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Alabama Crimson Tide (official thread of Football, Fake Championships and Banjo)

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Three Offseason Storylines to Watch
1. Replace the expected departures
Even though the Crimson Tide came up short of a repeat national title, the expectation is that several players on both sides of the ball will declare early for the NFL draft. Recent serious knee injuries suffered by wide receivers Jameson Williams and John Metchie III could impact their decisions, but even if one or both return, Alabama is losing some experienced talent on both offense and defense. Of course, some of these draft-eligible underclassmen could change their minds before next Monday's deadline to declare.

But this is Alabama, where four- and five-star talents that move on are replaced by younger four- and five-star talents. I mean, look at the receivers called on in the title game because of Metchie's absence and then Williams going down in the second quarter. Freshmen like Ja'Corey Brooks and Agiye Hall and sophomore Traeshon Holden are positioned to take on bigger roles in 2022.

But also look for Nick Saban and his staff to hit the transfer portal again this offseason, as they did when they struck gold with Williams (Ohio State) and linebacker Henry To'o To'o (Tennessee) last year. In fact, the Tide already have reeled in a pair of big fish in the portal in former LSU cornerback Eli Ricks and Georgia Tech running back Jahmyr Gibbs. I mean, c'mon, who doesn't want to win a national title? Saban’s recruiting pitch is simple, "Come to Tuscaloosa and get yourself a ring." And some NIL deals worth a ton of money as well while you're at it.

2. Re-establish the dominance up front
This Bama team had some glaring holes this season, most of which may have been along the offensive line, of all places. We'll get to more of that in a minute but first, let's face it, the Tide struggled a number of times this past season. And I mean beyond that close loss at Texas A&M. Dare I say, they seemed to mail it in at times. Look at their close win over Florida where the Tide were outscored 26-10 down the stretch and had to have a goal-line stand to escape the Swamp with a two-point win. Florida was the better team that day for three quarters and, as it turned out, the Gators were not a very good team, finishing at 6-7. Versus Tennessee, it was a one-score game in the fourth quarter. Versus Arkansas, another one-score game in the fourth quarter. Against Tiger teams (LSU and Auburn), Bama barely escaped with narrow wins, the Auburn game being a four-overtime bloodletting. Both LSU and Auburn had losing seasons just like Florida.

The O-line has its usual array of future NFL draftees and all, but they also gave up 38 sacks this season, which puts them at No. 110 in the FBS in sacks allowed. At just 6-foot and 190 pounds, it’s amazing Bryce Young held up so well this season. And for as good as Brian Robinson Jr. was at times this season, it is also worth noting that the running game was ranked way down at 10th in the SEC. That's stunning.

It wouldn't be surprising to see offensive line coach Doug Marrone depart (fired from?) the staff in the near future. If Saban can find a better O-line coach, then it will only help him in the long run. If Bama re-establishes its dominance in 2022, maybe Ole Nick won't have so many blowups at the media as he did this season.

3. Instill some emphasis on discipline
I can't believe I’m actually writing this about a Saban-coached team, but the Tide was one undisciplined squad this season. Penalties, ill-timed turnovers, missed assignments, the aforementioned sacks, victims of trick plays, special teams gaffes, the list goes on. To wit, going into the national title game, the Tide ranked No. 115 in the FBS in penalties and penalty yards per game. Only Florida and Ole Miss committed more infractions than the Tide did in the SEC. They also ranked No. 118 in the country in the number of negative yardage plays (95 prior to the Georgia rematch) by their offense. And they also ranked 70th nationally in red zone defense. Is that freaking amazing? Actually, that's the kind of thing that makes Bear Bryant roll over in his grave.

It’s no big secret that the Tide loses high-octane talent every year. Look, they lost guys like Mac Jones, Najee Harris, DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle, Patrick Surtain, Alex Leatherwood, Christian Barmore, and Dylan Moses from last year’s team and they still made it back to the College Football Playoff and played for the national title. If there's any additional good news this time, it's that the potential draft losses shouldn't be as significant and Alabama returns the reigning Heisman Trophy winner (Young) and the best defender (linebacker Will Anderson Jr.).

Oh yeah, and most importantly, Saban still ain't retiring yet.

Like it or not, things ain't gonna change in Tuscaloosa anytime soon.
 
Upvote 0
ScriptOhio said:


Three Offseason Storylines to Watch
1. Replace the expected departures
Even though the Crimson Tide came up short of a repeat national title, the expectation is that several players on both sides of the ball will declare early for the NFL draft. Recent serious knee injuries suffered by wide receivers Jameson Williams and John Metchie III could impact their decisions, but even if one or both return, Alabama is losing some experienced talent on both offense and defense. Of course, some of these draft-eligible underclassmen could change their minds before next Monday's deadline to declare.

But this is Alabama, where four- and five-star talents that move on are replaced by younger four- and five-star talents. I mean, look at the receivers called on in the title game because of Metchie's absence and then Williams going down in the second quarter. Freshmen like Ja'Corey Brooks and Agiye Hall and sophomore Traeshon Holden are positioned to take on bigger roles in 2022.

