Alabama Spring Practice: We’ll take football any way we can get it

By The Conduit

I admit it, I’m a freak for Spring practice games.

I don’t understand why more people don’t enjoy them. It’s a free football game in the middle of the non-football season, the weather is fantastic for spectating, plus the only people at the games are all pulling for the same team. It seems to be a cultural epidemic; either your school’s fans care about the Spring practice game or they don’t.

At the University of Alabama, we care about our Spring game. We’ll take football any way we can get it.

I’ve mentioned this before on CapstoneReport.com, but I remember going to Alabama’s A-Day game a few years ago on a perfectly hot day in April and being so excited afterwards because it was the first quarterback battle I had seen since John Parker Wilson. I left Bryant-Denny Stadium that day thinking we had a marginally sub-standard backup quarterback from Mobile, AJ “McCameron” or something like that, who would just never be able to compete with the guy I was certain would somehow win twenty Heisman trophies and a championship ring for every finger, Phillip Sims.

I will now accept your scorn.

A year later and the day before A-Day, I rode out a tornado underneath Bryant-Denny Stadium where I was simply lucky to be near at the time for a friend’s official tour. It’s funny how a couple hundred thousand pounds of concrete and steel was enough to make me feel like it was the safest place in the state. Barely two weeks after that was the big tornado that cut like a laser through the heart of Tuscaloosa, but in between was A-Day; a perfect Spring Saturday with nearly as many flowers blossoming as new players at the Capstone.

We didn’t know we were looking at a championship-winning team, but it sure felt like they were capable. We had lost champions like Greg McElroy, Marquis Maze, Marcell Darius, Julio Jones, and Mark Ingram, but learning the new names and numbers of another batch of players was a blast, such as then-backup RB Eddie Lacy, giants like Jesse Williams, and returning stalwarts like Dont’a Hightower and Courtney Upshaw.

A-Day is days away. I’ll be there and I can’t wait.

We’ll take a closer look at some of Alabama’s arsenal of weapons before then, including the new offensive line that’s already being called one of the best-looking lines in history, the receiving corps, the bevy of 5-star recruits, the returning superheroes, the QB battle, new coaches and coordinators, etc. We could write an entire article based on new talent from Louisiana alone.

But there are two things that are always constant at the University of Alabama under Nick Saban; one, Alabama loses tons of top-ranked talent every year including early departures for first-round draft NFL draft picks, and two, Alabama always adds a deluge of talent to replace them. This year, perhaps more than any other in Saban’s time with the Crimson Tide, that group of young men might be the most talented and most surprising yet. Maybe we won’t know just how good they’ll be until the fall.

Fortunately for me and 100,000 of my friends at A-Day on April 19th, we probably won’t have to wait that long to find out. Roll Tide.

36 thoughts on “A-Day matters at Alabama”

  1. I’ll be at the Clemson “orange and white” spring game this Saturday before A-Day. It’s nowhere close to A-Day, but Clemson is gorgeous, Swinney is an Alabama champion, and I just plain can’t wait for football.

  2. ” We’ll take a closer look at some of Alabama’s arsenal of weapons before then,” I snickered when I read this line. Bama is stacked as is most of the SEC teams so that is not why I laughed. The reason I laughed is that you actually think you have enough football knowledge to break down a football team/scheme/depth chart/progression. How about you share with us you experinces in these fields other than the sunday paper while sipping tea with your ” partner”.

    ” including the new offensive line that’s already being called one of the best-looking lines in history, ” Who exactly is saying this considering bama has closed practices? Please tell me that you are not basing this off of what some bammer homer is saying on their godaddy.com blog. Bama’s O-line was average at best last year and they lost a few key parts from that squad. The worse thing that happened to bama’s line is when their O-line coach left to take the job with the Philadelphia Eagles at the end of the 2012 season.

