When one side goes against the enemy with the gods’ gift of stronger morale, then their adversaries, as a rule, cannot withstand them.
—Xenophon

There is no substitute for the right attitude. Xenophon wrote over 2,000 years ago on the importance of soldiers having the right frame of mind—morale. With morale inferior fighters can overcome superior foes. Did that happen Saturday evening in Atlanta? Was it a case of Alabama playing David to Clemson’s Goliath?

Or was it a case where Alabama’s recruiting success was the determinative factor?

Cicero said “The sinews of war are infinite money.” You could say the sinews of a football team are five-star recruits.

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No doubt it was a little of both. Even Homer said, you can’t fight beyond your strength.

You must have the right attitude and talent. On Saturday, Alabama had it.

The media is already stoking fan expectation. According to the AP, Bama’s on its way again: “Alabama lured Saban from the NFL last season to lead the 12-time national champs back to glory. Based on the opener, Saban and the Tide are on their way.”

One game isn’t a season, Saban warned. He was quick to quash any appearance of irrational exuberance from fans or players.

“This is just one game of a long season,” Saban said. “We have a lot of improvement [to make] as a team and hopefully we can build on what we did here tonight.”

Hold off on those Bama’s back declarations.

But fans have a right to be jubilant. Alabama defeated the favorite to win the ACC. Alabama looked dominating in primetime. Alabama’s offensive and defensive lines looked better than any line since Gene Stallings stalked the sidelines.

The offense clicked. At times I wondered if Homer Smith was calling plays. The offense moved with chemistry and purpose. It was magical.

Alabama fans will now throw Major Applewhite under the bus. And some of that is fair. Applewhite never fit on Saban’s staff. However, not all of last season’s malaise can be blamed on the departed offensive coordinator. Many of the problems down the stretch were less strategy and more attitude. When players won’t buy into what the coaches teach then you can’t expect great results.

Socrates probably summed it up best—“a disorderly mob is no more an army than a heap of building materials is a house.” Or in modern terms, an undisciplined team is no more a team than Pauly Shore is an actor.

While the disorderly past of Mike Shula is now a fading memory, there remain questions for this team to answer. Can it stand prosperity? How will it handle adversity?

The adversity question might be the most important one. It comes every season, and how the team handles it will tell just how good this team can be.

44 thoughts on “Clemson win about attitude (& talent)”

  1. Very proud of this ball club. This Fan will take it one game at a time.
    All you Barners can go to hell.

  2. I’m happy we won (and shocked), but like I said, there are eleven more games to be played.

  3. we had better not overlook tulane, w. kentucky or ark. the boys learned their lesson last year about looking ahead to the bigger opponent. but our identity as a team has yet to be determined. arkansas and georgia will determine who we really are.

    Count this as my signature:

  4. looks like sabin has put togeather a good looking bama team.just like pluto says one game at a time.it also looks like this team may know how to finish teams off.not like last year.NS did not sit on the ball in 4th quarter that was great to see.all in all great win for this team.the key tho is like NS says you have know how to finish.ball control was great.defense was not bad at all also.we may have a very very good team this year.one game at a time.o yes GO TO HELL AUBIES ROLLLL\\\\\\\\\\TIDE

  5. Where are all the barner queers that hang out here day after day? Guess they’re eating a lot of crow today. CNS’s process seems to be working. Bama totally dismantled Clemson last night and I love it.

  6. No most of us went to bed last night and didnt pull an all night trailer park bonfire…ANYWAY IM here and SHOCKED that bamma won but GLAD I LOVE SEC and except for MS ST we WON ……..

    WAR POLYTECH BABY!!!

  7. AND Barners werent the only ones saying Bamma wasnt gonna win it was the NATION..
    SO I will go to hell cuase on NOV 29th
    BRING INGRAM TO A REAL DEFENSE …..

    GREAT GAME

    WPB!!!

  8. Where are all the Barners? I would like some of that great insight I’ve been reading. Zero rushing yards from the best backfield in the nation. Tubs just sent out his resume to anybody who would read it. The future is now and Auburn is back home. Second place, second tier, and second class.

