Baseball: Braves’ wild-card lead slips after another setback. 3C
Sports
S U N D A Y , S E P T E M B E R 25 , 2011
SECTION C
WWW.TUSCALOOSANEWS.COM
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BALL HOGS
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INSIDE
PHOTO | JASON HARLESS
Alabama notebook Mosley listed ‘day to day’ after injuring elbow | 4C
Quarter glance Breakdown of each quarter and complete game statistics | 4C
PHOTO | JASON HARLESS
Cut off Alabama pass defense ties up Arkansas receivers | 5C
It’s personal Line shows Alabama’s offense can make plays like Arkansas’ | 5C
PHOTO | JASON HARLESS
Battered and bruised
Alabama defensive back DeQuan Menzie (24) returns an interception 25 yards for a touchdown in front of Arkansas receiver Greg Childs during the second quarter of Saturday’s game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. It was Menzie’s first career interception. No. 3 Alabama, won 38-14.
Alabama defensive front turns up the pressure on Arkansas QB | 5C
No. 3 Alabama dominates Arkansas in all phases to win SEC opener By Cecil Hurt Sports Editor
PHOTO | JASON HARLESS
Aggressive start Alabama offense shakes things up on opening drive | 6C
Failure to launch High-powered Arkansas offense falls flat | 6C
For video and a photo gallery from the game, go to www.tidesports.com
TUSCALOOSA | It began with a slick bit of trickery, but by the time it was over, Arkansas knew it hadn’t only been fooled. The Hogs had been flattened. The No. 3 University of Alabama scored touchdowns from various sources Saturday, including the field-goal team, the defense, the punt return unit and, fi nally, the offense, rolling past No. 14 Arkansas 38-14 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. “They beat us in all three phases of the game,” said Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino. “They gave us a chance to come out in the second half and do something offensively and we just couldn’t. “They made big plays and we didn’t.” Arkansas came into the game averaging 47 points per game in its three season-opening wins, but was quickly rendered one-dimensional, rushing for just 17 net yards. “That’s our game plan, just to out-physical them,” said Alabama defensive end Jesse Williams. PHOTO | JASON HARLESS Alabama also showed it wasn’t all brawn and no brains with its fi rst touchdown. The Crimson Tide’s initial drive Marquis Maze returns a punt stalled at the Arkansas 37 and Cade Foster came on for 83 yards for a touchdown in the SEE A LABAMA | 6C third quarter.
Stillman rallies for milestone victory By Andrew Carroll Sports Writer
TUSKEGEE | The Stillman College football team scored only one touchdown on Saturday, just enough to achieve a milestone victory. Quarterback Brandon Allen, who didn’t start, scored on a 1-yard run, and cornerback Lakeevis Tabb came up with a fumble recovery to preserve Stillman’s 13-9 victory over Tuskegee. Stillman came into the game 0-6 against Tuskegee, the PHOTO | STILLMAN COLLEGE winningest program among historically black colleges and universities. Stillman coach Teddy Keaton gets a bucket of water As Allen knelt down to run out the fi nal seconds, head dumped on him by his players following the Tigers’ SEE STILLMAN | 6C win against Tuskegee on Saturday.
Hogs expected thunder, but not the lightning
TUSCALOOSA t probably wouldn’t have bothered Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino so much if Alabama had been pure thunder on Saturday afternoon. That’s what you expect from Alabama teams in what can now be deemed the Saban Era. They will be thunderous. They will rattle your molars like a maraca with heavy hitting on defense and rugged running on offense. Arkansas expected that, and they got it. What really had to hurt the Hogs, though, wasn’t the thunder. It was the CECIL lightning. HURT To be trampled by elephants is one thing. To have elephants beat you to the punch with quickness is something else altogether. And to have those elephants fool you outright, well, that’s adding insult to injury. That’s what happened in Alabama’s 38-14 win over Arkansas. The Crimson Tide was dominant at its own game, controlling the line of scrimmage and stifl ing the run on defense, gradually suffocating another one-dimensional team the way a boa constrictor squeezes a piglet. But Alabama was able beat Arkansas at its own game as well. SEE HURT | 6C
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LSU turns back Mountaineers The Associated Press
MORGANTOWN, W.VA . | Jarrett Lee threw three touchdown passes, Michael Ford ran for two scores and No. 2 LSU made a case to be No. 1, beating No. 16 West Virginia 47-21 Saturday night. The Tigers (4-0) converted two turnovers into scores, built a big early lead and withstood West Virginia’s strong comeback for its third win over a ranked opponent this season, with all of three coming away from home. Every win so far has been by double digits. Lee’s three TD passes tied a career high and matched his output of the
three previous games. He finished 16 of 28 for 180 yards. West Virginia (3-1) outgained LSU 533-366. West Virginia’s Geno Smith set school records for completions (38), attempts (65) and passing yards (463). But he was intercepted twice after making one in the previous three games. For the second straight year, the Mountaineers (3-1) couldn’t overcome a double-digit halftime deficit to the Tigers. And West Virginia couldn’t pad its resume with a win over a Southeastern Conference opponent at a time when there’s been speculation the SEE LSU | 7C