    ” the returning superheroes,” You must be talking about that snorting , yelling , ” hey look at me ” strength coach you turds love. The closest thing to a super hero bama had left and that was C.J. and maybe Dix.

    the QB battle, ” ROFLMFAO!!!! That is the funniest thing you have ever said! That battle, as you call it ,was over when Nicky went to Tallahassee begging Coker to come to turdville.

    “new coaches and coordinators, etc. ” This years victims.

    ” We could write an entire article based on new talent from Louisiana alone. ” Could write an entire book about the kids leaving , Players in legal trouble, and a crying ass coach praying the NCAA will slow down the HUNH.

    “But there are two things that are always constant at the University of Alabama under Nick Saban; one, Alabama loses tons of top-ranked talent every year including early departures for first-round draft NFL draft picks, and two, Alabama always adds a deluge of talent to replace them. “I was thinking 1. bama getting away with paying players and 2 kids being lied to and then “Processed” .

    “This year, perhaps more than any other in Saban’s time with the Crimson Tide, that group of young men might be the most talented and most surprising yet.” Once again who are you getting this from? We heard that last year was supposed to be the best Offense in the History of College Football.

    “Maybe we won’t know just how good they’ll be until the fall.” Or how young and inexperienced they actualy are.

    “Fortunately for me and 100,000 of my friends ” 1). You do not have any friends and 2). How many times has bama had 100,000 people at an A-Day game? How many was there last year when bama was supposingly the next Dynasty of College football? Hey at least bama has a decent chance of winning a game for the first time since early November. lol

    “at A-Day on April 19th, we probably won’t have to wait that long to find out. Roll Tide. ”

    Thanks bammer Nostradamus for this fact filled post.

    1. “Who exactly is saying this considering bama has closed practices?”
      ESPN, for one. That was before there were any practices, closed or not.

      I’m gonna call Amari Cooper a superhero. Deal with it.

      Stop pretending the NCAA’s rule was ever going to slow down the HUNHNS and try to stay on topic.

      “You do not have any friends.”

      But I have you. And you seem to care more about what I have to say than anyone I’ve ever met. Thanks for reading. Roll Tide.

      1. Sorry Conduit but your ‘potty mouth’ just doesn’t measure up to this guy’s!! RTR

      2. Can you provide the link to where ESPN said this please? Why did you only address 2 of my points? Are you conceding defeat that easy?

        1. Have you really not seen how well Saban recruited this past season alone? Really? I know we didn’t cover every 5-star in completely and total depth here but really?

          Go on. Never stop.

          1. Ole Miss has too but you are not making up fairy tales about them…..

            Now please show us where ESPN said this will/could be one of the best O-Lines ever, or go ahead and admit you made it up.

          2. Well since you brought up ” how great ” saban has recruited Offensive linemen and how great bama’s O-line will be this year, I decided to do some research. Since you are basing this strictly off of number of stars a recruit is , I wanted to see who had a higher star average on the O-line between Auburn and bama. Taking away Robinson for Auburn and Kouandjio for bama because they are going pro, Auburn’s Offensive linemen average 3.69 stars per rivals.com. Alabama’s Offensive linemen average 3.64 stars also per Rival.com. If bama’s o-line is so good, Auburn’s must be even better using cantdoit’s logic.
            ” Have you really not seen how well Saban recruited this past season alone? Really? I know we didn’t cover every 5-star in completely and total depth here but really?”

            Never stop being the clueless cantdoit that we all love making fun off.

          3. I never said I was basing anything off star ratings alone. There you go with the cult mentality, “what are your crimes” play again.

            You truly are blinded by your rage. It’s kinda sad, but mostly funny.

            Go on. Tell me how bad Alabama is going to be this year. Tell me how excited you are for Nick Marshall’s first spring game ever on the plains since his last arrest. Tell me how lucky Amari Cooper was that one time. Tell me Derrick Henry is a fluke. Tell me Lane Kiffin is a “victim” again. Tell me again what Auburn sites are like.

            Wait, nevermind about the Auburn sites part; I really don’t care.