  9. WOW Ok GREAT GAME!!! Ya got SEC teams coming up though and I think If we can all agree on ONE thing SEC teams ARE just a bit better than the rest!

  10. Omnipresent,

    Just because we made it look easy doesn’t mean that it was. You picked Alabma to lose that game if I’m not mistaken.

  11. And yet the irrational exuberance is out in full force. Bammers are so predictable. I’m sure they are printing up a batch of new NC t-shirts as I write this. The higher they fly, the harder they always fall.

  12. Kevin:
    If Auburn had this big of a win Tville would have illegitmate championship rings made like he did in 04′. That, of course, is an Auburn tradition started by Bowden’s boy back in
    93 I believe. I wonder do they show those rings off to people while they reminise on the mediocre years of Pat Dye or Shug. Watch out Barners Bamas rolling again!

  13. Kevin is a worried barner. Why else would he continually be visiting this site and downplaying everything that Bama does?

    Of course Clemson is overrated the day after Bama mashes them, but before the game all we heard was how it would be the other way around.

  14. Kevin, your delusional rants continue. What do you have to say in place of the delusion that you spammed our site up with all summer long? When will your expected Alabama will lose big to Tulane rants begin? I’m actually surprised you haven’t tried to justify your recent nonsense by saying they had an entirely new offensive line or something similar. Did you know Alabama Tech played a game last night? Are you more upset about Alabama winning than Alabama fans are excited? Your envious, little brother rants continue…

  15. I had to log in and say that We stunk last night…..More specifically, I stunk. Thats right….I stunk! And it wasnt the usual hygenic thing. Nope, this time it was with The Tony Franklin System. We did not meet or exceed our goal of 700+ yards a game and 125+ a game. And I take full credit for that!
    Now if you will excuse me… I will go throw myself on a sword in the great Japanese tradition of Hari-Kari.

  16. After a long night of rationalizing and theorizing, I have decided that Coach Tony Franklin is 100% to blame for our total lack of passing and yes… He should go jump on that cheap smamuri sword he bought at the flea market.

  17. Unfortunately, Coach tony Franklin pawned that sword…..
    Luckily Coach Tony Franklin does have some plastic utility silverware is tne trunk of his 2001 Kia and I believe thier might be a plastic knife or fork I can get the job done with…..

  18. looking foward to seeing miss state and lsu kick aubies azzz.want read much from the barnies then.hell it took ot for the aubies to beat clem.aubies r the ones overrated.just wait and see.i told yall the monster is coming well it’s here.BAMA 34 CLEMSON 10. ROLLLL;;;;;;;;;;;TIDE

  19. Says the guy who said we would average 700+ yards a game with his discount internet offense and the shithouse talent we have this year…..

  20. I am not a manic depressive! No No No No!
    And aint no Bi polar either! (hehehe..that sounds kinda gay doesnt it?)
    It was all my fault and I am worthless…worthless…..WORTHLESS! Sure we didnt have a passer a QB, or decent recievers, but it is my fault. All My fault! ME! ME! ME!

  21. Would you like a hanky you whiny little man? Straighten up Franklin! or I will be forced to take over the offense just like I did last night!

  22. Kevin, we have told repetitively, if an Alabama fan feels led to print out T-Shirts saying whatever we please, we have every right to do so.

    We can focus our attention on whatever we please, and no matter what that may be, it doesn’t hold a candle to what you focus on, which is Alabama, the team you repetitively claimed would lose big last night. What’s your next prediction, Prophetess Kevin?

  23. And yet the irrational exuberance is out in full force. I’m sure the Barnies are printing a batch of new “Mommy, Daddy, we beat a high school team that beat Alabama” Alabama Polytechnic Institute t-shirts as I write this. The higher their stepchild mentality soars, the harder they always fall when reality strikes them like lightening.

  24. Kevin Says…..
    “UAT will lose on Saturday night. Afterwards, you will all have to pick up the pieces of your shattered delusions and move on.”
    Once again you have proven that you dont know what the fuck you are talking about Kev.
    Why dont you go back to the Auburn blogsand try to guess why the new spread wont work without a QB who cant pass. Jackass.

