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Razorback Cartoons from their days in the Southwest Conference

I am guessing that Arkansas fans have quite a bit of nostalgia for those days. During that era the hogs won 13 conference championships and a national title.

Since moving to the SEC they have won zero conference championships and no national titles.

Ouch.

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Even After Winning National Title, Cloud Still Hangs Over Auburn

Remember when the Auburn Tigers were the Chicago Cubs of college football? Lovable when they lost and tortured when they won. In 2004 it appeared Auburn might have the nation's best team, finishing 14-0. Yet the Tigers were denied a shot at playing for the BCS title because USC and Oklahoma started the season Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, and neither lost (Auburn started at No. 17). Auburn fans were blue after finishing No. 2, but finally shrugged it off after a good cry, realizing this always happens when you haven't won a title since 1957.

Auburn's tough luck and woe is what made college football's favorite little brother so lovable. Most followers of a school are simply called fans. These folks demand to be called "the Auburn family.'' Then a strange thing happened. The school's luck started to change with juco transfers Cam Newton and Nick Fairley. Some 14 games later, Auburn won the national title and Newton was the runaway winner of the Heisman Trophy. All was right. Or so we thought. In the days immediately following Auburn's 22-19 victory over Oregon in the national title game, the jokes began. 

Famous sports artist Daniel Moore has been commissioned to do a national championship picture for Auburn. He's doing it on pencil in case it has to be erased.

(Read More)

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Let's Review Why This Was A Terrible Thing To Do

1. Over 346 people died in the April tornado outbreaks this year not to mention the homes, businesses and cities that were destroyed. That is hardly something to joke about. This is just football, some lines you just don't cross and this is one of them.

2. The player pictured as a deadly tornado is Arkansas wide receiver Joe Adams who has 198 yards receiving and 1 touchdown. This puts him as the 78th ranked wideout in the nation - hardly anything to write home about.

3. I hope Nick Saban finds this and prints enough copies to hang in every Crimson Tide player's locker this week. Because while I can't take out the physical anger that I have about this image - Courtney Upshaw, Dont'a Hightower and Mark Barron can.

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How I Feel The SEC Is Behaving Lately

Do I really look like an organization with a plan?  You know what I am?  I'm a dawg chasing recruits. I wouldn't know what to do with one if I caught it.  You know, I just... do things. The NCAA has plans, the BCS has plans, Slive's got plans. You know, they're schemers. Schemers trying to control their little sport. I'm not a schemer. I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control things really are. So, when I say that you and your conference was nothing personal, you know that I'm telling the truth. It's the schemers that put you where you are. You were a schemer, you had plans, and look where that got you. I just did what I do best. I took your little plan and I turned it on itself. Look what I did to this season with a few scandals and a couple of invitations. Hmmm? You know... You know what I've noticed? Nobody panics when things go according to plan. Even if the plan is horrifying! If, tomorrow, I tell the press that, like, Boise State will continue to play one of the easiest schedules in the country and still complain about national respect, nobody panics, because it's all part of the plan. But when I say that one little ol' conference might die, well then everyone loses their minds! Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I'm an agent of chaos. Oh, and you know the thing about chaos? It's profitable!

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The Luck of Horry Came With a Price

Robert Horry was lucky. Everyone saw it. He kept moving from Hall of Fame big man to Hall of Fame big man, until he had won more championships than anyone except for the 1960s Boston Celtics.

Dirk Nowitzki is six rings behind him. LeBron James is seven.

But that’s just what everyone saw. In his private life, Horry faced the kind of misfortune that makes people ask, “Why me?” Along the way, he learned about sorrow, and he learned about what mattered.No one would call this luck — but maybe this impacted his NBA career more than anything.

This week should remind everyone of the frailties of the rich and tall. There will be a memorial service today for another former Spur, Mike Mitchell, who passed away at the age of 55. And Horry’s 17-year-old daughter, Ashlyn, died Tuesday after a lifelong struggle with a rare genetic condition.

(Read More) 

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One Good Reason To Watch The US Open

The first event as a professional golfer for former University of Alabama star Bud Cauley begins today at the U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland. In his three seasons at the capstone he has been a three-time All-American, including first team this year, won four college tournaments, played for the U.S. in the 2009 Walker Cup, and finished with a school-record 71.39 career stroke average.

He is currently tied with seven other players and only one stroke off the leader through seven holes, pretty amazing stuff. I will update as the day goes along.

