McLain, Rashad Johnson stay on same page

October 29, 2008

By Ken Rogers

My story in Thursday’s Dothan Eagle is on Alabama’s linebacker corps, which was an area of concern coming into the season.
Uh, they’ve done OK so far. Alabama is unbeaten and second in the nation in rushing defense.
Its victory over Tennessee last Saturday was as impressive for its physical dominance as it was the final 20-point margin of victory.
Inside linebacker Rolando McClain said the Tide rarely changed things up against the Vols. He said the Crimson Tide has several schemes it hasn’t revealed.
“We’ll practice maybe 70 different plays, and we might play five. We have a ton of stuff that we haven’t even used,” McClain said. “We play so good up front with our base defense, we don’t have to use the blitz. So other teams haven’t had a chance to look at our blitzes yet.”
The Tide did blitz when it had its back against the wall early. Tennessee had first-and-goal at the Alabama 5 after a fumbled punt. Alabama forced a third-and-7 before disrupting Vol quarterback Nick Stephens.
McLain and free safety Rashad Johnson shot the gap on both sides of center Josh McNeil. It was a call Johnson relished.
“It was a lot of fun. I love blitzing,“ Johnson laughed. “I was messing with coach to send me a little more. But it was definitely a lot of fun.“
Of course, he needed the Vols to line up a certain way.
“When he called it, it depended on the offense and how they were lined up as to whether I was coming or not. I was just hoping they lined up the right way where I could come and they did.“
McNeil was forced to choose which blitzer to pick up. Johnson liked his chances of sacking Stephens.
“Me and Rolando were both coming through the ‘A’ gap, so I knew he was going to have to make a decision either to take Rolando. I guess he figured the quarterback could break my tackle so he was going to block Rolando.“
The sack covered seven yards and the Vols settled for a field goal.
The senior Johnson and sophomore McClain have developed their communication skills even in tough environments like Neyland Stadium.
“I get the hand signals from coach (Kirby) Smart, but after that, I have to go and scream at everybody,“ McClain said. “If the formation changes, then you have to run and tell the D-line, scream at them again. Rashad does a great job of helping with the secondary. He knows everything out there, so he can tell the whole secondary what to do.“
Johnson said the key is communication with McClain.
“Every play, it seems like we’re on the same page,“ the safety said. “Even if it’s not the right thing we’re supposed to be running on the field, everybody locks in on what Rolando says or what I say. We lock in and play that call and go with it. It seems to work. It may be the wrong play but everybody is doing the right thing.“

Deaderick earns chest bump from Saban at Tennessee game

October 28, 2008

By Ken Rogers

Forget an ESPN helmet sticker.
Brandon Deaderick earned something he never imagined at the close of Alabama’s victory over Tennessee last Saturday night—a chest bump from Tide coach Nick Saban.
“It was right at the end of the game with about 20-some seconds left,“ Deaderick recalled Tuesday after practice. “I saw him jump up there and didn’t want to crack his sternum or anything. I was shocked he did that. It surprised me. I was jumping around the sideline he turned around and was real excited. He jumped up and gave me a chest bump. It was kind of exciting. I don’t think many people get those.“
The smile never left Deaderick’s face as he went through the play.
“He came to me with it. I was down,“ the defensive end said. “He can jump. He can get up there.“
With an 8-0 record, a No. 2 national ranking and a second straight victory over Tennessee, Deaderick knew his coach was happy.
“Well, I mean, you know, you go out there and win, you play hard, you play like you’re supposed to, that’ll put any coach in a good mood,“ Deaderick noted. “And winning how we won—it was a rough game, physical game. Things weren’t going exactly how we wanted them to. We just kept pressing, pressing, pressing. I think he was proud of how we stayed committed to the plan and didn’t let up. You saw the final result.“

