Sugar Bowl / Post Season

Tide Fans –

I would like to first apologize for the lengthy delay in getting this post out. After the Sugar Bowl, I honestly didn’t even want to write anything. After some time to cool off and reflect, I decided that I owed it to everyone to send out one last post for the season!

Several things have happened since the powerful display of Alabama football at the Sugar Bowl. We found out Andre Smith was going pro officially (shocker), and also just today found out that Glenn Coffee will declare for the NFL draft. I died a little inside when I heard about Coffee. I am going to miss him dearly, and really wish we had him for one more year! I didn’t even get to say goodbye to him….dang! Thank you Glenn…thank you for all your explosive powerful runs and for all of your interviews about “running for Jesus”…I truly will miss those! Whatever NFL team that you play for, I will consider myself a fan of – just like I do with Leron McClain!

I like many of you also had to watch the freaking Florida Gaytors win a national championship last night. The sight of Tim Tebow flailing him arms in the air getting his fans to cheer makes my physically ill. Tebow……please! I really hope we get one more shot at him next year…there is some unfinished business!

Well, the season is finally over. The 2008 version of The Alabama Crimson Tide went 12-2! It did not end like we wanted it, but we all have to be happy with this season – really happy! I thought I was being overzealous with my 9 to 10 win prediction in my pre season blog. We ended several streaks…the most important being the 36-0 shellacking of Auburn. We even played a role in getting ‘ol Fat Phil, Sly Croom, Tommy Bowden, and Tubby fired….haaaaaaaa! What a great year to purge some of our old nemesis coaches – I love it. So many awesome things took place this season starting with the opening game against Clemson. After that game we knew this was a special team, and they proved it all season long. How fun was it to watch us destroy Georgia in their stupid black jerseys and ruin their “blackout”. Watching The Tide dismantle Tennessee up in Knoxville was just as good. The overtime win in Baton Rouge…truly awesome! Capping it all off – the absolute annihilation of Tommy Tubberville and his little tigers!! What an incredible year…we played over our heads all season long, and I am very proud of what this team accomplished. We have some big gaps to fill next season, but we are starting to use the term “reload” instead of “rebuild” and that is very comforting. Thank you Coach Saban for all that you have done so far for our program!

I cannot wait for the future, and what it holds for our Tide. Who will be quarterback next season? Will it be the playbook knowledgeable “Texas Gunslinger” Greg McElroy, or will it be the super talented inexperienced Star Jackson? One thing I do know, is that Nick Saban will play the best one, and I am fine with that – whoever it is! We have a schedule that should lend to many victories next season, so I hope we make the most of it! I believe our toughest game will be the opening one against Virginia Tech in Atlanta. We owe them one for the 1998 Music City Bowl!

I hope everyone has a wonderful off season – I know there are many wives that are glad it is here, so they don’t lose their husbands for the weekend. I look forward to another incredible season of Alabama Football, and until the 2009 Pre-Season Tide Weekly Analysis…Roll Tide!

Jason