Discuss This Article on the Football Message Board

Questions abounded at Bryant-Denny Stadium Saturday night, and Alabama answered a lot of those questions.

But several of the same old questions remained, and a few new ones were added.

UCLA beat Alabama 20-17 to spoil Dennis Franchione’s opening game as Alabama head coach, but the opinion of most seasoned observers was that regardless of the loss, Alabama is headed, if not in the right direction, at least away from the morass that surrounded last year’s 3-8 effort.

Alabama will be better in 2001 than in 2000, but there is still work to be done. Specifically, Alabama’s players must minimize the mistakes that cost them this game. Alabama totaled 15 penalties in the game and failed to protect the football. Those mistakes are bad enough against an upper-tier PAC-10 school, but they will be deadly if not corrected before SEC play begins.

A little comparative analysis is in order, and the results do show some good things. The most discernable differences between this year’s squad and last year’s were the level of enthusiasm displayed by the players and the sense of focus to the offense. Even though Alabama was playing in its first game under the Franchione system, it still managed to out-gain UCLA’s veteran offense by a significant margin. Furthermore, this is not an offense with which many opposing teams will be familiar; call it a variant of the flex-option if you like – a veer offense from a spread formation. In the first quarter, before UCLA had time to adjust, the only thing that stopped Alabama’s progress was Alabama’s own mistakes.

Alabama is more physical in 2001 than in 2000. Even from an option-based set, Alabama managed 299 passing yards. Special teams looked a little better on the whole, and the wide receivers had no drops and ran much better routes.

But things are not all bright and shiny. Many of the same questions that hounded Alabama in 2000 were present in Bryant-Denny Saturday night. Alabama’s secondary held Cory Paus to 8-of-22 passing for just 123 yards, but many of those incompletions were simply dumb drops and the Tide yielding a back-breaking bomb in the third quarter. The vaunted UA defensive line managed only one sack, and the offensive line had several breakdowns.

Perhaps the most distressing elements in the loss were the silly penalties for offsides and illegal motion. It is understandable that such will happen with an offensive line with only a combined 26 career starts. But this problem must be corrected, and soon.

Alabama also got unlucky early with injuries. Fullback Donnie Lowe’s concussion was bad enough to not only make him miss this game, but prevent him from even dressing out. Starting strong safety Shontua Ray sustained a knee injury; he could miss as little as one week, but could also miss much more. Both quarterbacks were hurt, although Watts will almost certainly be 100 percent by kickoff for Vanderbilt. Andrew Zow sustained a concussion; his status is uncertain.

If the question is optimism vs. pessimism, however, the optimist should win this argument. This is a team with direction. There were many factors in the loss – a veteran opponent, a new offensive and defensive system, a new coaching staff, the usual shoddy officiating – but there was nothing about Alabama’s mistakes that cannot be corrected. Alabama will play Vanderbilt this week, and the Commodores are coming off a devastating loss to a Sun Belt team. It would seem the perfect opportunity to take what was learned in week one and improve upon it.

Discuss This Article on the Football Message Board

1. UCLA - BAMA GAMEDAY GUIDE™
2. OFFICIAL Full  Game Stats
3. OFFICIAL Post Game Quotes & Comments
4. OFFICIAL Post Game Notes

Discuss This Article on the Football Message Board

Nashville, TN may be one of the most underrated road trips in the Southeastern Conference, mainly due to the continuing struggles of the hometown Commodores. But the Music City offers plenty of advantages: easy access, plentiful lodging and restaraunt options, civilized hosts and a better than average shot at a road victory.

The TideFans site already has several valuable links to help you plan your trip, including parking info, plus the excellent nashville.citysearch.com. That said, here are a few insider tips from someone who lived in Middle Tennessee for well over a decade.

Getting there:

From Alabama: Take I-65 north to I-440 west (towards Memphis). Take the West End Ave. exit (U.S. 70S, Exit 1) and turn right. To park along the southern edge of campus, turn right onto 31st Ave S. (Blakemore Ave.) To park at Centennial Park stay on West End. The park will be on your left, across from the VU campus, and about 2 blocks from Dudley Field.

