I was living in Philly and went to watch this game in a sports bar that had brought me considerable luck for that year. As you know the game ran long, and the sports bar was starting to transition into other broadcasts, in particular one of the World Series games. (Yankees perhaps?) Anyway, by the end of the game they had blockaded me into the corner to watch on the smallest TV in the entire joint. Oh the novelty of college football in the North. It didn't stop me from celebrating hardcore after that one though. Fun game. Long live C.J. Fayton.
Shula is a decent to good offensive mind who is now coaching Cam Newton. Guy just shouldn't have been the head honcho in the SEC.
And Dooley is none of that. He got the job primarily how shula got his - his last name. Hence the poor man reference.
The fact that this wasn't a 40-point blowout is a reflection of where we were under Fulmer, Sanders, and Clausen post-2001.
Offense couldn't find any rhythm or identity. Bunch of solid players, but no one elite. Houston, Davis, Riggs, Tinsley, Banks, Jones, Brown, Fayton, Swain, Hannon...all could play, but nobody ever established himself as a go-to guy. It was a mystery from game to game.
As with all Bama games, if there is a win I am happy. There are levels of happiness depending on how we play, but no anger, only happiness.
I looked at the box score and said, "A-ha". Relating to the trivia question the other day about receivers with 3 TDs... James Banks had two receiving TDs and one rushing TD in that game. So he came pretty close to getting there after his 3 TD performance against South Carolina.
I had forgotten that after our last minute 4th quarter drive to tie the game we kicked off to Bama with our patented "safe" shorter kick only to have the Bama returner take it past the 50 and one guy barely bringing him down to avoid the TD. I think we may have facemasked him to save it. And that of course gave them a 45 yard FG attempt for the win. Unreal.
