McClain plays better on field than behind remote control

October 06, 2009

By Ken Rogers

Rolando McClain walked into the interview room wearing a Viking helmet.

This was Monday before the Brett Favre vs. Green Bay Packers game, so I assumed he was a Viking or a Favre fan.

Nope.

“I lost a bet,” Alabama’s middle linebacker admitted. “I was playing NCAA Football last night and got beat. Somebody won this at the fair in Decatur and gave it to me. I had to wear it.”

McClain is the subject of my story Wednesday in the Dothan Eagle.

Now a junior, the 6-foot-4, 258-pound is an enormous middle linebacker. He’s 6-foot-4, 258 pounds. He has nine percent body fat. This summer he ran the 40 in 4.59 and 4.63. He’s a physical freak.

But he’s also a smart football player.

“A lot of guys have size, a lot of guys have speed but when you put it all together and you can watch film and dissect plays and know what runs they have out of each formation, it makes you a lot better,” McClain said.

“I just have to give all the credit to coach Saban. He’s made me what I am. He’s pushed me to be a better player and I thank him for it.”

Saban rejects the trap of ‘trap game’ mentality

October 03, 2009

By Ken Rogers

Nick Saban doesn’t take his eye off the ball.

Asked if Saturday’s road test at Kentucky stacked up as a trap game, the coach insisted he didn’t even know what that means.

He was briefed very quickly that a trap game is one that is very dangerous for a favored team because of a number of factors — where it falls on the schedule, the motivation for both teams, etc. — that are chock full of “outside” distractions.

The coach, not surprisingly, wasn’t buying it.

“I really think you control what you do, our players control what they do,” Saban said after practice last week.

“... Anybody we can play can beat us. And on the other hand, nobody we play can beat us. Just depending on us.”

Saban thought about it some more.

“Trap game? So if I went and told the players this is a trap game, and they started believing it was a trap game, it’ll end up being trap game,” he said.

“But I’d rather them believe if they’ll go do what they’re supposed to do they’ll have the best chance to be successful. And that didn’t just start when you showed up for the game. It begins with practice every day, when you prepare.

“I think consistency is one of the most difficult things to do from a human nature standpoint. I think it takes something special to be able to do that. It’s a challenge to get it done with your team every week. That’s our challenge and that’s what we try to do.”

Saban was asked about the linebacker rotation. This is Alabama’s first full game without standout sophomore inside linebacker Dont’a Hightower.

One of his options was moving one of Rolando McClain’s backups — sophomore Chris Jordan or true freshman Nico Johnson of Andalusia — into Hightower’s spot, at least in a base defense look.

“We didn’t do that. It’s always an option, but we really didn’t do that,” the coach said.

“Nico has played mike and will, which for a young guy is a little bit of a burden.  Young guys make mistakes every day, but as long as they are making progress. We’re pleased and happy with their progress. That’s the biggest thing right now — could they go in and execute knowledgewise to be able to get it done?

“I think they’re all going to be good football players. But they’ve got to be ready to play. We’ve played freshmen linebackers two years in a row. Rolando played two years ago. Dont’a played all last year.

“So it’s not we wouldn’t play a freshman. But those guys got it. We wouldn’t want to play guys who aren’t confident in what they are supposed to do and how to do it. We’ll continue to bring those guys along.”

Banning cut blocks would change the sport

October 01, 2009

By Ken Rogers

Alabama coach Nick Saban said Dont’a Hightower’s season-ending knee surgery was a success.

“Dont’a’s surgery went well,” Saban said after Wednesday’s practice. “Talked to Doc about it and he expects a full
recovery.”

But there are still questions about what caused the injury – a cut block that was legal.

“There’s always been a lot of discussion about cut blocking,” Saban said. “We have a cut
block rule, but it only affects a player if he’s engaged with another
player who then gets cut, which is extremely dangerous.

“I have mixed emotions. Cut blocking has been a part of the game for a long time. A lot
of players get hurt because of cut blocking, no question about that. But I
also feel that every player has a responsibility to play the cut blocks.”

Saban indicated that poor technique by Hightower on the play got him in trouble.

“You need to coach to play the blocks properly so you minimize the chances
of being injured by being cut,” Saban said. “It’s my opinion, and I tell the players,
that if the cut is in front of you and you can see them, that should never
been an issue; you should address and play that block a certain way.

