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JUSTIN GRAVES: Looks like Tide, Tigers swapped identities before season started
Looks like Nick Saban finally helped Alabama find that identity it was searching for last fall.
Where did the Crimson Tide coach find it? In the loveliest village — better known as Auburn.
When Saban was hired at the Capstone, the only thing he was expected to steal from Auburn was a few recruits — and maybe a few Iron Bowl victories.
Tommy Tuberville saw the writing on the wall. The Auburn coach could see what was on the horizon, and it wasn’t good for his program.
Having a recruiter like Saban in the state was going to affect Auburn. There was no way around it, and Tuberville knew it.
National signing day was an eye-opening experience for Tuberville. Somehow, some way, his biggest rival inked every major recruit in Alabama.
How could Auburn survive with Saban recruiting like that? It takes great players to win big, and Alabama stole every single one of them from the Tigers’ primary recruiting base.
Apparently that’s not the only thing Saban stole from Auburn. He also took the Tigers’ identity.
Seeing what was on the horizon, Tuberville tried to be proactive — hiring Tony Franklin and changing to the spread offense.
The Auburn teams of old were built around the run. Strong rushing attacks is how Tuberville beat Alabama six times in a row.
Auburn has great backs on its team this year, but Tuberville wants to run a pass-oriented offense without the luxury of a proven quarterback?
It’s a recipe for destruction, especially since Saban is winning — and winning big — by doing what Auburn has done so well in recent years.
Alabama has a physical offensive line to go along with three very good running backs. The Crimson Tide may not have the most consistent quarterback in the Southeastern Conference, but it’s not like John Parker Wilson is being asked to carry the team on his shoulders.
Neither was Brandon Cox.
Jason Campbell didn’t have to, either.
Auburn simply rode its running backs to 10-win seasons and a BCS bowl appearance.
But Auburn isn’t doing that this year. That honor goes to Alabama.
Alabama has one of the SEC’s top running games. The Crimson Tide’s defense isn’t too shabby, either.
Running the football down the throats of its opponents, Alabama is winning game after game by establishing itself as the most physical team on the field.
Playing that type of football, Alabama has jumped from a middle-of-the-pack SEC West team to the second-ranked national media darling in just a matter of weeks.
On the other hand, Auburn looks a lot like Alabama did a year ago. And when everything is said and done, the final record may be similar, too.
Auburn has struggled to find its identity this season, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to get better anytime soon.
This was a team that was the preseason favorite to win the SEC West. Now, it looks like Saturday’s game with Arkansas will decide fourth place.
Tuberville has been around long enough to know that seven-win seasons don’t keep coaches employed in the SEC. It’s all about what you’ve done lately in this conference.
Six straight wins over Alabama doesn’t sound that significant when your team can’t even beat Vanderbilt.
Auburn had an identity once. This program wasn’t nicknamed Tailback U for nothing.
Breaking the mold, finding a new niche, may have been fun for a while. But now it’s starting to get serious down on the Plains.
The experiment has been conducted, and the spread failed — miserably.
Now it’s time for Tuberville to go back to what Auburn has always done best: Run the football and win with defense.
If Tuberville doesn’t make the call, Auburn’s higher-ups are going to. And if it plays out that way, odds of the “Riverboat Gambler” being there to see it are slim to none.
What have you done for me lately? Going backwards in the win column usually isn’t the best answer for that question in the SEC.
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CHAMPS AGAIN
Isaac Yarbrough wanted the ball in the final inning.
And once he got it, he wanted to face the top of Fairview’s lineup.
Yarbrough got both of his wishes. And once he did, Vinemont High got one of its own — its first Cullman County baseball title in three years.
“I was looking forward to it,” said Yarbrough, who struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh Tuesday afternoon to seal Vinemont’s 8-3 win over Fairview in the championship game of the Cullman County tournament at Hanceville High.
“My arm was kind of bothering me, but I got my three strikeouts.” - Meyer pitches Vinemont past Good Hope
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WORTH THE WAIT
Larson Howse didn’t spend much time celebrating, even after his second homer of the day.
With Gregory Smith on the mound, he didn’t have to.
Howse swatted two homers and Smith tossed a complete-game one-hitter as Fairview High defeated West Point 11-1 Monday afternoon in the semifinals of the Cullman County baseball tournament at Hanceville High. -
THE TIMES ALL-AREA PREP BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM: Good Hope triple-double threat Aycock enjoyed breakthrough season
Kyle Aycock watched with pride as his father, Greg, was recognized with the Good Hope High 1988 Cullman County basketball championship team this past season.
For Aycock, it was a moment of realization. The Good Hope point guard understood why his father had been pushing him for years.
“My dad wants me to be able and enjoy the same things he did when he was a player,” said Aycock, who has been selected as The Times Prep Boys Basketball Player of the Year. -
THE TIMES ALL-AREA PREP BASKETBALL TEAM: Myrex ends storied hoops career with 3rd POY award
During her record-breaking prep basketball career at Cold Springs High, Georgia Myrex piled up enough individual awards and records to warrant an extra wing at the Myrex household.
But if the Cold Springs High senior had her way, she’d trade them all in for just one more piece of Alabama-shaped blue hardware in the trophy case at Jesse George Gymnasium.
“I would definitely trade it all in,” said Myrex, who led Cold Springs to within three wins of its third straight Class 2A state title this past season. “I’m very appreciative of all my individual honors, but nothing compares to the feeling of winning a state championship.”
Well, go ahead and make room for one more individual honor. -
Burleson coaches Cold Springs up on way to turnaround
Sitting behind the table in a cramped interview room, a disappointed Tim Burleson broke down the Xs and Os of a heartbreaking Northwest Regional loss.
Descriptive and to the point, Burleson left no question unanswered.
And then the Cold Springs High coach answered one of his own — rattling off the most important stat of all.
“This team right here, 12-17, that’s what they were a year ago,” said Burleson following the Eagles’ 42-41 loss to Mars Hill in the Class 2A Northwest Regional semifinals. “Six of them were on that team, and they worked their tails off in the offseason.” -
BRINGING BACK PRIDE
Scott Adams came to the realization slowly — and at various points of the season.
During summer workouts, the Holly Pond High girls basketball coach noticed his players making plays they wouldn’t have made the year before. And during the opening weeks of fall practice, the sharp passing and shooting continued.
But during a Thanksgiving tournament in Morgan County — that’s when Adams knew. Fully, finally and without a doubt. - PREP SOFTBALL: Raiders win pair at Heritage Park
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