          4. If you are not basing it off of the star ratings , then explain what you mean by this statement

            ” Have you really not seen how well Saban recruited this past season ”

            I am blown away at how easy you back off of a statement when you get the least bit of resistance. Have a damn backbone for once and back up what you say. I am still waiting for the for the link to the major story that ESPN put out saying that bama was going to have THE best O-line in the history of college football. Please continue to show everyone just how much you truly lack in football knowledge. CSR really knows how to pick their football ” experts”. I almost miss Shane ……

          5. I don’t answer every point you make because, just like this past comment, you blow everything out of proportion, take statements out of context, and, most importantly, you deliberately twist words and change them to fit your hatred. You are blinded by your hate for the University of Alabama. It makes me sick.

            Then again, blind hate is one of the biggest outlying symptoms of Little Brother Syndrome.

            You ask me to defend my statements, yet you already know your goal is only to refute them. You call them “fairy tales” and sling hate speech. If I say the Earth is round, you ask me to explain mountains. If I say gravity is a law of nature, you say I haven’t dropped everything to make sure. If I say Alabama has talent, wait, why am I not asking you why you think they don’t have it instead, or why we should expect Alabama to fail at both the offensive and defensive lines, assistant coaches, quarterback play, coaching and turf management?

            I made my statements. I research. I write. You read. I don’t use the internet to insult people.

            Then again, I don’t have Little Brother Syndrome.

            Just because you asked for it though, here’s a quote;

            “A case of the rich getting richer,” one SEC coach said. “We recruited a lot of those guys, so we know how good they are. In the past, Alabama would always recruit one or two elite linemen and the others would be pretty good. This class, they’re all the cream of the crop. It’s complete. I don’t know if you can say it’s the best ever until they get on the field and play, but on paper this is the best line class I have ever seen.”

            Have fun watching A-Day from a couch far, far away from where I’ll be Saturday. It’s going to be fantastic. Roll Tide.

          6. So know you are saying another coach said this was going to be the best o-line ever and not ESPN???? Beside the coach you are quoting said ” best class” which means jack shit until they perform on the field. You are not hinting at an O-line who’s strongest players will all be true freshmen will be the best ever? Really?Just answer the question for once. Did ESPN say what you claimed they said , or did you make it up? Pretty simple I think. Oh and by the way , We will be at A-Day in Auburn. Not sure why you think you going to a free scrimmage in turdville puts you on some sort of pedestal , but enjoy you overgrown Klan meeting all the same.

          7. You… just trolled yourself. Unbelievable.

            I think we need a new word for that. Let’s call it, “LMAO’ing.”

    2. They feel the empire crumbling and its scaring the shit out ofvthem…love it. 9-4 at best even with thier weak schedule…minus one game that is

  3. I’ve been a Bammer for 32 years and not ONCE have I even “googled” an Auburn blog or website let alone read or commented on one. Mainly because I have a life, job, etc… and secondly I don’t give a s#!t about Auburn. I always enjoy Capstone and Conduit’s thoughts and I always laugh at ALL the comments from the Auburn fans. Whether their comments are right, wrong or indifferent, the FACT that you take the time to read another team’s blog or website is laughable at best. So go ahead and rip my comment to shreds, the fact is you are more concerned about what a Bammer has to say than your own team and fans.

    -First Time Poster….Roll Tide!

    1. Welcome to the fray. Roll Tide.

      For what it’s worth, I hoped this would excite Alabama fans about A-Day and the new talent rather than have anything to do with fans of any other team getting upset at our joy.

      There’s simply no cure for Little Brother Sundrome.

      Still, for Alabama fans, there’s a lot to be excited about for A-Day. For Alabama’s competition, they’ll get to watch Alabama practice on film and hope to find a semblance of weakness. And for me, I get to have a blast all weekend long in the promised land. Roll Tide.

    2. You do realize by making that statement that you are degrading 90%+ of all college football fans including bammers? Go look at the Auburn page on AL.com , or any other Auburn message board and you will see that it is made up of 40% or more bammer posts. It is called a RIVALRY for a reason so keep your BS to yourself.

