Crimson and Coffee: Potential Dancing Partners, Spring Football Kicks Off

For the first time in 15 years, Alabama has been invited to the NCAA Tournament in consecutive years. The Tide was awarded a Sixth Seed and will play on Friday at approximately 3:15 CT in San Diego, CA. Alabama will play the winner of a First Four matchup between 11 Notre Dame and 11 Rutgers. They will play each other Wednesday evening in Dayton, OH.

Those with half-full glasses of liquid will point out that it’s a quick turnaround for the ND-Rutgers winner. A late night cross-country flight in the wee hours is an advantage for already-in-San Diego-touring-Sea-World Crimson Tide. On the other hand, the glass half-empty crowd will point to scout time deficiency. Alabama is watching and planning for both Notre Dame AND Rutgers until Wednesday After Dark. Who is Notre Dame and Rutgers? Read below.

Notre Dame

The Irish have notched several good wins, headlined by a win over Kentucky. In terms of notable games over the course of the season, they lost to Saint Mary’s in a tight one, they lost to the SEC’s Texas A&M and Illinois. They beat Kentucky way back on December 11th, then followed up that big win by losing to Indiana. That said, the Irish also took down North Carolina and Virginia. They lost to Duke. (57-43?) They lost their opening ACC Tournament matchup to Virginia Tech.

Much like Alabama, the Irish didn’t finish strong. They lost 2 of their last 3 and 3 of their last 6. Mike Brey’s team is led by Blake Wesley who scores 15 per game, while dishing out 3 assists. They sport four players in double figures and have just a 7-man primary rotation. The Irish score 73 points per contest.

Rutgers

This team will be like looking in a mirror for the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Scarlet Knights have racked some highly impressive pelts … while also losing to some real headscratchers. Sound familiar? Rutgers has lost to DePaul, Lafayette, UMass, Nebraska and Northwestern. Yet, they have also beaten Purdue, Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois all of whom were ranked at the time Rutgers took them down.

Ron Harper, Jr. averages 16 points per game to lead Rutgers and yes, he’s the son of that Ron Harper. He will be the second son of a former Chicago Bull that Alabama has faced. They feature only 3 players in double figures but have 12 players who play 6 minutes or more per contest. This is one of the nation’s toughest teams defensively. The Knights average just 68 points per contest despite their impressive record. They get it done on D.

At this writing, the game is a Pick ‘Em per the betting odds. The Athletic notes that early money has come in on the Irish. Which matchup is best for Alabama? I would say it’s the Golden Domers. They shoot three’s and run the floor (like Alabama) while Rutgers plods more and is fierce defensively. I like Bama running with ND more than fighting for buckets against Rutgers. ND is only 2-6 versus Quad 1 teams. Rutgers is 6-6.

Spring Football Practice

Last Friday, the 2022 Alabama Football Crimson Tide hit the practice field for the very first time. The Tide was missing three players. Coach Nick Saban announced that WR Ja’Corey Brooks, OLB Keanu Koht and C Darrian Dalcourt will be out for the Spring, recovering from injuries.

Koht was expected to provide depth behind returning starters Will Anderson and Dallas Turner. While he could use the reps and development time, his loss won’t be hugely impactful. However, Brooks was expected to be a major factor in the race for a starting wide receiver position. He will have to play catch-up now in fall camp. Dalcourt was going to battle Seth McLaughlin for the starting center job, now Seth will have an early leg up in that race.

Alabama’s players are enjoying Spring Break this week. This afternoon on the BCS Message Board, we will breakdown the practice video from last Friday, which was provided by the UA Athletic Department. We will break it down, frame by frame, as if we were Oliver Stone analyzing the Zapruder film. (JFK reference, google it)

Tide Baseball, Softball

Alabama Baseball swept Binghamton at home this weekend. Impressive three game stretch for Bama. Conference play starts next weekend. UA will welcome the Florida Gators to the Joe for three.

Alabama Softball finally lost. Twice! Down in Baton Rouge, the Tide softball bunch lost 2 of 3 to LSU. After winning their first TWENTY GAMES, Bama lost the first 2 in Baton Rouge. Until I learn differently, I am calling shenanigans.