Auto racing: Mark Martin on the pole at Talladega. 8C
Sports
S U N D A Y , O C T O B E R 23 , 2011
SECTION C
WWW.TUSCALOOSANEWS.COM
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SMOKED
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INSIDE
STAFF PHOTO | MICHELLE LEPIANKA CARTER
Alabama notebook National championship gymnastics team honored at halftime | 4C
Quarter glance Breakdown of each quarter and complete game statistics | 4C
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Running nowhere After some halftime adjustments, Tide clamps down on Vols’ running game | 5C
3rd-and-nothing UA defense allows just 2 of 14 third-down conversions | 5C
STAFF PHOTO | MICHELLE LEPIANKA CARTER
University of Alabama wide receiver Marquis Maze (4) tries to outrun Tennessee defensive back Brian Randolph during the first half of Saturday’s game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Maze had five catches for 106 yards in Alabama’s 37-6 victory.
Alabama uses strong third quarter to earn fifth straight win over Vols
The LSU hype begins, but for Crimson Tide it’s time to ‘chill out’
By Cecil Hurt Sports Editor
STAFF PHOTO | ROBERT SUTTON
Air AJ AJ McCarron has career night with 284 passing yards | 6C
Stumbling block Run game kept in check, Richardson falls short of 100 yards | 6C
Rocky toppled Vols near-perfect in first half, but have nightmare second-half | 6C
TUSCALOOSA | In its previous three games, the University of Alabama football team had come out of its locker room at halftime like a battering ram. Saturday, it came out like a cruise missile. Different weapon, same result. AJ McCarron’s passing helped No. 2 Alabama shake off a sluggish start, igniting a second-half explosion that turned a halftime tie into a 37-6 rout of the Tennessee Volunteers, setting the stage for a Nov. 5 showdown against unbeaten and No. 1 LSU at Bryant-Denny Stadium. It also marked the fi fth consecutive win for Alabama in the SEC’s most storied series. “This game means a lot to a lot of people,” UA head coach Nick Saban said. “It means a lot to me.” The fi rst half was a defensive struggle with UT getting the better of play at times. It ended in a 6-6 tie, with the teams swapping field goals, two by the Crimson Tide’s Jeremy Shelley and two — including a 52-yarder — by STAFF PHOTO | ROBERT SUTTON Tennessee’s Michael Palardy. “We were being outplayed,” Saban said. “We were not winning at the line of scrimmage. We were lackluster, and that is worrisome.” All that changed in the second half, although it was the precision throws made by McCarron that opened the AJ McCarron passed for a careerSEE A LABAMA | 5C high 284 yards and a touchdown.
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For video and a photo gallery of Saturday’s game go to www.tidesports.com
Pujols hits three home runs as Cardinals rout Rangers The Associated Press
ARLINGTON, T EXAS | Albert Pujols simply let his bat make all the noise. And boy, it was pretty loud. Pujols hit three impressive home runs to tie the World Series record, amassing five hits and six RBIs Saturday night as the St. Louis Cardinals romped past the Texas Rangers 16-7 for a 2-1 edge. The outburst by the three-time NL MVP came a day after he was barbed by the media for not sticking around to talk about a Game 2 error and loss.
The Associated Press
Game 4: 7:05 p.m. Where: Arlington, Texas Series: Cardinals lead 2-1 TV: FOX Starters: St. Louis (Jackson 12-9) Texas (Holland 16-5)
This time, everyone was talking about him. Pujols, who was 0-for-6 in the fi rst two games, became the third player to hit three homers in a Series game. SEE CARDINALS | 3C
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No. 1 LSU pushes aside distractions to crush Auburn
CARDINALS vs. RANGERS ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
TUSCALOOSA t has been building for weeks now, gathering momentum like an avalanche — or, more precisely, dueling avalanches, hurtling down towering Alps, crushing anything standing in the way. Maximum speed has been reached. No obstacles remain. The collision — the cataclysm — that will be Alabama vs. LSU is upon us. You can now ask Nick Saban himself about the game, and get a suggestion, not a snarl. So what is Saban’s suggestion, with the countdown clock to the latest Greatest Game Ever ticking down? “Chill out.” CECIL That’s it, at least for now. “Chill HURT out.” “There is going to be a lot of hype about this game, but I think everybody needs to chill out, mentally and physically,” Saban said. That won’t happen in this state. It won’t happen in Louisiana. It won’t happen at almost any point in the college football universe — but Saban does want it to happen with his own team. SEE HURT | 6C
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LSU running back Kenny Hilliard (27) celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown in the first quarter against Auburn.
BATON ROUGE, L A . | It didn’t matter who was throwing the ball to Rueben Randle, it didn’t matter who was covering him, and it certainly didn’t matter that LSU was missing three key players. Randle caught a 42-yard scoring pass from Jordan Jefferson and a 46yard touchdown pass from Jarrett Lee, and No. 1 LSU once again overcame off-the-field distractions in style with a 45-10 victory over 19thranked Auburn on Saturday.
LSU was without star cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, leading rusher Spencer Ware and defensive back Tharold Simon — all suspended one game for violating the team’s drug policy. Yet LSU continued to make team history with its eighth double-digit win in as many games this season, a streak that started with a seasonopening triumph over Oregon without the then-suspended Jefferson and receiver Russell Shepard. Off next week, LSU (8-0, 5-0 SEC) SEE LSU | 7C