Alabama Crimson Tide news and notes from October 1st and 2nd.
Diego Pavia provides Alabama with more bulletin board material
Diego Pavia and Vanderbilt are a confident bunch. They won't be intimidated by playing in Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday, and are coming to Tuscaloosa expecting to win the football game.
That confidence comes from Pavia, who has infected that locker room. His comments this week on the game should have Alabama fans even more laser-focused:
"The crowd, I think, is going to be a big factor in the game," Pavia said. "But we just gotta play within the white lines. If we do that, if we play our game, it won't be close."
Florida State's Tommy Castellanos talked similar trash and got away with it. Hopefully Alabama's defense will get the last laugh this time.
Bill Connelly ranks Ty Simpson as nation's 8th best QB
Perhaps no player in the country has flipped the narrative quicker this season than Ty Simpson, which is emblematic of how fast the narrative has flipped on Alabama as a whole.
After struggling in the season opener against Florida State, no quarterback in the country has been more dialed in since. Simpson lit up UL Monroe and Wisconsin, and then led the Crimson Tide to 24 first-half points against Georgia.
Per ESPN's Bill Connelly, that's good enough to rank Simpson as the No. 8 QB in the nation currently. Even that feels too low now.
Kalen DeBoer believes Alabama's run game is 'close'
Credit to Ryan Grubb for being stubborn trying to run the football against Georgia, but Alabama turned 38 rushing attempts into just 3.1 yards per carry. It paid off some down the stretch, however, with a couple of solid runs by Jam Miller on the game's final drive that helped put the game away.
DeBoer feels like Alabama's run game is "close" to breaking out:
"We were close," DeBoer said on 'Hey Coach.' "I feel like we were closer to hitting some runs, just kind of being, even the running back, being in sync. Felt like we were closer this last week than we probably showed, and just got to stick to stay the course and keep working.”
ESPN's FPI and SP+ predict Alabama and Vanderbilt to be close
Prepare yourselves for a close football game this weekend. This ain't your daddy's Vanderbilt.
ESPN's FPI likes Alabama to win by 6.8 points. SP+ predicts Alabama to win 29-27. As of Thursday evening, Alabama remained a 10.5-point favorite on FanDuel.
College GameDay picks Theo Von as the guest picker in Tuscaloosa
Disappointing guest picker choices are pretty much a yearly tradition for College GameDay in Tuscaloosa. Every other school gets guest pickers who are at least somewhat related to the program that is hosting GameDay. Not Alabama.
Alabama gets guys like Theo Von, who is not only not at all connected to the University of Alabama, but is actually a Nashville resident who has attended Vanderbilt practice this year, and his friends with Diego Pavia. Because of course.
Rece Davis and Nick Saban both released videos urging Alabama fans to show up because the College GameDay environment in Tuscaloosa is typically tame compared to other places. This is why. Because GameDay constantly spits in the face of Alabama fans with decisions like this.
Nate Oats hosting another 5-star visitor
In what is becoming a weekly tradition, Nate Oats and Alabama basketball are hosting yet another blue-chip 2026 prospect.
This weekend, 5-star wing Qayden Samuels from Maryland will be in town on a visit. Samuels is the ninth blue-chip prospect and the fifth 5-star to visit Alabama over the last month.