Alabama

Man, I feel like the football season's starting! That's how excited I am about the start of SEC play at Alabama tonight. This is where everything starts, boys.

Look, we're 14-0, which is ungodly. NO ONE should ever start a season 14-0, not in this day and age of baseball. So it's an accomplishment and I'd never take that away. But we've faced exactly ONE team (Arizona) who sports a winning record right now, and neither of the first two teams we faced had won a single game at the end of our series with them. I still say we haven't truly been tested, although I like the way we've played from behind and the way we've been able to recover from errors.

Then again, the one team we did face with a winning record:

a) We swept them in their house
b) We scored double digits in every game of the sweep
c) We never trailed
d) We avenged a 1-2 series loss which started our season last year. And last year's team was good enough to go to the CWS final!

Our boys are speedy, speedier than they've been in YEARS. For the first time in a long time, we have not one, not two, not three, but FOUR legitimate steal threats in Taylor, Verdin, Cone, and Demperio. Even Rich Poythress -- who's a BIG boy -- has stolen a couple of bags this year. How many men did we leave on base against Fresno last year? If I could magically retrieve my scorecards from year-old trash, I'd be able to tell you, but it was a LOT. Imagine if they'd been quick on the basepaths? Imagine what options we would have had then!

Alabama is a tough nut to crack. I'll never downgrade SEC competition, especially in baseball, but I don't know that they'll be much of a test. They're 9-4, with a series loss to Southeast Missouri State, a loss in a one-off to Troy, and a loss to Auburn, who hasn't been very good the past couple of years. Then again, we were terrible in 2007 and look what happened the next year. So who's to say? Also, we haven't taken a series against Alabama in Tuscaloosa since 1993. But I think that our first major test is going to be in Athens against Mississippi State, as far as SEC competition goes. That's not to say I expect to sweep Alabama; I fully expect a rubber game on Sunday. But wouldn't it be sweet to go into that MSU home series 18-0?

Okay. I'm too excited. I feel the urge to drive down to Tuscaloosa right now and see if I can get a ticket, so it's probably time to get to work working.

GO DAWGS!!!!

Okay, a little more fuel to the fire:

*Since 1993, Alabama is 14-4 against us.
*Our only home SEC series loss last year came against the Tide.
*One week later, Alabama knocked us out of the SEC Tournament.

And one more thing about the streak:

*The last time we won 14 games in a row was 1990. Anyone know what we did that year? Anyone? Bueller?

Also going to be interesting because it is going to rain here in alabama this weekend

I can't stand the Tide! What I would like our team to do to them is more than likely illegal in all 50! Go DAWGS!!

Oh, what an exciting year 1990 was! We were a good competitive team, but no one expected how that year would end. Hope the 2009 football season mirrors that season. CDP was on that team. He was a utility type player wasn't he? Good hitter! We also has a pitcher that year, Dave Fleming, who made a big splash in the Major Leagues in 1992 finishing third in ROY voting before arm trouble cut his career short. Didn't we finish that championship year with the same team we open the football season with this year? GO DAWGS!

Well, crap. Rain has postponed the game until 3:00 pm on 3/14 as the first game in a doubleheader. Ah, well. ROLL OVER THE TIDE!!!