  25. Is this the point in time that we’re supposed to be skeered now? Please let us know so we can start shaking and bowing down to the bahr statue.

  26. What do you have to say for yourself about Alabama losing to Clemson? Oh wait, last I recall they didn’t! lol

  27. Ballplay Indian, where is your big mouth that wanted me to man up on here after the Clemson beat down? I believe it is you that needs to man up. Oh, by the way, I am impressed with that high powered offense you got there.

  28. Congrats to Bama on a huge win. To say that I was impressed would be a massive understatement. I don’t know if I was more blown away by how dominant Bama was, or how Clemson just rolled over and quit midway through the 3rd quarter. I’ve never been terribly impressed by Tommy Bowden as a coach, but his decisions on Saturday night are unexplainable. CJ Spiller got 2 carries the entire night????? (despite the fact that he returned the opening kickoff for a td in the 2nd half????). Bama’s biggest weakness on D was obvioulsy at linebacker, and he doesn’t exploit that by attacking the perimeters????? Every time Bama has a 3rd and 5, the Clemson corners give an 8 yard cushion????

    It feels good to beat a top 10 team, doesn’t it bammers? Auburn has done it so often over the last few years that we’ve gotten used to it, so it’s hard to remember that “first time feeling”. I have 1 question in closing that I hope one of you bammers will answer: Is Bama back again?

  29. HerE I am Bamaman….If youll research my posts, youll see where I gave Bama a chance. I was wrong in the fact that I said there was no chance in a Bama blowout. I was dead wrong. See, I can man up. Yalls d line won the game for you. They really looked good for a young group. Congrats.

    Now , will someone answer my question ? Are yall back? Is the probation B.S. over ? Can we all say we are on an even playing field now?

    About Auburn. Our QBs looked preety bad. Todd stunk it up. Burns was so-so. But dont base either teams season on these two games. Auburn could have won that game 45-0 easily. Tubbs played nearly our entire roster. Our defense looked great. We will both know more in about three weeks.

    And again , congrats on the win.

  30. no ballplay/julio
    Bama is not back …yet.
    But they sure looked a lot better against Clemson than Auburn did. Both offensively and defensively.

    What about that “spread”
    I believe Hunter forecasted a while back that it would revert back to the ol’ 3 yards and cloud of dust. Hard to admit when Hunter and Shane are right isnt it?

    I will never understand the brain of an Aubbo. Instead of just working on the fundamentals and the things that will work they go chasing whatever the latest quick-fix, flash in the pan, snake oil that comes around.
    Someone should have told the Aubbo idiots that you have to crawl before you walk.
    Yet….. some Aubbo Idiot/King said “Hey lets go for this new fangeled “No Huddle/Spread? offense, will win a championship for sure”!!! And he never took into account that before you can get to the moon, you have to build a rocket to do it. Aubbos are such a juggheaded group of mouth breathers.

  31. Jesus so by your standards You guys are still handicapped?!?!? tmczero?
    so IF we win the IRONBOWL this year it still wont count? FUKN PATHETIC!!
    I dont care if you were on probation and stay on it we have beat ya lls asses for six years you retarded football loving team you!@!!

    WPB!!!

  32. tmc, what in the #@%* are you talking about when you say Auburn has to “crawl” before it can “walk” in regard to going to the spread? Are you saying Auburn should have used some other “transition” offense before changing from the West Coast offense to the spread formation? That doesn’t make any sense. As to to your characterization of the spread as a gimmick, you’re just showing that you’re either blindly disagreeable to anything Auburn does or you’re an idiot. Unfortunately for you, it’s actually both. This “gimmick” offense has put up amazing numbers across the country with both running and passing teams, and Florida won a NC with it two years ago. (I suppose you would have made the same accusation against Bear back in the early 70’s when he switched over to that gimmicky “wishbone” thing just because that idiot Darrel Royal was racking up numbers with it at Texas).

    BTW, when’s the last time Bama played a game where they rushed for 321 yards and shut-out the opposing team? Oh well, at least you didn’t drop any obscenities or racial slurs in your post. I suppose that’s progress.

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