The Blame Game Became the Story at the Sugar Bowl: All Things CW

The All Things CW notes column by Christopher Walsh will appear in five parts this week, one each day week, as the Alabama Crimson Tide prepares to face Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl. This is ...

Take 5

The story of the Sugar Bowl for the Alabama Crimson Tide became the equivalent of a snipe hunt.

For those of you who don't know, or were never part of one as a practical joke, a snipe hunt is a search or quest for an imaginary creature.

All this week in New Orleans everyone's been asked different versions of the same question, what happened to this team? Why is it playing in the Sugar Bowl instead of the College Football Playoff.

No one seemed to have much of an answer, but then Nick Saban said the following on his radio show Thursday night while talking about how enjoyable the bowl practices have been.

"The playoff teams are always ready to roll," he said. "But all the blinking lights are gone. You know what I mean by blinking lights? You know when you look at a Christmas tree and one light’s blinking and that’s all you look at is the blinking light? You don’t see the beauty of all the rest of it."

Some took that as to offering an excuse. They shouldn't.

Ever since this team took two losses, there was an immediate shift among fans as to who should be blamed. The coordinators were at the top of the list, and both Bill O'Brien and Pete Golding were asked about not meeting expectations this week.

O'Brien helped guide Bryce Young to the Heisman Trophy last year but now can't coach? Please.

Yet the snipe hunt has continued, and now we're down to the backup players, because most of the transfer departures who are not in New Orleans this week were reserves.

Consequently, Saban's back to talking about energy vampires, people who bring others down with their lack of effort and attitude.

"I don’t think it’s necessarily something you can sense throughout the year," senior guard Emil Ekiyor Jr. "I think it’s kind of towards the end, maybe, that guys got a little checked out at the end of the season and we just knew that 'Oh he might be leaving.'

"It wasn’t really expressed amongst the team and there wasn’t really anything said in the locker room. Guys still showed up to practice and everything and didn’t really complain much, but towards the end of the season we all understood that they made a decision that was best for themselves and we wish them the best wherever they go."

That's the correct attitude: Thanks for what you did and good luck in the future.

But it's folly to think that Alabama lost two games, both on the final play and one in overtime, in two brutal venues, because of the players who have already left.

First off, it's not accurate.

Second, it's incredibly disrespectful to the opposing teams, which were both more desperate to win those games than Alabama. They were also pretty good, have good coaches, and took advantage of the situation.

This is the Southeastern Conference. It's not supposed to be easy.

Third, it implies that the players didn't care. Of course they did.

Linebacker Will Anderson Jr. disclosed that he cried after both losses, especially after the LSU game, because he knew what it meant.

Anyone can sit and play the 'What if' game. What if Young didn't get hurt? What if a certain position group had been a little better. What if those games where played somewhere else? What if a play had gone differently ...

It doesn't do any good.

You run a race and if you don't win there's no going back. That's the nature of sports, and dealing with adversity is part of it.

But the Crimson Tide still didn't pack it in. Although the odds were clearly stacked against Alabama, it clawed back to a No. 5 ranking, and came oh-so-close to still making the College Football Playoff.

That's something this team, and everyone on it including the ones who already transferred, should take pride in, especially if the Crimson Tide plays well against Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl.

If so, it'll hopefully end all the second-guessing and put those losses in the rear-view mirror. Otherwise, it could be a long offseason.

"We loved all the guys that were here but, you know, as a team they’re not here anymore so the guys that are in the room know they had to step up," wide receiver Ja'Corey Brooks said. "We all had to step up. Really nothing had to change. Everybody still plays their role and everybody has to do their job."

Jalen Hurts is built differently

This week, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni took exception to the repeated questions he took about former Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Hurts and his separated shoulder.

His initial response was: "I'll never put a timetable on him. He has a sprained shoulder, and I don’t put anything past [QB] Jalen Hurts as far as his mental and physical toughness. There’s a chance he could play this week.”

The Philadelphia media, though, kept pressing the issue. It got to the point that the coach used the "he's a professional athlete" answer to the extreme.

The thing is, what he said is also true. Check it out:

.@JalenHurts is built different 🤷‍♂️#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/GAyrQsAWh9
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) December 28, 2022

Tide-Bits

• Mark Ingram II will be the sideline reporter on the Alabama radio broadcast of the Sugar Bowl.

• Former Alabama soccer player Reyna Reyes, a MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalist and the SEC Defender of the Year, was listed among Five Prospects to Know for the 2023 NWSL Draft. Also in the four-round draft on Jan. 12 in Philadelphia is goaltender McKinley Crone and forward/midfielders Riley Mattingly Parker, Ashlynn Serepca and Riley Tanner.

• According to Monday Morning Quarterback's Albert Breer, Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien returning to the New England Patriots remains a strong possibility (and in his opinion should happen), but other teams including the Texans and Raiders might be a possibility if they make a move. Tom E. Curran of Yahoo Sports also told WEEI that a source close to the organization has told him the Patriots remain the team to watch.

“Folks who are knowledgeable in this that I reached out to in the last couple of days who would have insight, I said, ‘Would Bill [Belichick] want Bill O’Brien?’ Because that question has really not been asked. There’s a perception that, ‘Hey, it’s a done deal. Of course Bill would want him back.’ But I asked and the individual said, ‘Absolutely.’

“And they said, ‘I’m surprised if it’s not in the works or a done deal already.’ So, to me, all the conversations that we’ve had about Bill O’Brien in the media and in the fanbase, behind the scenes there’s an expectation from people who know more than us and know the relationships better that, yeah, that’s probably going to happen.”

• There's growing sentiment that Young and Anderson could go 1-2 in the 2023 NFL Draft, but obviously a lot of that will be determined by which teams are selecting first and second. The latest mock draft by Kevin Hanson of Sports Illustrated has it that way, though, with Young going first to the Texans and Anderson landing with the Bears.

He wrote: "After trading away Khalil Mack before the season and Robert Quinn during it, no team has recorded fewer sacks through Week 16 than the Bears (18). There is little that Anderson can’t do, as he uses his strength, length and explosiveness to disrupt opposing offenses against both the pass and run.

He also had Brian Branch going 30th to the Bills, which would probably be a great fit for the defensive back.

Take 5

Jalen Hurts is built differently

Tide-Bits

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