The people's voice of reason
The people's voice of reason
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That will not change. He battled cancer for years, continuing to coach until he could not stand up. Pat Sullivan, dead at the age of 69. “The most charismatic name in Auburn football history.” That is what Coach “Shug” Jordan said about Pat Sullivan in 1971. There is no question that this was true in 1971 after Pat won the Heisman Trophy. It is also true today. Even after Bo Jackson and Cam Newton won the Heisman Trophy, Pat Sullivan is the name that Auburn people revere over any other. Why is...
In the April 2019 edition of the Alabama Gazette, the following article appeared... Ed Jones pre-season predictions...and, boy, were they on target! Take a minute to review what Jones said in April... ALABAMA There is no controversy this year in Tuscaloosa as to who the quarterback will be. Tua Tagovailoa will be at Alabama at least one more year. The runner up for the Heisman trophy is well entrenched as the Alabama quarterback for 2019. The real problem at quarterback is who will be Tua’s b...
As the last five weeks of the college football season unfolds, let’s look at my pre-season projections for 2019. My choice of Alabama, Oklahoma, Michigan and Clemson was looking good until Michigan lost its second game to Penn State 28-21 on October 26. Their chance of getting back is zero. Also there was quite a surprise on the same day when mediocre Kansas State beat Oklahoma 48-41. With one loss, Oklahoma can climb back into the top four by winning out, and by getting help from Ohio State a...
No other state in America has two football teams ranked in the top ten this year. Alabama has reclaimed number one as Clemson came within one play of losing to North Carolina on September 28th. At press time, Auburn is holding on to the number seven spot with a road trip to Gainesville staring them in the face. Florida is number eight and should be a slight favorite. Prior to the season, I wrote that Alabama would be favored in every game in 2019. I also wrote that Auburn would be underdogs in...
These 2019 projections are based on schedule difficulty, final regular season record and position that national polls will place each team at the end of the regular season. For the first time in 40 years of making these pre-season projections, there are no teams in the top 50 projected to finish 7-5. The reason seems to be that, this year, the schedule of the best teams are not as difficult as normal. You can contact me after the season to criticize or congratulate. I have experienced both. 1....
Auburn is heading into the seventh season under Coach Gus Malzahn. Over the last six years, no coach in America has been under scrutiny as much as Malzahn. Some of this just comes with the territory. Most of it comes from the Auburn fan base made up of alumni and faithful supporters of the Auburn football program. Some of it comes from sports writers who have never worn a jockey strap. All of it is detrimental to the success of the program under the direction of Gus Malzahn. Not all of it is...
Another football season is bearing down on us again. To me, it seems as if I watched the “beat down” that Clemson put on Alabama in the national championship game last month. This year my non-football months were more interesting than before, due to the success of the Auburn basketball program and the Auburn baseball team. For the first time in my life I have watched almost all of the NCAA Baseball Tournament to see who will be national champion. The College World Series ended on Wednesday, Jun...
Bart Starr has fallen many times during the last few years, mostly due to heart attacks and strokes. On Sunday May 26th, he fell for the last time in Birmingham with his life partner by his side. Cherry, his wife of 66 years, has been his loyal care giver since 2014 when the physical problems began. They moved to Birmingham after Bart’s final retirement from the NFL. They operated several businesses during that time under the corporate name of Bart Starr Enterprises. They were all successful o...
Music City, Nashville, Tennessee exceeded all expectations for hosting the 2019 NFL Draft. From Thursday, April 25th through Saturday, April 27th attendance at the draft exceeded 500,000, a record for the event. Philadelphia hosted the 2017 draft and drew a record 250,000. Nashville doubled that figure to establish a record that will be hard to beat. The NFL Draft will be held in Las Vegas next year. There were representatives from Vegas studying how Nashville handled the logistics. Twelve other...
ALABAMA There is no controversy this year in Tuscaloosa as to who the quarterback will be. Tua Tagovailoa will be at Alabama at least one more year. The runner up for the Heisman trophy is well entrenched as the Alabama quarterback for 2019. The real problem at quarterback is who will be Tua’s backup. Mac Jones, a 6’- 2”, 205 lb. sophomore was number three last year. Gone is the multi-talented Jalen Hurts. He will be vying for the Heisman as the quarterback of the Oklahoma Sooners, who have...
This column will be devoted to the many things that I don’t like about modern day football. As addicted as I am to the sport, there are certain trends that do not enhance the game of football. Even worse, these trends are in some cases very bad for football. Most football fans do not see those trends, or care about their impact on the game. However, as a traditionalist, they are an abomination to me. What is so frustrating is that there is little that can be done about them now. When you make e...
While the national championship in college football is still on our minds, it seemed to be a good time to discuss the pros and cons of our current playoff system, and the possibility of an eight team playoff system. First off, the four team playoff has been highly successful pitting the four best teams against each other to determine the national championship on the field rather than subjectively voting on a champion. In each of the six playoffs, the number one team and the number two team has...