John Parker Wilson named semifinalist for top QB award

October 27, 2008

By Ken Rogers

Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson was named one of 13 semifinalists for the Davey O’Brien Award on Monday.
The O’Brien award goes to the nation’s top college quarterback.
Wilson, who already owns every significant career passing record at Alabama, is one of three SEC quarterbacks among the semifinalists, joining Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and Georgia’s Matthew Stafford.
“This is a great honor, but one that I would not be receiving if it wasn’t for the play of my offensive line and really our entire team,” Wilson said in a statement released by the university. “The quarterback play across the country has been outstanding this year and I am excited to be listed among this group of quarterbacks.
“Our offensive line has provided plenty of time to throw the football and our receivers and tight ends have caught almost everything thrown their way. The running game has also been a key component that has allowed us to have a balanced offensive attack.”
Wilson, from Hoover, has guided the Crimson Tide to an 8-0 record and No. 2 national ranking. He is Alabama’s career leader in passing yards (6,911), completions (587), touchdowns (45) and attempts (1,028). He also holds the single-season record in all four of those categories.
He has completed 61.9 percent of his passes for 1,260 yards and eight touchdowns. Wilson has thrown just three interceptions and has added two rushing touchdowns this season. He ranks fourth in the Southeastern Conference in passing efficiency with a 133.66 rating.
Fans can vote for semifinalist candidates once per day at http://www.VoteOBrien.org. Five percent of the evaluation tally comes from the fan vote. The finalist will be selected on Nov. 24 and the 2008 winner will be announced during The Home Depot College Football Awards Show on ESPN December 11. The recipient will be honored Feb. 16, 2009, at the 32nd Annual O’Brien Awards Dinner at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas.

2008 O’Brien Semifinalists:
Sam Bradford, soph., Oklahoma; Daryll Clark, jr., Penn State; Chase Daniel, sr., Missouri; Max Hall, jr., BYU; Graham Harrell, sr. Texas Tech; David Johnson, sr., Tulsa; Colt McCoy, jr., Texas; Todd Reesing, jr., Kansas; Zac Robinson, jr., Oklahoma State; Mark Sanchez, jr., USC; Matthew Stafford, jr., Georgia; Tim Tebow, jr., Florida; John Parker Wilson, sr., Alabama.

Business as usual for Tide during rivalry week

October 21, 2008

By Ken Rogers

Rocky Top isn’t blaring. There are no orange jerseys on the scout team. No crowd noise is being piped in.
It’s Tennessee week in Tuscaloosa, but it sure looks a lot like any other week at the University of Alabama.
That’s no accident. Nick Saban’s business-as-usual approach is designed to eliminate distractions, not create them.
So tight end Nick Walker was asked if it seemed like Tennessee week.
“We don’t really do that. We do the same thing every week. It’s gonna be the exact same thing every week,“ said Walker, who never mentioned Saban’s name, but didn’t have to. “He don’t care nothin’ about none of that. Only thing he cares about is playing winning football. We’re gonna go up there, do like we did for the rest of the opponents we played this year. We’re going to practice hard and go up there and play hard.“
A reported noted he was drinking orange Gatorade. Walker, the senior from Brundidge, laughed.
“I didn’t even think about that,“ he said.
Linebacker Cory Reamer said that keeps things much more even than in years past.
“Actually, this year we’ve done a great job of having great intensity every week no matter who we’re playing. This is just another week,“ Reamer said.
But is it really just another week? Reamer admitted everyone knows who the Crimson Tide is playing.
“You can tell that it is Tennessee week,“ Reamer acknowledged. “Everybody’s a little fired up.“

Smith confident Cody will return quickly from sprained knee injury

October 20, 2008

By Ken Rogers

Alabama football coach Nick Saban said Terrence Cody’s MCL sprain was similar to the one that sidelined left tackle Andre Smith against Clemson.
So Smith was asked what Cody was facing in terms of rehab.
“The main part is just the pain after the fact,“ Smith said Monday before practice. “We have a great training staff here, led by Jeff Allen, and he does an outstanding job. Cody, I think he’ll be back extremely fast, like I was.“
Smith missed only the Tulane game. But the rehabilitation process is intense.
“Uh, if I wasn’t in class, I was up there, pretty much. They bring you lunch, everything,“ Smith said.
And through the process, Cody will be required to stay in shape. Smith looked positively fearful when discussing conditioning coach Scott Cochran’s methodology.
“Coach Cochran has his way of keeping you in shape while we’re up there practicing,“ Smith said cryptically. “It’s a lot of stuff, I can’t realy explain it all. A lot of stuff.“
Smith did disclose this, however. You’d much rather be practicing than going through his conditioning drills during practice.
“You would,“ the offensive lineman said. “Lot of sit-ups, push-ups, that nature.“