Bill from NYC

They also might not be. Arkansas looks pretty good too and would probably stand out in any other conference. One point that I wish to make is that NIL has changed things. I have made the point many times that football is a hard game to play when you have a million in cash in your pocket. How motivated would you have been at age 18 or 19 to get hit by Reuben Foster (I'm totally thinking that you know who he is)? Many kids are getting paid BEFORE they even get to school. Not only that, they are free to leave when they choose to and get money from another school. My point is, it will be harder even for great coaches like Saban to get these kids to be willing to do the things necessary to be winners on the field and in life. Don't get me wrong, other coaches can and do face the same problems. It is hard for me to predict what will happen. As for Alabama, they played a horrible game. The stunk up the field last season against Auburn too. Then they came back and beat up Georgia with a less talented team than this one at most positions, to include the entire defense. I don't expect them to collapse with all of that talent down there, as well as the GOAT coach. That said, Saban has many issues to deal with as we speak. As always, thanks for the dialogue.

LOL OK. Let's be sure to revisit this as the season progresses.

It's a long, long journey So stay by my side When I walk through the storm You'll be my guide, be my guide If they gave me a fortune My pleasure would be small I could lose it all tomorrow And never mind at all But if I should lose your love dear I don't know what I'd do For I know I'll never find Another you

And well deserved. I am not in any way glad that Alabama played so poorly, but I will not miss the early season #1 ranking. The Tide players (coached by Saban or not) played as if they were all great and unbeatable. Now, it would seem like these same players have quite a bit to prove. I think that Saban was right about "rat poison." Wasn't their starting QB also from Ohio State? He too seemed to be very talented before he went down.

Save up your hate for another game. Better luck next time.👍 😃 I'm OK but I could use a valium.

If anybody is wondering, no; I did not suffer a heart attack nor am I on life support.

I hope that you are right but I prefer the under. Same here. Our LBs are better this season and the DL seems to be stronger vs. the run.

Your rain falls like crazy fingers Peals of fragile thunder, keeping time Recall the days that still are to come Some sing blue Hang your heart on laughing willow Stray down to the water Deep sea of love Beneath the sweet calm face of the sea Swift undertow

Gideon come up with his eyes on the floor Said "You ain't got a hinge, you can't close the door." Moses stood up a full six foot ten Said "You can't close the door when the wall's caved in."

Same here. Saban doesn't need to run up the score. i know that it is hard to believe but he doesn't care at all about the #1 ranking now, to the point where he probably wishes they were ranked lower. That is what the "rat poison" thing was about. I could also see the under because the Bama defense is MUCH better than last season, or so I think.

The 20 points seems too high for Alabama, unless the Texas defense really is THAT bad. I would also like to know a bit about the Texas OL.

And all at once you're ready to hang it up 'Cause things didn't turn out the way you planned And all your friends they're calling you a fool 'Cause you don't know a good thing When you got it in your hands Whatcha gonna do when she says goodbye Whatcha gonna do when she is gone Whatcha gonna do when she says goodbye Whatcha gonna do when she is gone

Maybe I should listen again. I thought that his take was that the Bills are built around Josh and that he is the franchise. Maybe I got this impression because it is MY take lol. I think that Diggs is a really good receiver, but he might not be quite AS good without Josh who I consider a genertional talent on a HOF path. I hope that McBeane will be smart enough to keep supplying this kid with tools and protection.

OK, but what about my earlier post in which I said that these kids should not play long schedules like the NFL? NIL notwithstanding, they ARE still college students, and they are risking MILLIONS of dollars if they get injured. And the truth is that a majority of these kids come from poor families. It makes sense too. I wouldn't want to get my brains knocked in by Von Miller or some human missle safety if I had a few million in my pocket. I know that these kids are modern day gladiators and we are the fans, but most (not all) are still just kids trying to escape poverty and get that fame and fortune. I would feel better if they dropped the conference title games and perhaps another game if they are going to add extra playoff games.

No team is unbeatable FC. I never made that ridiculous claim. Georgia just beat Bama for the title, and Bama could lose in almost any given week. I should however point out wrt the 10 losses that you list, they probably won 120 games during this span. Not too shabby and again, Saban took over a team in 2007 that was a hot mess. Can't other coaches rebuild poor programs? As far as the easy games, most teams simply do not want to play Alabama. I actually give credit for Oklahoma State for having the courage to do so in the future. When asked by reporters about teams refusing to play Bama, Saban challenged them to find teams willing to do so and said, "we'll play them." LOL. Besides, as I pointed out before; teams such as Clemson can go years playing 1 or maybe 2 good teams in an entire season and then waltz into the playoffs. Alabama has tough teams built into their schedule every season, no? Bama vs. Cincy? That was a perfectly coached game by Saban, who recently called 2021 a "rebuilding year," and it clearly was. They had lost their 2 great receivers, a great RB, their Center and LT, their best DL, the starting TE, their best CB, and their QB. The 2020 team would have put up 60 points against Cincy if they wanted to. They almost did against OSU. Against Cincy they just pounded the ball on the ground. They were just too big and strong for Cincy (who btw did play surprisingly well Saturday while losing to Arkansas). In summary, I am not afraid of competition. I just wish that other teams outside of the Big 10 and SEC would face some. Thank you. We should be able to discuss these things without being online enemies. Life is too short. I apologize if I was being too abrupt. Btw, I just gave your school credit in a post above (as I have before) for having courage.

