Nick Saban, always one step ahead

It didn't take Alabama football coach Nick Saban long to find away around the new NCAA rule --- AKA the "Saban rule" --- that prohibits head coaches from recruiting off-campus during the spring recruiting period (April 15-May 31).

Saban has begun taking advantage of new technology, using video-conferencing over the Internet to get a chance to meet coaches and prospects that he would have previously been allowed to meet in person. Here's the explanation Saban offered during his Crimson Caravan stop at Talladega Superspeedway on Tuesday night :

"We had video conferencing in our office from a medical standpoint, for some of our guys to use to talk to sports psychiatrists and different things like that," Saban said. "It was just a part of our program; it's a part of our peer-intervention program. We have several people involved in that. So, we had it. Obviously, we've seen it used before and we've used it before and just thought it would be a much better opportunity, a personal opportunity, to visit with the high school coach, as well as the prospect, even though in most cases, they end up calling us."

It will be interesting to see how long it takes the NCAA to try and close this loophole as well, the way it did with text-messaging. But you have to give Saban credit for always trying to be one step ahead of the competition when it comes to recruiting, and just about everything else.

Couple of newsworthy items

Few things on a Friday afternoon:

* First, Alabama has set its 2008 homecoming football game. It will be the Nov. 1 game against Arkansas State.

That's a little later than ideal in terms of weather, but since schools generally like to face a non-conference (read: beatable) opponent for homecoming, it might have been the only option. The Tide's other non-conference home games are against Tulane on Sept. 6 and Western Kentucky on Sept. 13, dates considered too early for homecoming.

* Alabama's baseball team was picked to finish last in the SEC West by league coaches. That's no surprise, given the Crimson Tide returns virtually no experienced pitchers from a year ago.

But baseball teams have been been known to make significant one-year turnarounds, so I wouldn't count Alabama out of the race just yet. The Crimson Tide opens the season a week from today, at home against Cal Poly on Feb. 22.

* Speaking of baseball, one of the Crimson Tide's all-time greats announced his retirement from the game on Friday. Jeremy Brown, a catcher at Alabama from 1999-2002, hung up his spikes after six years in the Oakland Athletics' system.

Brown was a first-round pick by the Athletics in 2002 and a prominent figure in the best-selling Michael Lewis book "Moneyball." But due to injuries and perhaps just bad luck, he never stuck at the major-league level, getting 10 at-bats in his lone big-league call-up in 2006.

* Fourth, and not least, Alabama softball is off to a 6-0 start heading into today's Crimson Classic. The Crimson Tide, ranked No. 4 in the country and preseason SEC favorite, has already sold every tickets for its home schedule.

Spring Football

For those of you wanting to keep up with the rest of the league, here's the spring football dates as released by the SEC.

Alabama (Start: March 13 / Finish: April 15 / Spring Game - April 12)
Arkansas (Start: April 3 / Finish: April 26)
Auburn (Start: Feb. 28 / Finish: March 29)
Florida (Start: March 19 / Finish: April 12)
Georgia (Start: March 3 / Finish: April 5)
Kentucky (Start: March 26 / Finish: April 19)
LSU (Start: Feb. 29 / Finish: April 5)
Ole Miss (Start: March 17 / Finish: April 12)
Mississippi State (Start: Feb. 26 / Finish: March 29)
South Carolina (Start: March 19 / Finish: April 19)
Tennessee (Start: March 11 / Finish: April 19)
Vanderbilt (Start: March 11 / Finish: April 5 / Spring Game - March 29)

Thompson named top recruiter

In perhaps the least surprising news of the week, Alabama assistant coach Lance Thompson has been named Rivals.com's National Recruiter of the Year. Read that story here.

Thompson helped Alabama lock down the talent-rich Mobile area this year, serving as the primary recruiter for the likes of Julio Jones, Burton Scott, Mark Barron and Glenn Harbin. In total, he secured 10 verbal commitments, two from five-star prospects and six from four-star prospects.

