Chris Stewart Sports

I'm not going to kid you, this was a strange week for me.

When you spend all but 2 of the previous 14 weeks prepapring for a football game, not having one is a bit odd. Adding to it is the fact that I didn't have a basketball game, either, until today.

It will be a big one, though. Texas A&M is good, and this is the type of team against which I think Alabama very badly needs a win. It will help build the Tide's post season resume and confidence in themselves against a good opponent.

I think it could help re-build some fan support, as well. There are many explainable factors for  attendance being low last Sunday, yet it doesn't change the fact that many people are taking a "wait and see" approach to this program before they decide to come out to Coleman Coliseum. 

Hopefully a quality performance, against a quality opponent, will result in quality numbers returning to see the Tide play.

Two key players to look out for are Josh Carter and Donald Sloan, both of whom hurt the Tide last year. Sloan had 15 points and 8 assists in leading the Aggies to a win in College Station, while Carter, the school's all-time leader in three-point shooting, hit clutch shots to keep Alabama at more thna arms length.

If Senario Hillman and Alonzo Gee can play with the same aggressiveness that they hsowed on both ends of the floor against Louisiana, I think the Crimson Tide will win. It's also time for JaMychal Green to have a big game. He's learned some lessons of how to play in the post in Division One basketball, and now it's time to step up. While Yamene Coleman, Justin Knox, and Demetrius Jemison will all be called upon at times, this team can't reach its potential without him being a force in the paint.

Air time tonight starts at 6:30 on the Crimson Tide Sports Network, with tipoff at 7. I'll see you tonight on the radio.

Roll Tide!!!!!!

More hardware for football....

To the victor goes the spoils, and certainly Alabama Football was a victor many times this season. That's why it's no surprise this team is bringing in the post season awards in droves. It's all deserving, and does nothing but help the future growth of this program.

If anyone other than Nick Saban had won coach-of-the-year it would have been a crime. I don't have to explain to Tide fans what he has meant to the program. No one doubted that he would win, but it's a short list of people - likely one that didn't include his name, either - that believed a 12-0 run through the regular season could this quickly.