Morning Kickoff: Crimson Tide News 12/28
By Chris Hale
Get your day started with the Morning Kickoff. All your Crimson Tide news in one place.
Aye Tide: The meaning behind ‘We Want Bama’
"As with so many grand ideas in college, this one was hatched in a bar. Late on a Saturday night, the two students were celebrating an Oregon victory with friends when the chant broke out:“We want Bama! We want Bama!’A few days later, Grant Otter and Harrison Tingler had a table set up on the Oregon campus. T-shirts — light green with bright yellow block lettering — were going for $10 each. And they were going fast.“It was only three words,” Otter says of the business venture, which was a brief hit 14 months ago, “but everyone understood what it meant.”Maybe that’s because in the past few years, it seems almost everyone in college football has chanted it. Or put it on a poster. Or like Otter and his friend, on a T-shirt. They did it last season, when they were seniors. But as the inaugural College Football Playoff nears, everyone still wants Bama."
This is a lot of what we already knew but USA Today takes a look at “We want Bama”. Yep, everyone wants the Tide and one will get them on Thursday.
Tide looks for redemption in Sugar Bowl
"Different year, different team and different motivation.The top-ranked Alabama football team hopes all that will change results in this year’s Sugar Bowl.Players have a different outlook toward Thursday’s game against No. 4 Ohio State than it did with its clash with Oklahoma last season.The Crimson Tide put forth a listless effort against the Sooners in that edition of the Sugar Bowl because of disappointment being in the game.“I think anytime you have a goal and you don’t accomplish it, you feel like it’s something you did wrong in the process of getting there, so we’re just trying to do everything right in the process of getting there,” receiver Amari Cooper said. “You can say we learned from it.”"
The stakes are a lot higher this year than they were last year. You can bet that Saban and crew will have them ready to roll on Thursday.
Johnny Manziel: For Ohio State to beat Alabama, it must respect, but not fear the Tide
"Beating Alabama changed Johnny Manziel’s life.Maybe no one is better qualified to offer advice on taking down the Crimson Tide than the Browns’ rookie, who all but locked up his Heisman Trophy in 2012 when he engineered Texas A&M’s 29-24 upset of Nick Saban’s No. 1 team in mid-November two seasons ago.How does a quarterback do it?“You absolutely give respect where it’s due,” Manziel told cleveland.com this week, “and they’re a program that has won numerous national championships and been at the top of the SEC.“You respect them, but you don’t fear them.”"
He also lost once so maybe he should give some advice on what happened during that game.
Buckeyes aren’t buying underdog label against Alabama
"Alabama isn’t the only great team in this College Football Playoff.Ohio State arrived in New Orlean believing it’s just as good as the top-seeded Crimson Tide (12-1) heading into the second College Football Playoff game Jan. 1 in the Sugar Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.“I think we’re evenly matched with Alabama,” Ohio State junior tight end Nick Vannett said. “It’s going to be a great show.”The Buckeyes (12-1) opened as 10-point underdogs to Alabama. They are now nine-to-9.5 point underdogs."
Well I mean, you are considered underdogs in Vegas. That doesn’t mean you don’t have a chance to win. However, you are underdogs going into the game. I don’t care how you look at it.
Men’s Basketball Returns to Action Sunday Night Against UCLA
"Following a week off for the Christmas holiday, the Alabama men’s basketball team will return to the hardwood when it welcomes the UCLA Bruins to Coleman Coliseum on Sunday night at 5:30 p.m.Sunday night’s contest will be televised on ESPNU, with Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play) and Darrin Horn (analyst) on the call. The game can also be heard on the Crimson Tide Sports Network, with Chris Stewart (play-by-play) and Bryan Passink (analyst) calling all the action."
Crimson Tide Welcomes Mississippi Valley State for Final Non-Conference Game
"The women’s basketball team (10-4) will play its final non-conference game of the season on Sunday when it hosts Mississippi Valley State (2-8) at Foster Auditorium. The contest is slated for a 2 p.m. CT tip off on SEC Network +.Sunday’s game will air on SEC Network + with Mick Gillispie (play-by-play) and former Crimson Tide head coach Rick Moody (analyst) on the call. The game can also be heard on the Crimson Tide Sports Network with Roger Hoover announcing the action."