Alabama landed what has universally been regarded as the top signing class in the country Wednesday, and Thompson was perhaps the biggest reason why.

Rivals.com also released its Top 25 recruiters for 2008 on Wednesday. Read that story here.

One flaw in Rivals' system is that only one coach from each school was listed. Alabama's Curt Cignetti, Kirby Smart and Kevin Steele probably deserved to be on that list in addition to Thompson.

Head-to-head = no contest

Alabama didn't sign every player it went after this football recruiting season, it just seemed that way. But perhaps more signficantly, the Crimson Tide absolutely hammered Auburn on the recruiting front, both in-state and out-of-state.

You can theorize all you want as to why this is, but it's safe to say that Nick Saban's arrival has upped the stakes in at least this aspect of the Iron Bowl rivalry. Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville spent signing day and much of the last week trying to explain this trend, and I won't comment on that here.

But as Kevin Bacon said in "A Few Good Men," these are the facts, and they are indisputable:

* Alabama signed 22 players rated four- or five-star prospects by Rivals.com, and 20 rated rated four- or five-star prospects by Scout.com. Auburn signed six and five, respectively.

* Rivals.com ranked 16 players in the state of Alabama's Class of 2008 as four-star or better prospects. Alabama signed 12 (including the Top 5 and 7 of the Top 10), Florida 2, Clemson 1 and Auburn 1 (No. 13 Cameron Henderson).

* Scout.com ranked 11 players in the state of Alabama's Class of 2008 as four-star or better prospects. Alabama signed 8 (including the Top 5), Florida 2, Clemson 1 and Auburn ZERO.

But perhaps the most telling stat --- and the most-disheartening one if you're an Auburn fan --- is this:

According to the individual player scholarship offers tracked by Rivals.com, Alabama signed 15 players who also had offers from Auburn. Auburn signed ZERO that also had offers from Alabama (I would link this info, but it's subscriber-only content on Rivals, so you'll just have to believe me if you're not a subscriber to that Web site).

I'm not saying this proves anything, least of all that Alabama is about to begin dominating Auburn on the field. But anyone who says the Crimson Tide didn't just do so in recruiting is either ill-informed or in full Orange and Blue spin mode.

Tide on top

Julio Jones' committment to Alabama vaulted the Crimson Tide into the No. 1 spot in the national recruiting rankings, according to Rivals.com. The Tide had been second at the beginning of the day.

See that list here.

Alabama already ranked No. 1 according to Scout.com.

Julio to Alabama

Five-star wide receiver prospect Julio Jones of Foley has verbally committed to Alabama. Check annistonstar.com for updates throughout the day.

Alabama recruiting tracker, 3rd update

Add the following players to Alabama's official list of 2008 signees, according to rolltide.com:

DB Wesley Neighbors
DE Michael Williams
DL Brandon Lewis
DB Alonzo Lawrence
OL John Michael Boswell

Dareus brothers to Bama?

Birmingham Huffman football players Marcel and Demerius Dareus each verbally committed to Alabama on Wednesday morning, but it's unclear if both will sign with the Crimson Tide.

Of the two, only Marcel Dareus has a firm offer from the Crimson Tide, according to Rivals.com. Marcel, a 6-foot-4, 275-pound, three-star defensive tackle, chose the Crimson Tide over offers from Auburn and North Carolina, among others.

Demerius Dareus, a 6-5, 245-pound defensive end, is rated a two-star prospect by Rivals.com. He had reported offers from Arkansas, Southern Miss and Tennessee, but apparently not from Alabama.

Guess we'll have to wait until Alabama's official list of signees comes out before we know if the Crimson Tide landed one or two Dareus brothers today.