Don't tell me to STFU until you own or moderate this board. Now, go back to your basement and do whatever it is that you do while fantasizing about your team being somehow relevant.

You again? Bowl games are all but meaningless. Many players boycott them. They are the equivalent of NFL preseason games, if that. Congrats to OK State for having a fairly decent team last season, weak competition notwithstanding. If the Big 12 was even half decent, Oklahoma and Texas would not be beating down the doors to get out of it, following the lead of Texas A&M, and even Arkansas fleeing the SWC in the 90's. The best hope for OK St. would be to become the Clemson of the Big 12. They (if they remain a decent team) could perhaps feast on weak sisters and slide into the playoffs, until of course they are slaughtered by superior teams. As for the Crimson Tide, their team last season was perhaps the worst one they fielded in 10 years or so. They still came within 15 minutes of a championship, this without their top 2 receivers. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and speculate that there is not 1 Alabama football fan in the country that is, or would be worried about Oklahoma State but again, they do look great against their conference patsies.

Also, 300 yards isn't the accomplishment that it used to be. Would the stats be WAY different if they used 350 yards instead?

Maybe so but he made a ton of sense in this clip.

I agree 100%!!! Btw another example I could point to is Clemson. Are they a very good team? Absolutely. Are they well coached? Yes. Are there any other good teams in their conference? Well, Miami is now well coached and will almost certainly improve. Who else? I think no other team in the ACC is all that good. Clemson (again, a VERY good team) gets to feast on nobodies and gets into the playofs less banged up amd more rested than their opponents., while teams like OSU, Michigan and SEC Teams are tested quite often. As for me, I would be open to schedule reform but it doesn't matter what I think.

Yes, but what? A few points..... 1) Now that players are getting paid, should we expect them to play even more games? Doing so gives them a much bigger risk of injury and perhaps losing out on a VERY lucrative NFL career. Some kids are already skipping bowl games. 2) Should winners of inferior conferences (Pac 12, Big 12) receive automatic playoff spots? These teams are perhaps as good as a middle of the pack SEC teams, if that. 3) Should Group of 5 teams also be ushered into these playoffs? How will they shape up against Bama, Georgia and OSU? 4) Depth will now be the biggest factor in winning championships rather than pure talent and superior coaching. I expect Coach Saban to pull players earlier than he seems to like. The backups are going to have to be ready because players will be going down. Of this I have zero doubt. 5) Perhaps conference title games should be eliminated. Will this happen? Of course not because they are pure profit. 6) Again, these are college students who are young, still growing, and should not have to play NFL schedules. How long before it is expanded again to 64 teams, in order to give even more second rate (or perhaps so-so) teams a playoff berth? What number of games is too many? Coach Saban went to Alabama (which would seem to have less appeal to recruits than California and many other states) and built a championship team from one that had been playing poorly almost every season since they lost Bear Bryant. Perhaps other coaches should learn from him and copy his methods and work ethic. It worked for our own McDermott in using the term "process" that Saban invented. Maybe then they will find a way to consistantly beat him but no; it's easier to just change the rules.

This is nonsense. Inevitable but nonsense. Yeah, put the winner of the Big 12 and the PAC 12 in the playoffs, despite their clear lack of talent. 😒 These conferences will soon be lucky to exist. And let's be sure to bring in inferior Group of 5 teams and make the playoffs a complete farce.

LOL

Years ago, owners would slip defenders money to pay fines for late hits. Now, if they are called the players MUST pay it themselves because the penalties to the owners would be severe. The DEs are loathe to pay these fines and are more careful and the numbers probably reflect this. It shoud also be noted that most DEs are faster now and more agile. As you know, they too are taken in the top 5. I think that if Edge Rusher Will Anderson stays healthy he will be the first player selected next year. Teams (especially the Bills) need a good to great LT to protect their most important player. The Jets btw are another pathetic, idiotic franchise. They took a corner from a group of 5 school at #4 (with Evan Neal sitting there mind you), and just lost their left tackle. I am at a complete loss to understand how professional football people could be so inept. I rank the Jason Taylor trade as an epic disaster and a strikingly dumb move, even for the Bills of old. However this is just my (however strong) opinion, and thanks for the dialogue.

Cleveland is another example of a team with ongoing stupidity. And if the Browns had selected Peterson he would have had a much worse career, especially sans Thomas. Besides WEO, a running back over a great Left tackle? Only a franchise that was managed by idiots or those only thinking in terms of profit would do something this stupid. I think that as long time Bills fans, many of us have built up a resistance towards stupid contractual moves and ridiculous draft picks, and defend such idiocy as a reflexive action. For instance, in 2007 when the Bills were desperate for OL help, the morons in charge drafted Leodis McKelvin with Ryan Clady and Branden Albert sitting there and some folks thought it was OK. Historically, Bills draft choices were dumb to the point of being indefensible and so was the trade of Peters, for whom we obtained a pretty good and sometimes frail center. Good, solid line play is essential at every level of football. Before the rule changes, hits that would now be considered VERY late were totally legal, so yes, LT was THE 2nd most important position. One thing that I'm sure we can agree on is how great it is that we lucked into Josh Allen. Now, let's hope that he gets enpogh tools and protection. GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!