Sunday, July 31, 2011

#34 Kenneth Darby

34 more days!


Kenneth Darby #34, played his high school ball at Butler High here in Huntsville.


Darby entered 2005 as a preseason All-SEC player and finished the season as one of the top running backs in the SEC. That year, the Crimson Tide finished 10-2 with a victory over Texas Tech in the Cotton Bowl Classic. He was a First-team All-SEC after starting all 12 games, with 239 carries for a career-high 1,242 yards (5.2 avg.) and three touchdowns and had 29 catches for 132 yards (4.6 avg.).




Saturday, July 30, 2011

#35 Demeco Ryans

35 more days till College Football!!


Some of you may remember Demeco Ryans!  Check out this awesome video below!


Friday, July 29, 2011

#37 Shaun Alexander

37 more days till college football!!


Shaun Alexander, one of the more remarkable running backs in the history of Alabama football!  Check out the video for one of the highlights of his career vs. the Gators in overtime!!



in the 1999 Iron Bowl where he had three touchdowns and 199 total yards. This capped off a great career for Alabama.
When he left, Alexander was the all-time rushing leader at the school.
He also rushed for a school record 291 yards against LSU as a freshman.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

#38 Glen Coffee

38 More Days till College Football!


In his best statistical season at Alabama, Coffee ran for 1,383 yards and ten touchdowns, while averaging 5.9 yards per carry. With his season's performance, Coffee was named to the Associated Press All-SEC first team







Monday, July 25, 2011

#39 E.J. Junior

39 more days to college football!!!



E.J. Junior was one of the many successful linebackers to come out of Alabama.
Junior was known for his ability to rush the passer. It ultimately earned him a spot as a top pick in the 1981 NFL draft.
Junior went on to have a very successful pro career, earning spots in the Pro Bowl twice.


Sunday, July 24, 2011

#40 Baron Huber

40 More Days till football season!!


#40 Baron Huber  6'-3"  249lbs running back for Bama.


Huber was the first fullback on the field for Alabama in 2008 ... helped a running game that averaged 184.6 yards per game to rank third in the SEC ... was a staple on the kickoff return unit ... played in all 14 games.



Saturday, July 23, 2011

#41 Courtney Upshaw

41 more days till College Football


Courtney Upshaw, 6-2  265lbs.



Courtney Upshaw was a force in his first year as a starter in 2010 ... developed into one of the Tide's most explosive pass rushers ... has played in 40 career games, making 12 starts at jack linebacker ... has 89 career tackles with 18.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks and four forced fumbles ... could contend for All-SEC and All-America honors as a senior in 2011 ... won the Sylvester Croom Commitment to Excellence Award in the spring of 2011.




#43 Antonio Langham

43 more days till College Football!


#43 Antonio Langham



Friday, July 22, 2011

#44 Lane Bearden

44 more days till college football!
Lane Bearden was a unique punter for Alabama between 2000-2002


The Alabama coach, Dennis Franchione, gave him a Warrior Ball that Saturday against Ole Miss, ''the most prized award in our program, the only one I've given this year,'' he said. ''In 30 years, I've never seen anyone come back from an anterior cruciate tear in the same season.''



Tuesday, July 19, 2011

#47 Woodrow Lowe


Only two players in the history of Alabama football have gained All-American honors in three different years.
Woodrow Lowe was an All-American in 1973, 1974 and 1975.
He holds the record for most tackles in a season and is third on the all-time tackle list.
He was also a member of four SEC championship teams and one national championship team. 

Monday, July 18, 2011

#48 (1948) Alabama Football Season


Alabama football fell off sharply in 1948. The season opening loss to Tulane was the first time Alabama started its season with a loss since the 1903 team kicked off with a 30-0 loss to Vanderbilt. The next week the Tide had to score a TD with ten seconds left to salvage a tie with Vanderbilt. A 35-0 loss to eventual SEC champion Georgia was the worst loss for Alabama since a 36-0 loss to Georgia Tech in 1910. The Tide struggled home with a 6-4-1 record.

This otherwise forgettable season is noteworthy for one event: the resumption of the Iron Bowl rivalry with Auburn after a 40-year hiatus. The Iron Bowl dated all the way back to Alabama's very first team in 1892. The two schools met regularly through 1895 and then, after a five-year break, regularly from 1900 through 1907. However, trivial disputes led to the series being discontinued in 1908. Alabama and Auburn disagreed on how much per diem to allow players for the trip to Birmingham, how many players each school should bring, and where to find officials. By the time all these matters were resolved, it was too late to play in 1908, and the series ended. By 1947 pressure to renew the Iron Bowl had grown to the point that the state legislature threatened to withhold funding from the two schools unless they scheduled a game. In 1948 the Tide and Tigers finally agreed to meet on a football field. The result was a 55-0 Tide victory that remains the most lopsided win by either team in the history of the series.

