Alabama now deserves to be ranked

By Marc Hudgens  |   Monday, September 03, 2007  |  Comments( 10 )

Alabama Crimson Tide
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The Alabama Crimson Tide showed significant improvement from a year ago, and now they need to be looked at by the pollsters.

It was in an earlier Alabama article on this very site that this writer stated: "If Alabama annihilates Western Carolina, then putting the team in the top 25 would be reasonable. Especially if it's a shutout, because that will demonstrate immediate defensive progression."

Well, a shutout didn't happen. But Alabama did annihilate Western Carolina, 52-6, in Bryant-Denny Stadium this past Saturday.

Although it wasn't a shutout, the Catamounts did not score one touchdown the entire game. Furthermore, outside of the 'Mounts' two field goals. the farthest they drove down the field was to the Alabama 44-yard line, in the first quarter. The Tide defenders responded by pushing them back and literally ripping or knocking players' helmets off while doing it. It was a vicious display of a motivated defensive squad.

Throw in the fact that star linebacker Prince Hall and nose guard Brian Motley didn't play, and that's indicative of some serious defensive improvement.

Offensively, Alabama totaled 264 passing yards off 25 tosses and one touchdown (over 10 yards a pass) and scampered a whopping 313 ground yards on 33 carries (almost 10 yards a touch) with a mind-boggling five rushing touchdowns.

Yeah, WCU is a cupcake. But so are Florida International and Duke, and the Tide had problems winning those games last year. This season, the Tide completely dominated on both sides of the ball.

"My thing with the team was it's not really who you play, it's how you play," said new head coach Nick Saban.

Look at it this way: Alabama did far better against its cupcake opponent than the revered and top-ranked USC Trojans did against theirs. And unlike the Trojan game, there wasn't any booing by 'Bama fans directed toward their team.

It'll be difficult nonetheless to get the Tide into the top 25. Only two ranked teams lost -- Tennessee and Michigan, of course -- so there's not going to be a lot of backsliding in the polls from an overall standpoint. However, if 19th-ranked Florida State falls to Clemson on Labor Day evening, that may open up a spot for the Tide. Should the Seminoles lose that game, chances are they'll fall out of the polls, which would open up a spot for a newcomer.

Unfortunately for Tide fans, alongside Alabama are others that have made their case for a spot in the top 25. Georgia Tech upset Notre Dame in South Bend, Missouri beat Illinois, and Miami put a hurtin' on Marshall in Coral Gables. It would take Michigan, Tennessee and Florida State (assuming a loss) to fall completely out of the polls for 'Bama to have a chance at getting in.

Although Alabama deserves to break in when the revised polls come out, chances are, unfortunately, it won't happen because of the situation above. However, if the team does beat Vanderbilt (which just slaughtered Richmond, 41-17) in Nashville next week, it does deserve some love from the pollsters.

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About Marc Hudgens

Marc Hudgens has been with RealFootball365 since 2007, covering college football, specifically Clemson and Oregon. He also writes for SouthernPigskin.com covering the ACC. He enjoys the acidic wit of Hunter S. Thompson, is a freelance graphic designer and has written several screenplays. He...
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