Crimson Chapters: Chapter 1

COLLEGE FOOTBALL 2014

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THE TUSCALOOSA NEWS

An oral history of the University of Alabama’s football season, as told by the people who lived it

110 degrees

Alabama head coach Nick Saban gives feedback during a morning practice.

Saban said during the fall that he did not want content people on his team.

By Tommy Deas

Executive Sports Editor

The University of Alabama football team entered the 2014 season coming off back-to-back losses — to rival Auburn in crushing fashion on the game’s last play and to Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl — to end the previous season.

There were so many questions: Who would start at quarterback?

How would the Crimson Tide replace so many departed starters?

W hat aftereffects would linger from the collapse at the end of the previous year? And what kind of impact would new offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin have?

There was one sure thing as UA started fall camp in August: It was going to be like every other Alabama summer.

Austin Shepherd, senior offensive tackle: Hot. Alabama heat.

Reggie Ragland, junior linebacker: Out there in the heat everybody’s tired, but then you see guys like Jarran Reed, Xzavier Dickson, and you see them getting everybody together: All right, yeah, we know it’s hot, but we’ve got to fight through it, because that’s the type of team we want to be.

We’ve got to be able to fight through things.

With the Alabama heat, you’ve got to fight through the heat. And Coach Saban.

Staff file photo

kind of people we want on our team or in our organization. We want competitive people who want to compete every day.

Butch Davis, former college and NFL coach: I was in Tuscaloosa in August to see Alabama practice. Obviously I had heard a lot about Nick Saban’s organization, attention to detail and all those kinds of things before I had gotten there. It was fun because everything I had heard about the way in which they practice and the way things were organized absolutely was exactly what it had been perceived to be.

we worked in camp. Everybody was always hard working, nobody was complaining even when it was 110 outside. Everyone was still trying to grind. You could tell that they were going to fight and never quit.

Davis: Prior to being there we had gone to Auburn and we’d gone to Florida State, and they were playing music and rap music during preps and stretch. Nick was a little bit more old school, more of a traditional just focusing on football.

supposed to be easy.

Xzavier Dickson, senior linebacker: Very hot. Hot and long. Of course, that helps. It’ll get you built. Other teams aren’t prepared for it. It makes you mentally tough.

And physically tough, too.

Davis: I liked the fact that they were physical in practice. Some of the practices we saw (at other schools), they were not very physical.

The energy level, they were just professional. They just went about their business and the work at hand. The kids Jonathan Allen, were upbeat. You could tell that sophomore defensive lineman: the culture and the environShepherd: Hot, 110 degrees hot. Camp’s a ment was a by-product of an I always knew this team was grind. It really tests your love for awful lot of years of success.

Nick Saban, head coach: Continued Content people are not the going to be good because of how football. Camp is hard, but it’s not

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL 2014

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THE TUSCALOOSA NEWS Fall camp is also a time when talent emerges. A key position for Alabama was left tackle, where the Crimson Tide had to replace Cyrus Kouandjio, who had departed for the National Football League. Cam Robinson, a raw 6-foot-6, 323-pound freshman, would lock down the position and start every game.

DeAndrew White, senior receiver: Wow, just wow. He’s a big athlete. I haven’t seen a lineman like him that’s that young, ever.

Shepherd: Big ol’ boy. We recruited him for a reason, obviously to come in and play, so I knew he was going to be good.

Arie Kouandjio, senior guard He had a lot of physical similarities to my brother (Cyrus) and I thought he was a cool guy. Left tackle’s one of the money positions, right? It’s one of the hardest positions at least on the offensive line, and all the offense. For him to do that as a freshman is awesome.

White: Cam’s a different breed, man. He’s a different kind.

Shepherd: I don’t think I could have done that from day one. It just shows how good he is. Most people can’t come into the SEC and do that.

Staff File photos

Above: Alabama receiver DeAndrew White makes a catch during practice.

Below: Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin acts as a defensive player as Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper (9) takes off.