Good luck Bud, everyone back in Alabama will be cheering for you.

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An Open Letter to Canucks Fans from an Alabama Fan:

You should be ashamed of yourselves. What happened last night is embarrassing for your team, your city, your country,the NHL and most importantly sports as a whole. The amazing thing about sports is the range of emotions you can feel over a simple game. Losing is a part of that, and if you can't handle the lows than there is no reason you should enjoy the privileges of a championship high. Sports has as many interesting story lines as any great novel but instead of showing the world humility, sportsmanship and civic pride you chose to display bitterness, immaturity and spite.

As an Alabama fan, I am on one side of what many would say is the most out of control and heated rivalries in all of sports. Last year on November 26th, I stood in Bryant-Denny stadium as my Crimson Tide took on the Tigers of Auburn and watched as a seemingly insurmountable lead disappeared right in front of our eyes. When the dust settled we had lost in the most tragic fashion I had ever seen 28-27. In the decades that I have been a fan, it was the single most painful game I had ever experienced.

So what did I do? Did I start throwing things on the field, did I start running through the streets to the quad, did I throw a trashcan through the glass at The Houndstooth. No. I gathered my things with a tear in my eye and left in silence. That is what responsible fans do.

You may not have won the Stanley Cup last night but what you did do is make Auburn and Alabama fans look cordial and polite, which is really something.

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Bama Rising Benefit Tonight in Birmingham

At the BJCC Arena tonight artist from across the country will join together to raise money to help survivors of the April 27th tornadoes that struck across Alabama.  Artists include Rodney Atkins, Dierks Bentley, Bo Bice, Luke Bryan, Sheryl Crow, Sara Evans, Taylor Hicks, Little Big Town, Martina McBride, Montgomery Gentry, David Nail, Jake Owen, Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler, Darius Rucker, Ashton Shepherd and the band Alabama. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. and I would say go grab you a ticket but they sold out 52 minutes after going on sale. However if you have the means there are still a very limited number of $1,000 VIP passes available online.

I will be in attendance tonight and while I do not enjoy country music, I do enjoy supporting the recovery of this state so there you go. If I had been in charge of the concert lineup I would've had Nick Saban with giant eagles wings,  singing lead vocals for Lynyrd Skynyrd with like an angel band and I would be in the front row with Kenny Stabler just trying to keep up. But hey that's just me.

Recover, Rebuild, Rolltide.

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Flags, Seals, and Coat of Arms of Alabama (1941)

Click here or on the cover above to view all 31 pages of this pamphlet from the Birmingham Public Library Digital Collections. The booklet includes several artistic depictions of the symbols and flags of Alabama as well as the countries it has been a part of.

Happy Flag Day Everyone! 

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Alabama Basketball Schedule Beginning To Take Shape

It has not been officially confirmed by the University but Oklahoma State's basketball coach is quoted saying that they will be playing a game against the Crimson Tide in Birmingham during the 2011 season. 

This is looking to be a grueling and impressive out of conference lineup that includes a game at Dayton, a semi-neutral site game against Georgia Tech at Phillips Arena, home game against Georgetown, a semi-neutral site game with Oklahoma State in Birmingham, and a slot in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off  with Colorado, Iona, Maryland, Purdue, Temple, Western Michigan and Wichita State.

With a schedule like this and some quality wins, we shouldn't have to worry about a repeat of what happened last selection Sunday.

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College Yell and School Colors, Corolla Yearbook 1893, Page 2

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Beloved storyteller Kathryn Tucker Windham dies at 93

Kathryn Tucker Windham, prolific journalist, photographer and storyteller whose books on Alabama ghosts became a rite of passage for children in the state, died at her home in Selma Sunday. She was 93.

She died peacefully shortly before 5 p.m. after months of failing health surrounded by friends and family, said son Ben Windham Jr., former managing editor and editorial page editor for The Tuscaloosa News.

Plans for a memorial service were pending Sunday night, he said.

Windham wrote two dozen books, many of them ghost stories, including Jeffrey, who Windham said lived in her house. In 1940, she went to work for the Alabama Journal in Montgomery and was one of the first female reporters to cover the police beat on a major daily newspaper in the South.

