5 Stories From Around College Football: Hog Edition

John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Alabama is 16-7 all time against the Hogs. Today, should give the Tide a comfortable 10 game lead in the series, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There is a lot of time before the 6PM kick off. As we get ready for the 24th meeting between the Crimson Tide and the Arkansas Razorbacks, here’s a few stories to peruse while the hog is roasting for the tailgate.

CBS host Tim Brando ranks Alabama 7th, picks Louisville to win national title

You have to ride the way back machine to August 11 for this one but I think it is my favorite story of the day. In August, Tim Brando picked Alabama No. 7 and said Louisville of the AAC (that’s the American Athletic Conference) would win the national title. Ever the champion of the lost cause, Brando ranked the Cardinals No. 1 despite a weak schedule in a weak conference. Considered by many to be the Boise State of the Eastern U.S., Louisville lost to UCF last night. For those of you who don’t know, that is the University of Central Florida. I like watching UCF football. George O’Leary has a fine program in Orlando. I liked them even more last night. To be fair, I like Louisville’s history too (Johnny Unitas played there and Howard Schnellenberger coached there) but I get a chuckle when Tim Brando is wrong. I laugh a lot.

Katherine Webb Makes AJ Crave Hardee’s

In the past couple of weeks, government has shut down, WWII vets have stormed their memorial, and Obamacare has caused millions of people to come to grips with skyrocketing insurance prices. While the government was busy riding to our rescue from a crisis it created, our short attention span society was treated to a bit of local celebrity gossip. Yes, you can all relax, AJ and Katherine are still dating. We are happy for them. They make an attractive couple, but McCarron says in this story that they prefer to keep their private lives private. Best of luck to them.

Here’s a story about Miss Webb’s commercial for Hardee’s/Carl’s Jr. It would make me want a burger too. Then again, waking up in the morning does that. Just for fun, I also like the Kate Upton version too.

HaHa Clinton-Dix Reinstated

As expected by everyone not living in a trailer in suburban Opelika, Alabama Safety HaHa Clinton-Dix was reinstated yesterday afternoon by the NCAA. Clinton-Dix served a two game suspension for borrowing money from an assistant strength coach after several personal items were stolen from his car. It was wrong to borrow money from a staff member and it was clearly something the assistant coach knew was a bad idea. The UA compliance staff is top notch and took the correct action in suspending the player and putting the staff member on leave while the details were sorted out.

Oregon Students Selling “We Want Bama” Shirts

My grandmother used to say, “be careful what you ask for.” My grandmother, as far as I know, never went to Oregon. An entrepreneurial  group of  students have started selling “We Want Bama” t-shirts on the Oregon campus. Best of luck to the students and their endeavor. No matter what you think about a team with more costume changes than Siegfried and Roy, Alabama fans should be flattered that Oregon has set their goal to meet the Crimson Tide. Nobody outside of Washington DC ever sets their goal to achieve mediocrity. If you want to be the best, champions set their sights on the best. Right now, Alabama is the best. If the Fighting Donald Ducks make it to the final BCS game to face the Tide—Stanford and UCLA may have a bit to say about that quest— they may get their wish and it might not work out well for them. We wish them the best this season and, just for fun, here’s a photo gallery of Oregon Cheerleaders because, well just because.

Alabama OG Steen Finally Getting Notice

A lot has changed since the season opener against Virginia Tech. Despite a 25 point victory, fans worried that the young line was not creating holes for the running back fleet and they were not giving AJ enough time to find his favorite receivers. Things have settled since then and the line appears to have grown together over the first half of the season. There is always room to improve in every area of the game, but here is a nice story about OG Anthony Steen, who is emerging as a team leader this season.

Thanks for reading Bama Hammer. It’s game day. I will be roasting a hog (yes, literally) for my tailgate and will likely have a Bacon Bloody Mary, as usual, downtown. Follow me on Twitter for photo updates and tweet back with your own game day updates. We might just be within shouting distance. If so, say “hello.”

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