November 06, 2004 At the risk of offending any Republicans who aren't feeling magnanimous after last Tuesday's landslide, it's not time for the Alabama football team to drop that banner just yet.
Yes, the Crimson Tide has reached the six-win plateau. Yes, the Tide will get a nice bowl trip to Atlanta or Nashville or Shreveport. Yes, it helps recruiting. Yes, it's good for a team to get the added practice time that comes with postseason eligibility. But the real mission of this Alabama football team should be more than beating the six most beatable teams on its schedule. No, that's not a criticism. It's certainly not a failure to recognize all the adversity that Alabama's team has overcome to reach this point. But there are still two regular-season chances at huge wins -- one against an old rival that's coming off a national championship, and a second against an even bigger rival that's bidding for a national championship of its own. That's where this team can really make its mark in history in blazing letters. Mike Shula says the same thing. In the understandable excitement about earning a bowl trip -- the first for all except the grizzled veterans on this team -- Shula got an ice-water bath. In the coach's estimation, it was premature. "The water on the back is nice," Shula said. "But we want to save that for when we win the big one." That comment doesn't mean that Shula was slighting Mississippi State. He spent a good part of his postgame news conference praising MSU coach Sylvester Croom, and it wasn't just lip service. Croom brought in a Mississippi State team that could easily have collapsed after some ignominious early losses, and had them playing tough football. For all the outside issues that had accompanied this game, it really boiled down to the same thing that lots of Alabama-Mississippi State football games have boiled down to, long before either Shula or Croom were ever hired. It was a hard-hitting, old-fashioned game -- not mistake-free -- that was finally settled because Alabama had more players and more playmakers (even in its current state of attrition). It wasn't a case where someone "outcoached" the guy on the other sideline. Both coaches did just fine, and both programs should feel comfortable with the man they have. Alabama should feel comfortable -- but not content. "We've got to put it aside right away," Shula said when asked again about bowl eligibility. "We've still got a lot of work to do. First, we've got to get healthy. We've got to have a long discussion about what we're going to do in practice this week, because we are beat up. Then we've got to get focused on playing the defending national champion (LSU) at their place. And we've got to play better than we did tonight." Alabama did improve in some areas on Saturday night. It was the best game yet for Spencer Pennington at quarterback -- not enough to make anyone forget Namath or Stabler, but at least enough to make LSU and Auburn aware that he can throw the ball. Brian Bostick made some big pressure-packed kicks, although Brandon Brooks' fumble on a punt return makes it hard to say that special teams were "improved." It wasn't the defense's best game, but that's only because the Tide defense has set a lofty standard for itself this season. And all that might be good enough, given the circumstances surrounding this season. It might be good enough that Alabama has established a no-nonsense attitude, and earned more respect than it had at the beginning of the year. But there is a chance to do more -- a lot more. It might be a slim chance. LSU and Auburn are as good as any teams Alabama has played this year. Only Tennessee would be comparable. Against the Vols, Alabama was able to make it close, but not to win, and winning is what counts. So the Crimson Tide can't pause to take a deep breath. It can't simply start dreaming of a bowl game. The toughest two-game stretch of the schedule is ahead. The Tide shouldn't say "Mission Accomplished," without seeing if it can go beyond anything it has done to this point. Cecil Hurt is sports editor of The Tuscaloosa News. Reach him at [EMAIL PROTECTED] or at (205) 722-0225. _______________________________________________ RTF mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://rolltidefan.net/mailman/listinfo/rtf_rolltidefan.net
