Lauren Esman entered as a pinch hitter, hitting a single to center field to move Dowling to third, but a Riley Valentine strikeout and an Emma Broadfoot foul out ended the Crimson Tide threat. Despite being up against a Tennessee pitching staff that has the lowest ERA in the country (1.40) and one that did not give up a run across its three games played in the Knoxville Regional, Alabama jumped out to an early lead in Knoxville on Friday. Alabama Crimson Tide football enters a new era as legendary head coach Nick Saban enters retirement and former Washington Huskies head coach Kalen DeBoer takes over in Tuscaloosa. Though he was a top coach in 2023, there are questions about how he will perform under the pressure of immediately succeeding Saban. A major Livescore 808 Indonesia positive for the Crimson Tide came last weekend when the staff received commitments from two Class of 2026 prospects.
The class-action federal lawsuit at the center of the settlement, House v. the NCAA, was set to go to trial in January. Now it is not far-fetched to look ahead to seasons where star quarterbacks or top prospects on college basketball teams are not only cashing in big-money NIL deals but have six-figure school payments in the bank to play. The deal still must be approved by the federal judge overseeing the case and plaintiffs will have the opportunity to opt out or challenge terms of the agreement.
By Thursday night, video conference interviews had taken place, and UB president Dr. Satish K. Tripathi had been looped into the process that Friday, which was done entirely by video conferences. Nothing really prepares an administrator for when a coach leaves, even if that head coach has given some notice, as Alnutt said Linguist had done, even if only a few hours before the news broke that he was about to head to Alabama. Linguist called Alnutt to tell him Alabama had reached out to him about an opening on DeBoer’s staff. Nobody could predict how many changes came from one person’s decision to retire from college football. The news in January that Alabama coach Nick Saban was retiring after 17 years with the Crimson Tide and 51 years in coaching started as a report on ESPN, then quickly became a nationwide shockwave.
This would have been an epic Camp Randall Stadium night game, right up there with the best atmospheres in recent memory. It’s a different Alabama team with Nick Saban retiring during the offseason. Yet it’s still a formidable team likely to open the season ranked in the top 10. Fickell will have an opportunity to earn a signature win during his brief time at Wisconsin.
In Week 2, Alabama will host the University of South Florida Bulls for the final matchup of the two programs’ home-and-home series. In 2023, Alabama survived an ugly game that featured a benched Jalen Milroe, a torrential downpour that caused a weather delay and a surprisingly tough USF team that showed up to play. This offseason, the Bulls revamped its roster and got significantly better. USF knows it can defy the odds and take down Alabama and the team may have some added desire to know that they would be upsetting the Tide in Bryant-Denny Stadium. If you are a fan of Alabama football and feel 100% confident about this game, I would do a little bit more research on this season’s upcoming USF team. There is still a question of whether athletes should be deemed employees of their schools, something Baker and other college sports leaders are fighting against.
In the regular season series against Tennessee, Alabama only scored one run total in all three games. Centerfielder Kristen White led off the game with a single down the left field line. Rylie West couldn't corral the ball, and White was able to reach third on the play.
Following Nick Saban’s retirement, Blackshire joined fellow former Crimson Tide players Isaiah Bond and Amari Niblack in transferring to Texas to play for former Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian. Jonathan Allen is one of Washington's longest-tenured players has seen a lot of change and experienced a lot of losing. The team has been known as three different names, he has played in just one playoff game and he's on his fourth coach. Smith seemed in line to receive a bigger role in 2023 before injuries forced him to miss most of the season. Now, with significant shakeup at defensive back, Smith could have an opportunity to start at the Husky defensive back spot, which is essentially the nickel defensive back in Wommack's defense. Having long waited for an opportunity like this one, Smith is in a good spot to have a breakout season if he wins the starting job.
Finishing the season a few games over .500 ought to be considered successful, but imagine if one of those wins was against the Alabama Crimson Tide. As has been the case for a while now, every team at every level will play its absolute best when facing Alabama. Getting the chance to take on the historical powerhouse on your home field is a great opportunity to make some memories and win an upset.