The hiring of Kiffin to run Alabama’s offense raised eyebrows across the college football landscape. He became a lightning rod in the SEC for brash comments he made during his one season as head coach at Tennessee, and was unceremoniously fired midway through his fourth year at Southern Cal. UA players, however, warmed to him immediately.

Blake Sims, senior quarterback: I was very happy. I got recruited by him (when Kiffin was at Tennessee). I knew some things about him that other people didn’t, and I knew he was going to come to the University of Alabama and help us right away.

Amari Cooper, junior receiver: I didn’t know much about Coach Kiffin except that he threw the ball a lot. You get really excited as a receiver. Any position — receiver, running back — you want the ball in your hands.

Continued

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THE TUSCALOOSA NEWS

Staff File photos

Above: Alabama wide receiver Christion Jones runs drills during a morning practice of fall camp at Thomas-Drew

practice fields.

Below: Alabama quarterback Blake Sims steps back to throw the ball during practice. Sims believed in first-year offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin from the start, stating in fall camp that Kiffin interacts with his players very well.

Lane Kiffin, offensive coordinator: The phone wasn’t ringing a lot. That’s the reality. Regardless of (how) we all see ourselves in a different view a lot of times than others, I thought, well, OK, probably not going to get a head coaching job, but it will be easy to get an offensive coordinator job because of what we’ve done before and places we’ve been.

places he has been (but) I knew he was going to come in and do the right thing.

Davis: They said Lane’s biggest addition at that particular time was that he was able to incorporate some of the passing concepts, bringing in some of the West Coast (offense) concepts of moving people around, which obviously manifested itself over the course of the season where Amari Cooper was never in exactly the same place — a lot of the things creatively that they did to keep people from taking him away.

Davis: I asked some questions on the sideline, “Did Lane Kiffin just completely bring in his entire offensive stuff?” And they said, “Oh, no, no, no, no.” It was pretty much everything that Kiffin: they had been doing previ(Saban) called. He took a ously, prior to Lane being there, chance. I know he thought a lot as far as terminology, protec- about it. tions, all the numbering system and that kind of stuff, espeSaban: cially in the running game. It Look, there’s no doubt, there completely stayed the same. hasn’t ever been any doubt, about how good a coach Lane Sims: Kiffin is when it comes to His personality, he interacts coaching players, being an ofwith his players very well. He’s fensive coordinator, being a a hard worker. I know a lot of play-caller. people doubt him (at) certain Continued

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THE TUSCALOOSA NEWS Left:

Alabama tight end Brian Vogler turns to make a catch during fall camp practice.

Bottom left:

Alabama defensive lineman Jarran Reed runs drills.

Bottom right:

Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart throws the ball during a morning practice.

Staff file photos

Alabama was ranked No. 2 going into the season by the Associated Press and in the coaches’ poll.

As they worked their way through preseason practices, Alabama coaches and players began to get an idea of what kind of team they had on both sides of the ball.

ent mind set with our players.

Kirby Smart, defensive coordinator: To be honest with you, I thought we were going to be pretty good. We had more depth up front. If we didn’t lose any linebackers I thought we’d Saban: be OK because we don’t have Our situation is a lot different much depth there. I really this year than it’s been the last thought we’d play better in the couple of years when we were secondary. coming off successful seasons, championship seasons.

White: Having lost our last two games I had faith in the offense. last year, I think it’s a little differ- Man, I knew we would come

together. We just at first had to identity as a team at Alabama. find our identity.

It’s going to take every player to have a tremendous amount Davis: of buy-in for us to do that.

My first impression when I watched guys walk out of the Nick Perry, senior safety: locker room and stuff was that This group here, not a lot of this was a team on the hoof that us came in starting right away. completely passed the eye test. We all had to work to get our You went around to each of the spots on the field and a lot of individual groups and you us were on the third team, secsaid, gosh, great looking defen- ond team and scout team tosive linemen, a terrific group of gether. So we just formed that running backs, and so on. bond.

Saban: Sean Landry and Kelly Ward We have to establish our contributed to this report.