have given a better performance.
Enter 2013…

Replace “Mettenberger” with “LSU’s defense”…and a new story can be written.

For LSU to defeat the top-ranked Crimson Tide, the defense, weakened by graduation and early player entry into the NFL Draft, will need to pull a “Mettenberger” come Saturday night.

The Tiger defense, a stalwart of the Les Miles era, currently allows 21.3 points per contest. Given Alabama’s offensive output, and the various weapons on the offensive side of the ball, it will be imperative for the Tigers to dissolve the ‘Bama rushing attack, and force AJ McCarron to have an “elite” night in the passing game.

As for the aforementioned Mettenberger, he’ll need to be accurate in the passing game, but he’ll also need help from his supporting cast. Wide receivers Odell Beckham, Jr., and Jarvis Landry, coupled with running back Jeremy Hill, will be the backbone of the offense. Alabama only allows 9.8 points per game, No. 1 in the nation in that category. To say the Tigers have a challenge on offense is quite the understatement.
As is the case in most “hype machine” games, expect emotion to control the early stages of the contest. Cursory logic suggests the actual game won’t even begin, in full, until the latter stages of the first quarter.

When throwing darts at the board in terms of making a prediction, the most simplistic concept always comes to mind; the better team usually wins. Alabama, by all accounts, is the better team.

LSU, at least this season, simply doesn't have all the pieces in place to go blow-for-blow with Alabama.

Barring something totally unforeseen, expect the Crimson Tide to slowly grind the game away, and in the process, defeat the LSU Tigers by double figures.

Alabama 27
LSU 13

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Posted by The Crimson Elephant at 2:20 PM 0 comments
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