(Read More)

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Alabama's Experiment with the Head Coach In Waiting

Last week, the practice of a school naming a head-coach-in-waiting was dealt a possibly fatal blow with the career implosion of West Virginia's Bill Stewart. The effort to keep the Mountaineers head coach on the sidelines one additional year while his successor waited in the wings crumbled spectacularly in Morgantown. The debacle lead to the questioning of the advisability of relying on the practice given it's recent popularity and woeful ensuing track record.

Interestingly, Alabama experimented with it's own version of the coach-in-waiting more than 80 years ago and, for all intents and purposes, it was a smashing success.

(Read More)

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FEMA Rejections Vex April Storm Victims

The tornado turned Jonathan Stewart's house into a pile of rubble on April 27, nothing but bricks and debris scattered ovei a concrete slab.

Days later, an inspector from the Federal Emergency Management Agency came to Stewart's address in Pleasant Grove, and took some notes and pictures. Three days later, Stewart received a letter stating he didn't qualify for a FEMA grant. One of the reasons: Insufficient damage.

"Based on your FEMA inspection, we have determined that the disaster has not caused your home to be unsafe to live in"

(Read More)

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Early Vegas Odds Have Alabama Favored in Every Game

The handicappers out west have released their very early betting lines for this coming college football season. The Crimson Tide is favored to win in every game by at least a touchdown. Here are the lines for the major games:

Alabama at Penn State: -9

Alabama vs Arkansas: -11

Alabama at Florida: -6

Alabama vs Tennessee: -21

Alabama vs LSU: -9

Alabama at Mississippi State: -7

Alabama at Auburn: -8

From my experience, Alabama is absolutely terrible at covering the spread. We will see how these change over the course of the season and how the team does, but its good to know that those that make a living of sports prognosticating have confidence in the team.

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Patrick Murphy couldn't even stand LSU for the Weekend

Last thursday long time Crimson Tide softball coach Patrick Murphy accepted a deal to bring his talents to Baton Rogue. On Friday he was introduced as the new softball coach for the Tigers. Yesterday he backed out of his new gig and expressed the desire to return to Alabama and get his old job back saying, "LSU offered me a great opportunity, but I realized once I got there that I had made a mistake that had nothing to do with LSU. I realized that I belong at Alabama. Alabama is where my heart is and I cannot in good conscience try to do a job in which I am not totally committed beyond any doubt."

So what could have happened between Friday and Sunday to make him decide to take a screeching U-turn back to Tuscaloosa? Well we have a few theories:

Les Miles force feeding him grass from Tiger Park

Distinctive odor in the air around Baton Rogue that reminds you of meat by-products sausage fried in a crispy cornmeal batter

Cast of Swamp People were his assistant coaches

He was subjected to talking to James Carville for 10 minutes

As a result of a alcohol induced fraternity prank he was locked in a cage with Mike the Tiger

Whatever the reason Coach, we are happy to have you back. First Nick Saban and now Patrick Murphy. LSU let us know if you get any other good coaches, we will be happy to take them off your hands.

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Softball Head Coach Patrick Murphy Leaves Bama for LSU

I don't think that I am alone in saying that I did not see this coming. Coach Murphy over 13 years at The Capstone has over 700 victories, seven Women's College World Series appearances, six SEC Championships, and has built the Crimson Tide into a national softball power.

Murphy was approached by LSU and offered a salary of $200,000 a year, making him the highest paid coach in college softball. Alabama immediately matched this offer, effectively giving him a $60,000 raise from what he is currently receiving from the university. He still walked. His reason for this seemingly lateral move is that he would be taking over for the first head coach he worked for and his mentor Yvette Girouard, who is a legend in the softball world.

The thing I don't understand is, where is the allegiance to LSU. Murphy and Girouard worked together from 1990 - 1994 at University of Southwestern Louisiana but never even coached together at LSU. She took both USL and LSU to the Women's College World Series so there isn't any kind of "finishing what she started" cause either. He has a great program built at Alabama, there was really no reason to leave.

The reasons really aren't important though, Patrick Murphy built Alabama softball from the ground up and should be applauded for it. He has left us with a great program that with the right coaching selection shouldn't miss a beat. 

Kelly Kretschman had this to say about the situation, "I just hope the players and recruits coming in still want to come because Alabama softball is about all the great players who have played there and all the great tradition the program has built. Murphy has never worn the uniform, he's never swung a bat, he's never worn a glove. Alabama softball will still be there without him."

Couldn't have said it better myself, Roll Tide.