From downtown: Follow Broadway (US 70S) west past I-40. When the road forks, take the right-hand fork, which becomes West End Ave. The VU campus will be on your left, Centennial Park on your right.

From the airport/Opryland area: Follow I-40 west to Broadway/West End Ave. (Exit 209). Stay straight at the light and go 1/2 mile to Broadway. Turn left onto Broadway (signs will direct you towards Vanderbilt.) From there, follow directions from downtown.

Getting in:

As of early Tuesday morning, tickets were still available from the Vanderbilt ticket office web site at www.vucommodores.com/tickets.html or by calling 1-877-44-VANDY. The cost is $40 apiece, and either way a handling charge applies. Should the game sell out or you just want to try your luck on the open market, scalping is permissible under Tennessee law. That having been said, Alabama games at Dudley Field can be a tough ticket. There are surprisingly few sellers, and those that do have tickets can sometimes be stingy. Capacity is only 44,000, creating scarcity when a big name team comes to town, but the ’Dores draw so little interest, that most pros won’t bother.

Staying safe:

By and large, Vanderbilt people are classy supporters who seem to have a special respect for Alabama. They have a few jerks in the ranks like anyone else, but less than most schools. Nashville is a relatively safe city, and Vandy is located in one of the better sections of town. Still, basic common sense is required, and you would be well advised to stow any magnets, car flags, etc.

Food and lodging:

There are plenty of hotel choices, and Nashville is large enough to absorb a gameday crowd without much strain. The most crowded options will be closest to campus in the West End/21st Ave S. area, and the downtown district (along Broadway/2nd Ave N.) always attracts plenty of tourists. If hotels next to campus are booked, there are plenty of options downtown, east of town near the airport, in the northeast part of town near Opryland, and in the southern suburbs of Franklin and Brentwood, which are just off I-65.

Again, restaurants near campus will have the heaviest traffic on gameday, especially local favorites such as Rio Bravo and Logan’s Roadhouse. Pretty much all the national chains have set up shop somewhere in the city, including tourist havens Hard Rock Cafe and Planet Hollywood (both on Broadway) and there are a few hometown standouts as well.

Demos: Corner of Commerce and 2nd Ave - downtown. Located right next to a parking garage, Demos serves some of the finest pasta dishes in the South at very reasonable prices. Steaks and seafood also well regarded here. Popular for dinner, less crowded at Saturday lunch and mid-afternoons.

Elliston Place Soda Shop: Elliston Place - just northwest of campus. A tricky place to find in a tangle of one-way streets (from West End take 20th St. N. to Church St. and turn left) this 50’s throwback in a pleasant student commercial district is a weekdays-only lunch joint that serves great meat-and-threes (translation: Southern cooking) and wonderful milkshakes. If you come to town early Friday, definitely worth visiting.

San Antonio Taco Company: 21st Ave. S. - near campus. A favorite cheap-eats and beer haunt for Vandy students, this is one of the best places to soak up campus atmosphere. Nashvillians either love or hate the tacos, fajitas, etc., but I’ve always found them to be tasty, if not gourmet. If you want the Tex-Mex without the college atmosphere, there is a downtown location on Commerce Ave.

Links to other Nashville & Vanderbilt information:  TIDEFANS.COM BAMA @ VANDY GAMEDAY GUIDE™

Discuss This Article on the Football Message Board

By Jess Nicholas
Editor-in-Chief, TideFans.com

Discuss This Article on the Football Message Board

Last week: 9-2* (81.8%)
Season: 9-2* (81.8%)

*=does not include Mississippi State game, played post-press time on Mon. Sept. 3

Last week was a fair opening week for the Predictions Dept., although I should have gone with my gut feeling in the VU-MTSU tilt. This week, things get a little dicier; four intra-SEC contests dot the docket, while Kentucky and Ball State meet in a game that could be the closest of any.

