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Saban Era Starts Off With a Blast
RollTideBama.com
It took all of 1 play, 22 seconds and 47 yards, courtesy of Terry Grant, to get the Saban Era off with a bang tonight in Tuscaloosa. The Tide then tacked on an addition 45 points to win the game 52-6 over Western Carolina.
Set up by Javier Arenas' 30-yard return off the game's opening kick, BAMA wasted little time in going to work on the Western Carolina defense. On the Tide's first play from scrimmage quarterback John Parker Wilson turned and handed off to tailback Terry Grant who promptly ran it all the way to the end zone for a 47-yard touchdown scamper. It proved to be only the first of his 3 scores on the day. As high as expectations have been for Nick Saban, they've been arguably as high for Grant. He did nothing in the game to disappoint either. Finishing with 3 scores and 134 yards on 18 attempts.
Bama's offense continued to fire on all cylinders during the first half, as the Tide recorded over 300 yards of total offense while adding another 17 points to the total, taking a 24-3 lead into the locker room. If there was a downside or any disappointment with the play of the offense in the first half it was that Leigh Tiffin missed on his first field goal attempt of the season. Tiffin later made good by connecting on what basically amounted to an extra point, but every bit counts when dealing with the confidence of placekickers.
The rest of the offense performed well in their 2007 debut led by Terry Grant's 3 touchdown runs (47, 21, 1). BAMA quarterback John Parker Wilson did a nice job of spreading the ball around and throwing for more than 130 yards, while freshman receiver Earl Alexander paced the corps with 4 receptions for 40 yards.
If there was a point of concern in the game it would have been the play of the defense. While they did a nice job of keeping Western Carolina out of the end zone in the first half they did seem porous at times, leading Western Carolina head coach Kent Briggs to comment that it was WCU stopping WCU, and nothing more. While one has to give credit to BAMA for holding WCU to only around 100 yards of total offense in the first half, one also has to admit that this is Western Carolina after all. This was expected. While the overall numbers look good, WCU was able to move the ball and tack on yardage in bunches tonight, and that should concern BAMA fans.
While the scoring continued in the second half the only difference is that much of it came from BAMA backups and reserves. The first-team offense, led by Wilson came in to start the third quarter and promptly tacked on another touchdown as tailback Glenn Coffee found pay dirt from 1 yard out. With the touchdown pushing the score to 31-3 Nick Saban wasted no time in putting in the backups.
Greg McElroy took over for Wilson and performed quite nicely, leading BAMA to several scores while finishing the game completing 8 of 9 passes for 73 yards and a touchdown. BAMA fans also began to see something in the receiving game that they had not seen in some time; the tight end. Arguably the team's top receiver in the second half was tight end Nick Walker who hauled in 5 passes for 40 yards and a score.
While Grant was the offensive star in the first half, sophomore tailback Glenn Coffee did his best to make a mark in the second half, rushing for 76 yards on 9 carries. Jimmy Johns and Roy Upchurch did their part as well, with the duo combining for over 50 yards and a score.
All in all the game went pretty much according to script. BAMA scored early and often, overwhelming the Catamounts, affording the opportunity to get many of the reserves into the game for much-needed playing time. The defense, while aggressive, has some work to do. Too few turnovers and big plays were made tonight for the liking of the fans, much less the coaches.
Be patient BAMA fans. Things will fully come together for the Tide. For now though, just enjoy the win.
RollTideBama.com
It took all of 1 play, 22 seconds and 47 yards, courtesy of Terry Grant, to get the Saban Era off with a bang tonight in Tuscaloosa. The Tide then tacked on an addition 45 points to win the game 52-6 over Western Carolina.
Set up by Javier Arenas' 30-yard return off the game's opening kick, BAMA wasted little time in going to work on the Western Carolina defense. On the Tide's first play from scrimmage quarterback John Parker Wilson turned and handed off to tailback Terry Grant who promptly ran it all the way to the end zone for a 47-yard touchdown scamper. It proved to be only the first of his 3 scores on the day. As high as expectations have been for Nick Saban, they've been arguably as high for Grant. He did nothing in the game to disappoint either. Finishing with 3 scores and 134 yards on 18 attempts.
Bama's offense continued to fire on all cylinders during the first half, as the Tide recorded over 300 yards of total offense while adding another 17 points to the total, taking a 24-3 lead into the locker room. If there was a downside or any disappointment with the play of the offense in the first half it was that Leigh Tiffin missed on his first field goal attempt of the season. Tiffin later made good by connecting on what basically amounted to an extra point, but every bit counts when dealing with the confidence of placekickers.
The rest of the offense performed well in their 2007 debut led by Terry Grant's 3 touchdown runs (47, 21, 1). BAMA quarterback John Parker Wilson did a nice job of spreading the ball around and throwing for more than 130 yards, while freshman receiver Earl Alexander paced the corps with 4 receptions for 40 yards.
If there was a point of concern in the game it would have been the play of the defense. While they did a nice job of keeping Western Carolina out of the end zone in the first half they did seem porous at times, leading Western Carolina head coach Kent Briggs to comment that it was WCU stopping WCU, and nothing more. While one has to give credit to BAMA for holding WCU to only around 100 yards of total offense in the first half, one also has to admit that this is Western Carolina after all. This was expected. While the overall numbers look good, WCU was able to move the ball and tack on yardage in bunches tonight, and that should concern BAMA fans.
While the scoring continued in the second half the only difference is that much of it came from BAMA backups and reserves. The first-team offense, led by Wilson came in to start the third quarter and promptly tacked on another touchdown as tailback Glenn Coffee found pay dirt from 1 yard out. With the touchdown pushing the score to 31-3 Nick Saban wasted no time in putting in the backups.
Greg McElroy took over for Wilson and performed quite nicely, leading BAMA to several scores while finishing the game completing 8 of 9 passes for 73 yards and a touchdown. BAMA fans also began to see something in the receiving game that they had not seen in some time; the tight end. Arguably the team's top receiver in the second half was tight end Nick Walker who hauled in 5 passes for 40 yards and a score.
While Grant was the offensive star in the first half, sophomore tailback Glenn Coffee did his best to make a mark in the second half, rushing for 76 yards on 9 carries. Jimmy Johns and Roy Upchurch did their part as well, with the duo combining for over 50 yards and a score.
All in all the game went pretty much according to script. BAMA scored early and often, overwhelming the Catamounts, affording the opportunity to get many of the reserves into the game for much-needed playing time. The defense, while aggressive, has some work to do. Too few turnovers and big plays were made tonight for the liking of the fans, much less the coaches.
Be patient BAMA fans. Things will fully come together for the Tide. For now though, just enjoy the win.
