Tide coach thankful for gifts, relationships

November 26, 2008

By Ken Rogers

Nick Saban has been in this business too long not to be thankful for the position he’s in.
After his unbeaten and top-ranked Crimson Tide finished a two-hour, full-pad practice Wednesday, Saban showed that he understood the holiday was not just an “external factor.“
“This is a good time of the year and as coaches you don’t always get to enjoy it and as players they don’t get to enjoy as much as we would like for them to,“ the coach said. “It is a time to give thanks and be thankful and appreciative of all that we have and all the gifts that we have and all the relationships that we have. I’d certainly like to wish all of our supporters and fans and the media that covers our team, who invests a lot of time in giving them the exposure they certainly deserve, to have a great Thanksgiving.”
Saban said his team has practiced well all week. Some of them will head home for Thanksgiving after an early practice. The rest will be well fed, too.
“It was a little bit different today not having school and not having school tomorrow,“ Saban said. “But the only change in the schedule for us is to move things up a little bit tomorrow and let the guys go after practice; so they can leave out of here, if they live within an hour or two, and have dinner at home. The rest of the guys will have dinner with our family.“
Alabama faces Auburn, which has never lost in Bryant-Denny Stadium, on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The game is on CBS.

Tide defeats Chaminade for Gottfried’s 200th win

November 25, 2008

By Ken Rogers

Alabama men’s basketball coach Mark Gottfried’s 200th victory came in paradise.
A day after a blowout loss against Oregon, Alabama pounded tournament host Chamindade 78-56 on the second day of the EA Sports Maui Invitational on Tuesday.
Gottfried is the fourth coach in the program’s history to earn 200 victories, joing Wimp Sanderson (267), .Hank Crisp (264), and C.M. Newton (211).
His record at Alabama is 200-125.
It was one of his easier wins, too. Senario Hillman scored 22 points, Alonzo Gee had 12 points and seven rebounds.
Darrell Burton led the Silverswords with 16.
Alabama (2-2) plays Wednesday at 1 p.m. CST against St. Joseph’s (2-2), which defeated Indiana 80-54. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

Tide basketball stumbles in tourney opener

By Ken Rogers

Oregon shook off a slow start and rushed past Alabama 92-69 in the first round of the EA Sports Maui Invitational late Monday night at the Lahaina Civic Center on the island of Maui.
Alabama led 8-0 and 17-11 after Senario Hillman made a 3-pointer with 11:43 left in the first half. However, freshman JaMychal Green picked up his second foul in the early going and spent much of the first half on the bench. The Ducks surged both inside and outside. Michael Dunigan led Oregon with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Joevan Catron scored 17 points and grabbed 13 boards for the Ducks (3-1).
Hillman led Alabama (1-2) with a career-high 16 points. Point guard Ronald Steele added 13.
The Crimson Tide plays host Chaminade today at 3 p.m. CST on ESPN2. Chaminade fell to North Carolina 115-70 Monday night.

Crimson Tide assistant Davis joins Minnesota staff

By Ken Rogers

TUSCALOOSA — Alabama’s punishing running game hasn’t gone unnoticed across the country.
Tuesday, University of Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster named Alabama assistant Tim Davis as the running game coordinator/offensive line coach of the Golden Gophers.
Davis, who will start his job next Monday, has been Nick Saban’s director of player personnel at Alabama since February. He has also worked extensively with the offensive line this season. Davis was also on Saban’s staff as an assistant offensive line coach with the Miami Dolphins.
“This is a great opportunity for Tim,” Saban said in a release. “Tim has been a hard worker and done an excellent job with each and every responsibility he’s had.
“I know Tim is looking forward to getting up there in a coaching capacity that puts him back on the field interacting with the players. He’ll do a great job with Coach Brewster and the Minnesota program. We wish Tim and his family the best at the University of Minnesota.”
Before his stint with the Dolphins, Davis coached the offensive line at Southern California from 2002 through 2004. He also coached tight ends and offensive tackles at Wisconsin from 1997-2001.
His lines have helped Heisman Trophy winners Carson Palmer (2002), Matt Leinart (2004) and Ron Dayne (1999). The former Utah lineman also spent seven years coaching the position at his alma mater from 1990-1996.
“Tim has worked alongside the greatest minds in football and possesses exactly the kind of credentials I was looking for in an offensive line coach,” Brewster said. “He has played a key role in helping develop some of the game’s most punishing and physical rushing attacks and I could not be more excited about the North-South mentality he will bring as our running game coordinator. Tim also possesses impeccable character, is an outstanding family man and I believe he will be a great fit on our staff here at the University of Minnesota.”
Davis, in a Minnesota release, said he was eager to get started in the Twin Cities.
“I’m really looking forward to getting up there,” he said. “Minnesota was a real draw for me because of the great city and having an opportunity to work in the Big Ten again. I can’t wait to get started.”

Rashad Johnson’s OT pick earns national recognition

November 14, 2008

By Ken Rogers

Rashad Johnson turned around the LSU game with his three interceptions last week.
Not only did the top-ranked and undefeated Crimson Tide benefit, so did the school’s general scholarship fund.
Fans from around the nation voted Johnson’s overtime interception as the Pontiac Game Changing Performance of the Week. Alabama earned a $5,000 contribution from Pontiac as a result.
The Pontiac Game Changing Performance recognizes the most dramatic moments that occur in college games across the country. As one of the 14 weekly winners, the play is entered into the yearly vote. The play selected in fan voting as the best of the year will earn a $100,000 general scholarship contribution from Pontiac.