Deaderick’s return gives Tide an emotional lift

September 06, 2009

By Ken Rogers

He had a hole in his arm, not in his heart. Senior defensive end Brandon Deaderick desperately wanted to play Saturday night against Virginia Tech.

“I was trying to figure out some kind of way not to play him,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said after the Tide’s 34-24 victory.

Deaderick, shot Monday night at an apartment complex parking lot in Northport, didn’t do anything wrong. He was medically cleared to play. But Saban said he had to get his arms around the idea of letting Deaderick play.

“I know that Brandon really wanted to play. I think the defensive players really wanted him to play. I think there was little bit of trauma for all our team when this happened,” the coach said.

Saban relented, kind of. After the game, he sounded glad that Deaderick played – and that he didn’t play much. The senior from Elizabethtown, Ky., was credited with one tackle Saturday night.

Deaderick went onto the field for Tech’s extra point attempt after its 98-yard kickoff return. His first action on defense came with three minutes left in the first quarter.

“I think the fact that he was with us and practiced with us on Thursday and was able to be out there today was a good thing for the rest of the players,” Saban said.

Terrence Cody said Deaderick’s return gave the team a lift.

“He is a big part of our defense.  He is a real competitor,” Cody said. “The way he looked in practice, we couldn’t tell anything was wrong.”

“We spot-played him,” Saban said. “He didn’t play a lot of plays, so I think he’ll be a whole lot better next week.”

The Tide plays its home opener on Saturday night against Florida International of the Sun Belt Conference. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. It is a pay-per-view TV game.