[Click on the team name to read our preseason previews]

TENNESSEE at ARKANSAS

If you are an Arkansas fan, I extend my condolences. The Hogs’ opening foray into the 2001 football season recalled John Belushi’s speech to his fraternity brothers in Animal House, punctuated by the infamous Germans-bombing-Pearl-Harbor reference. To describe Arkansas as looking inept would be a disservice to the concept of ineptitude; rather, Arkansas looked emasculated. Tennessee crushed a tired Syracuse team late, and there is no evidence that Arkansas is any better. If Ryan Sorahan can come through at quarterback, Arkansas might be able to improve later in the season, but this contest with Tennessee comes at decidedly the wrong time for the struggling Hogs.

ALABAMA at VANDERBILT

See our extended preview later this week!

MISSISSIPPI at AUBURN

As expected, Ole Miss rolled against Murray State, but Auburn bettered expectations by shutting out a veteran Ball State team. That sets up TubberBowl III, a game which Ole Miss always seems to get up for. Ole Miss should have won last year’s contest, but head coach David Cutcliffe inexplicably decided to put the game in the hands of then-QB Romaro Miller rather than running back Deuce McAllister, who had been much more effective. This year, Auburn appears to still be a strong team, while Ole Miss has some rebuilding work to do. Also, the game is in Jordan-Hare rather than Vaught-Hemingway. The Rebel defense will decide this game; if they can contain Auburn, they have a chance. If they cannot, a blowout is not out of the question.

SOUTH CAROLINA at GEORGIA

Definitely the most interesting SEC tilt this week, the Gamecocks travel to Athens to face a Bulldog team bent on revenge. It was the loss to South Carolina in 2000 that sent the wheels in motion that would eventually lead not only to the emergence of the Gamecock program, but the firing of Georgia head coach Jim Donnan. New coach Mark Richt had an impressive debut against Arkansas State, but South Carolina is significantly better than ASU. South Carolina won convincingly over a good Boise State team in the first week. Although this game is on the road, and Georgia is thinking payback, I’ll go with the Gamecocks.

LOUISIANA-MONROE at FLORIDA

Why bother?

BALL STATE at KENTUCKY

Now here’s an interesting game. Ball State was supposed to play Auburn fairly close, but got snuffed. Kentucky looked mistake-prone against rival Louisville. The most interesting aspect of this game is that Ball State is also known as the Cardinals and their uniforms are nearly identical to Louisville’s. Will that make Kentucky see red (literally) and play for revenge, or will it send the Wildcats running in fright? Tune in at game time to see, but I’m betting Kentucky manages to eke out a whimper of pride before facing rival Indiana and then the gauntlet of SEC play. Prediction for best sign hanging from the Kentucky student section: "Enough with the Cardinals, already." Prediction for Ball State: Close, but no cigar.

UTAH STATE at LOUISIANA STATE

Look at it this way – it’s a schedule upgrade over the 2000 season’s Western Carolina. There’s really not much else to say about this game other than "Please pass the crawfish."

IDLE: Mississippi St.

Disclaimer: This is not an official University of Alabama document. In addition, thirteen offensive positions are listed. Alabama frequently employs three- and four-wide receiver sets, and lists four wide receiver positions as a result.

--COACH FRAN, on coming back after the loss:
"We came back on Sunday and the guys had a good workout. We got through the film. Gradewise, we need to grade a little bit better across the board I think. But we came back, bounced back, had a good workout."

--QB TYLER WATTS, on the QB secret:
"It's been about a couple of weeks, but he wanted us to keep it quiet, because we wanted to have that edge on UCLA. And we did. We kept it quiet."

--COACH FRAN, on the starting QB:
"We have a starting quarterback his name is Tyler Watts. I think his performance merits that. Andrew did a nice job when he came in at the end. He played three plays, avoided the rush, got out of the pocket and made something happen. That's a tribute to Andrew, and he got chinned pretty good after he threw that ball."

--VANDERBILT COACH WOODY WIDENHOFER, on Alabama's Offense:
''What I am concerned about is them adding to what they did. [Franchione] has had a chance to evaluate some of the things they did against UCLA. I think we will see some new wrinkles.''

--RB AHMAAD GALLOWAY, on the possibility of new wrinkles:
''We have a lot [of offense] put in. 'We have a lot more than what happened [in the UCLA game]. You go in the game with different packages. We've got a lot of plays."