But also look for Nick Saban and his staff to hit the transfer portal again this offseason, as they did when they struck gold with Williams (Ohio State) and linebacker Henry To'o To'o (Tennessee) last year. In fact, the Tide already have reeled in a pair of big fish in the portal in former LSU cornerback Eli Ricks and Georgia Tech running back Jahmyr Gibbs. I mean, c'mon, who doesn't want to win a national title? Saban’s recruiting pitch is simple, "Come to Tuscaloosa and get yourself a ring." And some NIL deals worth a ton of money as well while you're at it.

2. Re-establish the dominance up front
This Bama team had some glaring holes this season, most of which may have been along the offensive line, of all places. We'll get to more of that in a minute but first, let's face it, the Tide struggled a number of times this past season. And I mean beyond that close loss at Texas A&M. Dare I say, they seemed to mail it in at times. Look at their close win over Florida where the Tide were outscored 26-10 down the stretch and had to have a goal-line stand to escape the Swamp with a two-point win. Florida was the better team that day for three quarters and, as it turned out, the Gators were not a very good team, finishing at 6-7. Versus Tennessee, it was a one-score game in the fourth quarter. Versus Arkansas, another one-score game in the fourth quarter. Against Tiger teams (LSU and Auburn), Bama barely escaped with narrow wins, the Auburn game being a four-overtime bloodletting. Both LSU and Auburn had losing seasons just like Florida.

The O-line has its usual array of future NFL draftees and all, but they also gave up 38 sacks this season, which puts them at No. 110 in the FBS in sacks allowed. At just 6-foot and 190 pounds, it’s amazing Bryce Young held up so well this season. And for as good as Brian Robinson Jr. was at times this season, it is also worth noting that the running game was ranked way down at 10th in the SEC. That's stunning.

It wouldn't be surprising to see offensive line coach Doug Marrone depart (fired from?) the staff in the near future. If Saban can find a better O-line coach, then it will only help him in the long run. If Bama re-establishes its dominance in 2022, maybe Ole Nick won't have so many blowups at the media as he did this season.

3. Instill some emphasis on discipline
I can't believe I’m actually writing this about a Saban-coached team, but the Tide was one undisciplined squad this season. Penalties, ill-timed turnovers, missed assignments, the aforementioned sacks, victims of trick plays, special teams gaffes, the list goes on. To wit, going into the national title game, the Tide ranked No. 115 in the FBS in penalties and penalty yards per game. Only Florida and Ole Miss committed more infractions than the Tide did in the SEC. They also ranked No. 118 in the country in the number of negative yardage plays (95 prior to the Georgia rematch) by their offense. And they also ranked 70th nationally in red zone defense. Is that freaking amazing? Actually, that's the kind of thing that makes Bear Bryant roll over in his grave.

It’s no big secret that the Tide loses high-octane talent every year. Look, they lost guys like Mac Jones, Najee Harris, DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle, Patrick Surtain, Alex Leatherwood, Christian Barmore, and Dylan Moses from last year’s team and they still made it back to the College Football Playoff and played for the national title. If there's any additional good news this time, it's that the potential draft losses shouldn't be as significant and Alabama returns the reigning Heisman Trophy winner (Young) and the best defender (linebacker Will Anderson Jr.).

Oh yeah, and most importantly, Saban still ain't retiring yet.

Like it or not, things ain't gonna change in Tuscaloosa anytime soon.
Click to expand...


Yeah, this is true, which is why I'm getting in all my shots now while I still can.
 
Upvote 0
5 STAR U-G-A said:
Yeah, this is true, which is why I'm getting in all my shots now while I still can.
Click to expand...

I really don't think Alabama will be better on offense:

Likely Key Departures

RB Brian Robinson Jr.
WR Jameson Williams (reportedly tore his ACL in the national championship game)
WR John Metchie III (tore his ACL in SEC Championship Game)
TE Jahleel Billingsley
OL Evan Neal
OL Emil Ekiyor Jr.
 
Upvote 0
ScriptOhio said:
I really don't think Alabama will be better on offense:

Likely Key Departures

RB Brian Robinson Jr.
WR Jameson Williams (reportedly tore his ACL in the national championship game)
WR John Metchie III (tore his ACL in SEC Championship Game)
TE Jahleel Billingsley
OL Evan Neal
OL Emil Ekiyor Jr.
Click to expand...

They brought in the RB from Georgia Tech, who is very good. The WR situation could be taking a step back with Williams and Metchie out. It depends on who Saban replaces BoB with, assuming that BoB is going to Jax or getting pushed out somewhere (which is very likely).

Bama almost always has a ton of talent, even when they lose a lot, so if they get a better OC they'll be better on offense.
 
Upvote 0
5 STAR U-G-A said:
They brought in the RB from Georgia Tech, who is very good. The WR situation could be taking a step back with Williams and Metchie out. It depends on who Saban replaces BoB with, assuming that BoB is going to Jax or getting pushed out somewhere (which is very likely).

Bama almost always has a ton of talent, even when they lose a lot, so if they get a better OC they'll be better on offense.
Click to expand...

Without Williams and Metchie in the game Bryce Young just looked average. The other receivers seemed to drop a lot of passes too.
 
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