      1. @Can’t spell

        No, we won’t be doing that. No sense in visiting Auburn message boards. I’ll take your word for it. Gross.

  4. I have renamed Toomer’s Corner “Harvey’s Corner” because that dude is stuck in the Auburn man’s head. At least Harvey didn’t molest any youngsters like Auburn’s proud alumnus, Lee Bradberry

    1. Apparently it does if you are a redneck and you think A-Day in the most romantic day and place to ask your redneck girlfriend day to marry you. I think bama set a new record that day! LMAO

      1. “redneck girlfriend”…interesting comment coming from a fan of a “cow college” that is located in the “middle of nowhere”, Alabama.

        LMAO, you probably don’t understand what I’m getting at…..but if Darwin is right, you probably will in about a million years.

        1. WhoreEagle,
          Obviously your family won’t have to wait a million years, all they have to do is look at you. That’s because you’ve been around here long enough to know, yet you are still can’t remember no matter how many times I remind you, that I am not from Alabama and I am not a fan of Alabama nor Auburn. Which makes your comment not only not interesting, but stupid also. LMAO

          PS. Sorry if I offended your girlfriend.

          1. “Obviously your family won’t have to wait a million years, all they have to do is look at you.”

            What?

            “yet you are still can’t remember”

            What?

            “I am not from Alabama and I am not a fan of Alabama nor Auburn.”

            What? Then why do you care enough to be here?

            “Which makes your comment not only not interesting, but stupid also. LMAO”

            LMAO,…you make me feel like a super genius.

    2. @peachy Does A-Day matter?

      Let’s play he said she said.

      I say A-Day matters. Alabama picked up four more fantastic recruits for 2015 following the A-Day game this year, including another 5-star recruit, and set the spring game attendance record once again.

      1. So lets see Conduit, you are saying that with out A-Day bama wouldn’t have picked up those recruits? Wow that must make Les Miles a much better recruiter than Saban, seeing how his last class finished a close second to Alabama without record setting attendance and hype for a spring game.

        Then again maybe those recruits at A-Day weren’t very impressed with what they saw on the field at A-Day and knew they could compete for playing time against the current bama players based on what they saw with their own eyes.

        By the way did this year’s attendance record break last year’s? Just curious since last years A-Day game didn’t help bama win the SEC, nor the SEC West, nor beat Auburn in the Iron bowl, nor beat Oklahoma in a bowl game.

        Maybe the attendance was broken because all the gumps were guaranteed to finally see a bama victory after two straight losses! LMAO

        1. @LMAO

          But…you didn’t say anything? How can I play he said/she said when all you’re playing is he said/refute what he said?

          Tell me A-day doesn’t matter.

          I never said A-Day wins championships. Good grief.

          Les Miles is an outstanding coach and recruiter. I never said otherwise. Did you know that these four new recruits were all recruited by Alabama’s o-line coach of two years?

          You don’t have to answer that.

          I can think of a billion reasons why any recruit would pick Alabama and I never speculated on any one reason why any of these new recruits chose the Capstone, not that it stopped you from putting words in my mouth.

          You asked about attendance last year. Auburn had more. Something tells me that’s the answer you really wanted. Auburn picked up two recruits after their spring game this year as well. You want them to give them back?

          As for why so many “gumps” showed up, I wrote an article about it above already. Never mind the perfect weather; just look around. The Alabama A-Day game, despite not being a 100-point shootout, is on the lips and ears of the sporting world this morning. Tell me A-Day doesn’t matter.

          You don’t have to like Alabama, you don’t even have to try to make sense, but to suggest the results of A-Day were worthless isn’t just inaccurate, it’s deliberately insulting. Recruiting is a battle, and this spring Alabama once again won that part of the battle, among other things Tell me A-Day doesn’t matter. Go on. Tell it to the 5-star Auburn, Florida, Miami and FSU wanted who chose Alabama instead.

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