“And that’s the way it was with Dont’a. I don’t know if he didn’t see him. He
should have used his hands and played the block. It’s a part of the game. I
don’t know how adversely it would affect offensive football if you couldn’t
cut.”

Senior offensive lineman Mike Johnson said it would radically change the game.

“It would limit a lot of what we do here,” Johnson said. “It’s a big part of our offense. It’s been a part of football forever.

“It was unfortunate what happened to
Dont’a, but that was a legal block. Football is a physical game and
sometimes people get hurt.”

Even Saban, the defensive wizard, said eliminated the cut block could severely impact the game.

“It would certainly be harder to make
certain blocks,” the coach said. “And there would be much more inertia by defensive players
running into blockers because they wouldn’t have to play under control. If
a guy was coming to block, they could just blow them up. So that might
create problems in another direction. I understand the issue. I don’t know
how we could correct it without really making a huge impact on the game.”

McElroy’s fast start leads to early Heisman talk

September 29, 2009

By Ken Rogers

A mention in one of the notes for Wednesday’s Dothan Eagle is quarterback Greg McElroy’s name coming up in a Heisman candidate discussion.

This from a guy who hadn’t started a college game before the Virginia Tech season opener. It was his first start since the 2005 Texas high school state championship game.

Center William Vlachos, who is McElroy’s roommate, said the talk is a direct correlation with Alabama’s fast start this season.

“But I know Greg, and I know the only thing that Greg’s worried about right now is our game this week and our team and leading our team,” Vlachos said this week. “Any accolades or success or anything that the media gives him is great for our team, but he’s only worried about winning the game.”

McElroy was asked about going from an unknown entity to a darkhorse Heisman candidate in four games.

“It does happen quick, but you’ve got to be prepared for it, because of the situation that are presented with,” the quarterback said. “We’re the No. 3 team in the country and that’s all great and good, but you don’t give any award or championship trophies after four games of the season.

“It’s a long haul. It’s a marathon not a sprint. So we’ve got to continue working, we’ve got to continue improving, because those are what the better teams in the country are doing.”

Hightower cut down by hard, but legal, block, teammates say

By Ken Rogers

It wasn’t a cheap shot, just a hard one.

It was a cut block, not a chop block. Not dirty, just costly.

And painful. Not just for Dont’a Hightower.

“When it happened on the field, I didn’t want to believe it,” teammate Rolando McClain said Monday. “When he went down, I kind of went down.”

“He’s an incredible player,” defensive end Lorenzo Washington said. “You don’t want to say irreplaceable, but, I mean, just being out there, he’s a dominating player.”

Washington said he saw the hit, which happened late in the first quarter of Alabama’s 35-7 victory over Arkansas.

“Honestly, it didn’t even look ... I didn’t see the knee or anything go like that,” Washington said. “I mean, I seen him, me, we’ve all been getting cut like that these past couple games. Guess it was worse than it looked.”

Nick Saban confirmed Hightower is out for the season.

Washington said the play underscored how dangerous cut blocks can be.

“I understand a pass, where you’re right at the line of scrimmage, or even a run when you’re at the line of scrimmage,” the defensive lineman said. “But he was not on the line of scrimmage, he was pursuing to the ball. Those are dangerous plays.”

Washington said the technique is more prevalent with passing teams. You don’t have to move a defender out of the way, as a run blocker does. It’s easier to cut the legs out from under an aggressive defender. He said he’s seeing more of it this season.

“In ’07 I was getting cut all the time because I was inside,” Washington said. “Then a couple teams we played last year that’s just the type of protection they did. They were three-step drop passes so they were cut blocking. But every team we’ve played this year has cut us to this point.”

He doesn’t expect that to change, either.

“Cut blocking’s been around since football’s been around. They’ve tweaked it here and there, but it’s pretty much here to stay. It’s part of ball.”

And injuries that result from a cut block are a part of the game, too.

“It’s legal. You can’t say that it was a dirty play on the guy,” McClain said. “But for me, just being a linebacker, I would rather a guy come and just try to block me man to man. Just try to block me.

“I hate that guys cut, but it is part of the game, something that we practice. Just something unfortunate that happened.”