I AM BACK!!!

After a long time off, I am back! I have been unusually busy at work and have been off working at the hunting camp (Four Track Hunting Club) very hard over the past few months. Regardless, it is a great time to be an Alabama fan! Season expectations are looking up for the first time in a long, long time. While we can not expect Nick Saban to have Alabama back to its desired state as one of the best programs in the country, we know especially after this past week that we are moving in the right direction.

SPRING PRACTICE:

To see all of the action around the inaugural spring for Nick Saban, you can go to Tidesports.com to see FREE video interviews of Saban and his coaches (go to the multimedia section). If you pay (like me) the university you can see essentially the same interviews at CrimsonTradition.com. It will be interesting to see how much Saban interacts with CrimsonTradition. Something tells me that he is NOT going to get in front of a microphone for an internet paid news service after his practices nor do I think he is going to let his assistant coaches or especially players on the air. This just doesn't fit his style! Time will tell...

If you question the motives of Nick Saban and why he would leave the NFL to come back to the college game, you can clearly see it in his press conferences. He want's to focus his time and talent to TEACHING these young men. It's not being just a coach but a teacher. The interviews of assistant coaches illustrates that they are going to teach each player to be the best player he can be. One offensive lineman may be taught man-to-man technique while another may be taught zone-blocking = whichever fits their talents. The practices are grouped into small groups so more reps can be conducted in the same time without people standing around.

Watch these press conferences! He makes more points about the game of football in one sentence than Shula did in his entire tenure at helm. You can tell that he has a comfort level in what he is doing. He is preaching it and living it. The media doesn't get it yet - but they are learning. He doesn't give specifics about the lineup, roster, offensive/defensive scheme, etc... He is focused on making what he has inherited the best it can be and be flexible to do whatever is needed. He is so comfortable around the press, he is having fun, you can see it in his posture! I don't know about you but I am smiling with him at the reigns!

To describe the character of our new coach, Nick has decided to demote himself to being a Graduate Assistant (click here for the article). This speaks volumes of his selfless character to be willing to do whatever it takes to win! You think the player will notice this attitude from their coach? Live by example!

Air Alabama (click here for article)? Since Major Applewhite has been named the offensive coordinator, it has been assumed that we were going to have a wide-open multi-dimensional offense. They are holding the cards close to the vest on this one. I would too until you know what kind of deck has been dealt to you.

2008 Recruiting is off to an excellent start (click here for article).

TICKETS:

Ticket Prices Increase for the next season. Surprised? This is expected as the demand is high! Do you really think that someone will not buy season tickets this year due to price?

I talked with the Ticket office the other day and they informed me that all TidePride members will receive their request for Florida State tickets. Each member is allowed a certain number based on the Tide points system. This is good news for me as I already have airline tickets... Those who bought tickets on the open market are not guaranteed to receive tickets. It opened online at 9AM and had to be shutdown at noon due to high demand. Regardless, this will be one hot ticket!

OTHER LINKS:

Cecil Hurt's Columns must be read as they are written. He is the only source of reliable information from the capstone that is not biased with "crimson" colored glasses (click here for Cecil's columns).

Finebaum has a good article that better describes the Bama fanbase (click here for article).

PROMOTIONS: Note I am not getting any compensation for these endorsements...

Check out MemphisTider's blog daily as he does a great job in reporting the news and has very good opinions about the upcoming season!

I have purchased the reprint of Nick Saban's book How Good Do You Want To Be? I have not read it yet but have skimmed through it. It illustrates his clear plan for how he does his business, not just football but leadership, planning, organization, setting goals, and accountability. This is appears to be a great book for any supervisor with direct reports. Although I haven't read it yet, I am sure that I am going to love it.

A must read it The Missing Ring by Keith Dunnavant. I read this book and learned more about Alabama football from this read than any other book! His writing technique was a little odd as it is a story that goes off in numerous tangents in every chapter. The tangents are so rich in information about Bama history, it's scary!