Duke Football: Offseason & Spring Practice

[subzero02]

Last year's regular season for the Crimson Tide:

Alabama 51 - 14 Louisville
Alabama 57 - 7 Arkansas St.
Alabama 62 - 7 Ole Miss
Alabama 45- 23 Texas A&M (#9)
Alabama 56 - 14 Louisiana
Alabama 65-31 Arkansas
Alabama 39 -- 10 Missouri (#23)
Alabama 58-21 Tennessee
Alabama 29-0 LSU (#11)
Alabama 24- 0 Miss. St. (#18)
Alabama 50- 17 Citadel
Alabama 52-21 Auburn

+31.5 is not an insult. It's a realistic line that Alabama could well cover with room to spare.

Well, the last game that Bama played was a 44-16 humiliating defeat vs. a team that has to now be considered an out of conference rival. The players, coaches and fans will be out for blood. If the game gets out of hand early, I wouldn't plan on a showing of mercy. Saban is no where close to Spurrier in terms of running up the score but this game might serve as an exception.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Well, the last game that Bama played was a 44-16 humiliating defeat vs. a team that has to now be considered an out of conference rival. The players, coaches and fans will be out for blood. If the game gets out of hand early, I wouldn't plan on a showing of mercy. Saban is no where close to Spurrier in terms of running up the score but this game might serve as an exception.

...not sure I agree with this in bold....

[budwom]

Cut's an Alabama grad, Wallace Wade was a Bama guy too, I expect them to do what they did last time, which is play hard (and score a bunch) in the first half and then coast to victory and play a lot of guys in the second half.

[subzero02]

...not sure I agree with this in bold...

I know Kentucky alums would agree with me wholeheartedly. Spurrier has a streak in him that Saban doesn't; both want to dominate and both strive for perfection but Spurrier enjoys humiliating and taunting on a level that I haven't seen from any other coach in any other sport. Also, on more than one occasion I've seen him run scoring plays so that his squad would cover the spread when he could have allowed time to expire . I've lost money on Bama more than once because Saban refused to do the same. I know that Saban and Spurrier have completely different offensive philosophies but in most years under Saban, if Bama has a 6 touchdown lead, you will see them emphasize running the ball even more so than their run first offense already does. If they break a run for a touchdown or just methodically move the ball to the end zone, so be it. During Spurrier's years at Florida, running the ball was almost a despised but necessary part of the game plan. However, If he had a 6 touchdown lead, he'd still take home run swings at the end zone via the passing game. A passing game designed primarily to maintain possession of the ball and kill the clock was probably something Spurrier couldn't tolerate when he knew that he could score.

Obviously proving these observations quantitatively would take quite a bit of game by game and even play by play analysis.

1996: UF 65 - 0 UK
1995: UF 42 - 7 UK
1994: UF 73 - 7 UK

180 - 14

[OldPhiKap]

Cut's an Alabama grad, Wallace Wade was a Bama guy too, I expect them to do what they did last time, which is play hard (and score a bunch) in the first half and then coast to victory and play a lot of guys in the second half.

The street that runs along the western side of Bryant-Denny Stadium is “Wallace Wade Boulevard.”

Cut will have as as ready as we can be, and will have a game plan. So will Nick.

[Indoor66]

IRRC, there is a statue to Wade at Alabama as well as at Duke.

http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-2145

[HereBeforeCoachK]

IRRC, there is a statue to Wade at Alabama as well as at Duke.

http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-2145

And if Bama gets up 45 or so, this is what the announcers will talk about...

[dudog84]

Nice honor for our coach. Named to the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame, plus he gets to go in with Peyton:

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...tcliffe-lawson

[Bob Green]

Defensive line depth takes a hit:
‏

@AdamRoweTDD
5h5 hours ago

Rising Junior Defensive Tackle Axel Nyembwe is no longer with the @DukeFootball program, @TheDevilsDen has learned.

The roster at GoDuke.com has been updated and Nyembwe is not listed:

http://www.goduke.com/SportSelect.db...DB_OEM_ID=4200

[devildeac]

Defensive line depth takes a hit:
‏


The roster at GoDuke.com has been updated and Nyembwe is not listed:

http://www.goduke.com/SportSelect.db...DB_OEM_ID=4200

Makes me say, "Ha-Rumph."

(not good new, Bob, but thanks for sharing)

[Barnstormer]

How can we have 99 roster players? How many are on scholarship and how many are added in August?

[Bob Green]

How can we have 99 roster players? How many are on scholarship and how many are added in August?

Maximum roster size is 105 with scholarship players capped at 85.

[Acymetric]

Maximum roster size is 105 with scholarship players capped at 85.

I actually didn't realize that there was a maximum roster size.

[weezie]

Off topic but I ran into Zach Harmon at the Detroit airport yesterday.

What a handsome, pleasant and polite young man. A+ character!

[OldPhiKap]

What a handsome, pleasant and polite young man. A+ character!

Your order of observations speaks volumes, Weez.

[jimsumner]

Off topic but I ran into Zach Harmon at the Detroit airport yesterday.

What a handsome, pleasant and polite young man. A+ character!

I hope he wasn't run blocking when you ran into him.

[chrishoke]

NC State has voted to approve the sale of beer and wine at athletic events.

https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/...232498797.html

[devildeac]

NC State has voted to approve the sale of beer and wine at athletic events.

https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/...232498797.html

And, in other shocking news, The American Kennel Club reports that a Labrador Retriever is a breed of dogs.

Seriously, thanks for sharing.

[devildeac]

NC State has voted to approve the sale of beer and wine at athletic events.

https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/...232498797.html

Will the cheats follow with the sale of cheese and whines at their sports events?

[Indoor66]

Will the cheats follow with the sale of cheese and whines at their sports events?

I think they always have.

Boom.