Alabama recruiting tracker, 2nd update

Add the following six players officially to Alabama's 2008 signing class, according to rolltide.com:

DL Damian Square
RB Ivan Matchett
OL Tyler Love
DL Undra Billingsley
DL Glenn Harbin
LB Courtney Upshaw

Also, Birmingham Huffman defensive tackle has pushed his announcement back to 11 a.m. He's narrowed his choices to Alabama, Auburn and North Carolina.

Quinn commits to North Carolina

Robert Quinn, a 4-star defensive end prospect from North Charleston, S.C., committed and signed with North Carolina on Wednesday, a rare recruiting loss for Alabama.

Quinn, from Fort Dorchester High School, had narrowed his final three choices to North Carolina, Alabama and Auburn, but ultimately opted to stay close to home and signed with the Tar Heels.

Alabama has gotten commitments from nearly every major prospect it has recruited this winter, and will receive word from the likes of five-star wide receiver Julio Jones and four-star linebacker Jerrell Harris later today.

Alabama recruiting tracker, update

Add the following to Alabama's 2008 signing class,according to rolltide.com:

DB Robby Green
OL Barrett Jones
LB Don'ta Hightower
RB Chris Jordan
DB Mark Barron
QB Brad Smelley
WR Destin Hood
RB Jermaine Preyear

Alabama recruiting tracker

For the first time, Alabama is giving live recruiting updates on its official site, rolltide.com. As of 8:20 a.m., the Crimson Tide had two letters of intent in hand, from Tallahassee, Fla., wide receiver Melvin Ray, and Norcross, Ga., wide receiver/linebacker Devonta Bolton.

With the December signings of kicker Corey Smith (Bunker Hill, W.Va.) and wide receiver Chris Jackson (McDonough, Ga.), Alabama now has four official signees.

Check back throughout the day for updates ...

Spring start date set

Alabama football coach Nick Saban announced on Thursday that the Crimson Tide will begin spring practice on March 13, but will have its workout schedule interrupted by spring break.

The Crimson Tide will practice both March 13-14, then take the following week off for spring break. Practice will resume on March 24, with three workouts per week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) leading up to the April 12 A-Day game.

The reason for the split is to avoid conflicting with a triathlon event scheduled for Tuscaloosa on April 19. The two events coincided last year as well, but that didn't stop the Crimson Tide from drawing a record crowd of 92,138.

The spring practice schedule is less than ideal for another reason as well. March 13 is also the opening day of the SEC basketball tournament.

Tide hires McElwain as offensive coordinator

Per UA Media relations:

TUSCALOOSA --- Alabama head coach Nick Saban announced the hiring of Jim McElwain as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach on Wednesday.

McElwain served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Fresno State last year after spending the 2006 season in the NFL as quarterbacks coach for the Oakland Raiders. McElwain made an immediate impact in his first season at Fresno State as he helped lead the Bulldogs to a 9-4 record, a significant turnaround from the previous year in which Fresno State posted a 4-8 mark.

“Jim is a phenomenal coach and we are thrilled to have him on board,” said Alabama head coach Nick Saban. “He did an outstanding job last year at Fresno State. Their improvement on offense, especially in the play of their quarterback, was tremendous. They had an impressive showing offensively against a very good Georgia Tech defense in their bowl win. In terms of production, they upped their offensive numbers significantly compared to the previous year. He’s worked with some great coaches including Pat Hill, John L. Smith and Scott Linehan. He also brings NFL experience working with quarterbacks, which is another big plus. We talked to a large pool of coaches when we interviewed for this position and Jim was absolutely the best candidate we spoke to.”

McElwain’s offense at Fresno State averaged 419.5 yards per game (38th nationally) and 32.9 points per game (32nd) last season. That was a significant increase from the 2006 campaign when the Bulldogs averaged 338.2 yards per game in total offense and 23.0 points per game in terms of scoring offense. After Fresno State rolled up 571 yards of total offense and defeated Georgia Tech 40-28 in the Humanitarian Bowl, McElwain moved up to No. 18 in the Rivals.com national power rankings (offensive coaches). His quarterback, Tom Brandstater, finished 2007 with a passing efficiency rating of 140.5, which ranked 23rd in the country. Brandstater showed remarkable improvement under McElwain’s watch as he had posted a pass efficiency rating of 106.7 (89th) the previous year.