DateOpponentSiteResult
September 25TulaneNew Orleans, LAL 14-21
October 2VanderbiltMobile, ALT 14-14
October 8DuquesneTuscaloosa, ALW 48-6
October 16TennesseeKnoxville, TN (Third Saturday in October)L 6-21
October 23Mississippi StateStarkville, MSW 10-7
October 30GeorgiaBirmingham, ALL 0-35
November 6Southern MissTuscaloosa, ALW 27-0
November 13Georgia TechAtlanta, GAW 14-12
November 20LSUBaton Rouge, LAL 6-26
November 27FloridaTuscaloosa, ALW 34-28
December 4AuburnBirmingham, AL (Iron Bowl)W 55-0






Saturday, July 16, 2011

#49 Rashad Johnson

49 more days till college football!!


Rashad Johnson was a walk on at Alabama that earned a starting safety job in 2007.
He was named 2007 Team Captain and earned UA's Co-Defensive Player of the Year honors ... 2007 Coaches First-Team All-SEC selection ... shared the 2008 Mal Moore Leadership Award with center Antoine Caldwell for his performance during spring practice.





Thursday, July 14, 2011

#52 Harry Gilmer

52 more days till college football!



Harry Gilmer was a halfback but also played quarterback.  In 1945 he led the nation in touchdown passes at 13. He also finished second in passing yards 1,457.
Those numbers may seem funny now, but those were great in the 1940s.
He scored 52 touchdowns in his career, a number amazing for the era that he played.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

53 More Days till College Football

Since there are no notable players with #53, we will review the 1953 Season.
1953 was an unusual season for the Tide; having only won 6 games all year, they were 4-0-3 in the conference giving them the SEC title.
On January 1, 1954, The Cotton Bowl against Rice featured one of the strangest plays in the history of college football.  Rice had the ball on its own 5 yard line, leading 7-6, when the running back swept around the right side, broke free, and appeared to be on his way to a 95-yard touchdown run -- until Tommy Lewis of Alabama ran onto the field from the sideline to tackle the runner at the Alabama 40.  Officials awarded Rice a 95 yard touchdown of which Rice won 28-6.
Bama finished the season 6-3-3.

Monday, July 11, 2011

#54 Lee Roy Jordan


Lee Roy Jordan played both offense and defense on the 1961 national championship team.
The team had six shutouts that year.
Bear Bryant said of Jordan, "He was one of the finest football players the world has ever seen. If runners stayed between the sidelines, he tackled them.
Jordan was elected into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983
54 more days to College Football!!!!!!

Sunday, July 10, 2011

#55 Derrick Thomas

55 more days to College Football!!


#55 Derrick Thomas could be considered one of the greatest players in Alabama Crimson Tide history.  
He holds an NCAA record for 27 sacks in one season, was awarded the Dick Butkus award in 1988.  He finished his career with 52 sacks, also an NCAA record at the time.


He went on to play for the Kansas City Chiefs, had a fantastic career, which landed him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  In February of 2000, he  tragically died from a blot clot while driving.  He was only 33 years old.


#56 US Women's Soccer!!

I know college football fans... soccer ain't college football; however, we have to depart from the countdown on this day to recognize one of the most exciting "soccer" finishes in the history of World Cup.  If you have been in a hole the past 24 hours, check out the Women's come from behind victory in the last minute of overtime to tie the game, then win it with penalty kicks.  This was an amazing game (or match as they call it).
Back to College Football tomorrow!
USA USA USA USA USA USA USA

Saturday, July 9, 2011

#57 Marcel Darius

Only "57" more days to college football!!! 
And that means that we get to celebrate #57 Marcel Darius, 6'-3"  319lbs.
Darius led the Southeastern Conference in quarterback sacks in the 2009 season, and was also named Defensive MVP of the 2010 BCS National Championship Game.  The photo below shows him intercepting a Texas pass and returning it for a touchdown.  
Darius went to Huffman High School in Birmingham, and now plays defensive tackle for the Buffalo Bills.



Friday, July 8, 2011

#58 #5 Roy Upchurch - #8 Julio Jones

Roy Upchurch - 6'-0"  205lbs.
Roy was a great hard nosed running back for Bama 2006-09. He will probably be remembered most by his game winning touchdown catch at Auburn in 2009.


Julio Jones - 6'-4"  220lbs.
"Quintorris Lopez" Jones from Foley Alabama, is one of the most gifted athletes ever to put on a Bama uniform.  Jones was a starter from Opening Day as a true freshman.  He is the only player in the history of the program to receive that honor.
Jones totaled 2,604 yards along with 15 touchdowns.


Today was a 'combination' player day.... 58 more days!!!