Tigers Roll Tide Clemson 44 - Alabama 16 The magic is gone. Tua Tagovailoa is human after all. Coach Dabo Swinney had his Clemson Tigers so prepared for The National Championship Game with Alabama, there was nothing Nick Saban could do that would stem the onslaught of the Clemson defense. Alabama had the football inside the red zone enough times in this game to have won it. But, the inept play selections and the adept Clemson defense turned the Tide away over and over again. Meanwhile, freshman...
The magic is gone. Tua Tagovailoa is human after all. Coach Dabo Swinney had his Clemson Tigers so prepared for The National Championship Game with Alabama, there was nothing Nick Saban could do that would stem the onslaught of the Clemson defense. Alabama had the football inside the red zone enough times in this game to have won it. But, the inept play selections and the adept Clemson defense turned the Tide away over and over again. Meanwhile, freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence did his...
Alabama has had a special season so far, even measured by Alabama standards. They started the season ranked number one and have maintained the ranking every week of the 2018 season. If the Tide can beat Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, win two games in the four team national championship playoff, it will accomplish a feat that not many teams have been able to do. They will have gone through the entire season from start to finish ranked number one. They also will be 15-0, a record that has...
There has been a resistance on my part to address my concerns about the Auburn football program under Gus Malzahn. One of the reasons for that is my belief that he is a good man with a good family. He has the best interests of his players foremost in his program. Malzahn has done well in recruiting, flirting with the top 10 each year. He has worked diligently and tirelessly to take the Auburn football program to the heights desired by the alumni, the fan base, former players and the...
Since Auburn first played Georgia in 1892, there have been many changes in the way the game of football is played. Many rule changes have been instituted since that time. Technics of playing the game have been altered as well. For example, blocking technics today would have brought down wrath from my coaches in the 50’s. Use of the helmet has been taken out of the game except for serving as protection for the offensive player mostly. The NCAA has morphed into a cumbersome monolithic rule make bo...
On September 21, 2018, Mr. Phil Norton was inducted into the Faulkner University Sports Hall of Fame. Phil was an outstanding linebacker and offensive guard on Robert E. Lee’s state championship football team in 1960. He also became an astute football and basketball official for the AHSAA for 20 years. His philanthropic contributions to sports in Montgomery is unmeasurable. Other inductees were Shane Reynolds, 11 year veteran pitcher for the Houston Astros: 2001 National championship b...
In 1956 a number of boys just graduating from Lanier and Lee boarded buses headed for Beufort, South Carolina, the nearest civilized community to the famous Parris Island. That is the location of the United States Marine Corp Recruit Training Depot, where every Marine recruit east of the Mississippi goes through basic training, referred to by most as “Boot Camp.” The month was June when the temperatures vacillate between 95˚ and 100˚. It’s the month when the “sand fleas” are the hungriest....
Never in my forty years of doing pre-season projections on how the top college football teams will finish their regular season, have I seen how the scene looks this year. Seven teams have a good chance to finish undefeated. As far as I can remember this has never happened and it is not really expected in 2018. Some of these teams will have a bad game and drop out of the undefeated category. Clemson has the best avenue to an undefeated season because of their schedule. The Tigers play at Texas...
For the last seventy years, my attention has been on the game of football, especially college football. To my knowledge, during this time, never has there been such an obsession with who the quarterback will be at Alabama for the 2018 football season. Alabama fans are apoplectic. Some are actually being counseled for this unusual disorder. A number of sports writers in the state are providing fodder for this addictive behavior. What makes the quarterback situation at Alabama so puzzling is that...
Editors note: One afternoon in June my telephone rang and it was an old Auburn buddy, Bill Marks. Bill and I went to Lanier together where he played on the tennis team. Bill went on to play for Sewanee University. We had talked many times, mostly about Auburn. But, that was not the purpose of his call. He reminded me of what a great tennis background that a mutual friend of ours had. Coach John McWilliams is the individual that he was talking about. I have known “Coach” for probably twenty years...
An NFL player, whose name will not be mentioned, kneeled during the national anthem last year in protest of black men being killed or abused by white policemen. The actions of this millionaire was intended to rally America behind the “racist” nation that has been represented by the “Flag of the United States of America” from it’s inception at millions of public events all over the world. Behind this flag, the founders of this country hammered out a constitution that has been the model for every...
Believe it or not, coaches are not just money hungry, self centered opportunists. They are not heartless, uncaring individuals who only care about winning. They are not manipulators who use players to advance their own agendas. With few exceptions, coaches become emotionally attached to their coaches and their players for life. For the players this occurs from the beginning of the recruiting process through graduation, through professional careers, through connections with their families and...
Ah, Spring, where young men’s thoughts turn to...football. Alabama and Auburn are hard at work in their spring practice, or spring training for the older fans. Auburn took spring break off from practice to give the players a break and give the coaches more time to evaluate players, especially those who have moved to different positions. It seems that most of the players took the break to energize themselves for the grind that always awaits during the last half fo spring practice. This is when t...