“I’m excited as heck about the opportunity to join the staff at the University of Alabama,” said McElwain. “I’m looking forward to the challenge and I’m ready to hit the ground running as soon as I arrive in Tuscaloosa. Coach Saban and his staff have the Alabama football program on the rise and I want to do my part to continue that momentum. I’m leaving a great place at Fresno State and appreciate all that Coach Hill, the players, the staff, and the fans did for me and my family while we were there.”

McElwain served as the assistant head coach, receivers coach and special teams coach at Michigan State from 2003-05. The 2003 team reached the Alamo Bowl behind a receiving corps that set school records for receptions (312) and yards (3,510). He coached 2004 All-America punter Brandon Fields and kicker Dave Rayner, who led the Big Ten Conference in scoring. In 2005, five Spartan receivers had at least 28 receptions and the group combined to a set another school record with 24 touchdown catches.

“Jim is a great coach and I think he’s going to be an outstanding head coach one day,” said Fresno State head coach Pat Hill. “We’ve lost some good assistants over the years and our offensive coordinators have gone on and done well, including Jeff Tedford at Cal. That’s the nature of the business. I never want to hold anyone back from better opportunities. Jim did a great job for us and we wish him and his family all the best.”

Prior to his stint at Michigan State, McElwain spent three seasons (2000-02) at Louisville as the receivers coach and special teams coach as the Cardinals earned bowl bids in each of those three seasons. He coached four first team All-Conference USA selections at Louisville and also tutored three of the Cardinals’ all-time leading receivers, including Deion Branch and Arnold Jackson.

From 1995-99, McElwain was the offensive coordinator, quarterbacks and receivers coach at Montana State. Under his direction, quarterback Rob Compson threw for nearly 7,000 career yards and a school-record 54 touchdowns. McElwain also coached the Bobcats’ all-time leading receiver Chip Hobbs, who caught 144 career passes for 2,060 yards and 18 TDs. Montana State led the Big Sky Conference in scoring in 1998, averaging 31.6 points per game.

McElwain was at Eastern Washington from 1985-94 in a variety of capacities, starting as a graduate assistant and working his way up to quarterbacks and receivers coach. The Eagles made two NCAA Division I-AA playoff appearances (1992 and 1995) and earned a share of the Big Sky Championship in 1992. McElwain coached EWU’s all-time leading receiver, Tony Brooks (2,969 career yards), who earned third team AP All-America honors in 1993.

An all-state quarterback at Missoula (Montana) Sentinel High School, McElwain played quarterback at Eastern Washington from 1980-83 and earned his degree in Education from EWU in 1984. He and his wife, Karen, have three children, JoHanna, Elizabeth and Jerrett.

Caldwell to announce plans on Monday

TUSCALOOSA --- Alabama offensive lineman Antoine Caldwell has scheduled a press conference for noon Monday to announce his status for the NFL draft.

Caldwell, a junior from Montgomery, has one year of eligibility remaining at Alabama, but said in December that he was considering forgoing his senior year. The deadline to enter the NFL draft is Tuesday.

Caldwell started nine games at four different positions for the Crimson Tide in 2007, but sat out four games due to a suspension for violations related to textbooks. He started at center in the Dec. 30 Independence Bowl, and is expected to play that same position in the NFL.

Caldwell filed paperwork with the NFL draft advisory board last month, and received word last week. He is believed to be projected as a third- or fourth-round pick should he enter the draft.

Caldwell has already graduated from Alabama, having received his degree in human environmental sciences last May. He began work on a second undergraduate degree in financial planning this past fall.

Alabama has not had a player leave early for the NFL since 2003, when both offensive lineman Justin Smiley and defensive end Antwan Odom departed after their junior seasons. Both Smiley and Odom were second-round picks, Smiley by San Francisco, Odom by Tennessee.

A-Day set for Saturday, April 12

Per Alabama media relations. No start date for spring practice has yet been set:

TUSCALOOSA --- The University of Alabama football program will hold its annual A-Day Spring Football Game on Saturday, April 12, 2008 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. A kickoff time remains undetermined. Further details about Alabama’s Spring Practices and all A-Day weekend activities will be released as they are finalized.

The rest of the story

A little more on the story that we ran on the page 5C dealing with the future of a playoff system in college football.

From the AJC story ...

Here is how the other presidents responded when asked which of four categories best summarized their stance:

It’s time for a playoff but I’m not sure about this particular model.
— Henry Bienen, Northwestern
— Richard Brodhead, Duke
— Jack Hawkins, Troy
— Robert Khayat, Ole Miss
— Steadman Upham, Tulsa
Brodhead said an eight-team playoff “makes the season too long” but “we might well support a four-team playoff.”

I’m not sure what the right answer is, but it’s time to at least talk about a playoff.
— James Barker, Clemson
— Scott Cowen, Tulane
— Robert Foglesong, Mississippi State
— Judy Genshaft, South Florida
— James Ramsey, Louisville
— Martha Saunders, Southern Miss
Said Ramsey: “On the surface, I think there needs to be careful analysis of a playoff - and if the analysis supports such a playoff, I would be in full favor.”

I think college football should stick with the BCS.
— David Ashley, UNLV
— Ray Authement, Louisiana-Lafayette
— Brady Deaton, Missouri
— Dave Frohnmayer, Oregon
— Jo Ann Gora, Ball State
— John Hennessy, Stanford
— Richard McCormick, Rutgers
— Sean O’Keefe, LSU
— Graham Spanier, Penn State
— Marlene Strathe, Oklahoma State
— Lee Todd, Kentucky
— John White, Arkansas
— John Wiley, Wisconsin
— Robert Witt, Alabama

Adams is sure to meet the most resistance from his fellow presidents at Big Ten and Pac-10 schools, who prefer their traditional arrangement with the Rose Bowl. He also could face an uphill battle in his own conference. Among the naysayers were four SEC leaders.

Jeff D’Alessio writes for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. E-mail: jd’alessio@ajc.com.

Major (Applewhite) vacancy?

Looks like Mack Brown could be prying around on the other side of the state now in attempts to bring a legend back to Austin.

But don't get your seat cushion in a wad just yet. It's just a (unlikely) rumor according to Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman.

With rumors swirling about the possible return of Longhorn legend Major Applewhite to Austin as new running backs coach with a possible title attached, here’s what we know.

Check the rest of it out here.

Rolando McClain, All-American

Courtesy Alabama media relations:

NEW ORLEANS, La. --- University of Alabama true freshman linebacker Rolando McClain has been named to the 2007 Freshman All-America team by the Football Writers Association of American (FWAA) at the organization’s annual awards breakfast on Tuesday.

McClain, a native of Decatur, started in nine of the team’s 13 games in his initial collegiate season. He became the first true freshman since Saleem Rasheed in 1999 to start the season-opener at the linebacker spot in Alabama’s 52-6 win over Western Carolina on Sept. 1.

A 2007 Coaches Freshmen All-Southeastern Conference selection, McClain finished the season with 75 tackles, good for fourth-best on the team. He added five tackles for loss, one sack, four pass breakups and two interceptions.

McClain had 15 tackles in the regular-season finale at Auburn and picked off a pass in the second quarter, the first interception of his career. Against Colorado in the PetroSun Independence Bowl, McClain tallied five tackles and picked off another pass on the Buffaloes’ first play from scrimmage despite playing with a fractured thumb.

For his efforts in the class room, McClain earned the team’s Academic Excellence Award at the team awards banquet in early December.