No time for Alabama to step back

TUSCALOOSA — To some, this could be the worst time to play Alabama.

The Crimson Tide displayed dominating physical toughness and 60-minute tenacity while routing then-No. 9 Clemson in last week’s season-opening 34-10 victory.

To others, however, it may be the best time to play Alabama.

Nick Saban’s team finds itself on the cover of the Sports Illustrated this week, not to mention with a No. 13 national ranking that is its highest since the 2005 season.

Tulane faces the Crimson Tide in Alabama’s home opener tonight at 6 p.m. The Green Wave was open last weekend, but hardly idle.
Bob Toledo moved his team to Birmingham for the week, forced from New Orleans by the threat of Hurricane Gustav.

“Watching them the other night ... it’s kind of scary,” Toledo said when asked about the Tide. “Not only do they have a great football team coming back, but they have the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation.

“I look at their freshman linebacker (Dont’a Hightower), I look at their freshman wide receiver (Julio Jones), I look at their freshman tailback (Mark Ingram) ... and then I look at the guys who are already there. Nick’s done a great job putting together a football team.”

Saban repeated his mantra of his team playing to its capabilities, regardless of the score or the opponent.

“It’s not about the other guy. It’s about you playing and having a physical and emotional commitment to playing to your capacity,” Saban said. “That’s harder for people to do sometimes when they have success than when they don’t. That’s a challenge for our team.”

Several Alabama players were leery that Tulane has seen the Tide on tape while remaining a mystery to the Tide.

Quarterback John Parker Wilson said the team was preparing off tape of last year’s Tulane team.

“That’s what we did with Clemson,” Wilson said. “There’s nothing we can do about them not playing.”

The Green Wave has Wilson’s attention. Of course, recent history has something to do with that.

“They gave LSU a run for their money last year,” the senior quarterback said. “I don’t think we’re going to take any team from Louisiana — that’s not in the conference we play — lightly this year.”

Running back Roy Upchurch said the Green Wave likely will blitz a lot and go man-to-man and challenge Alabama to make plays.

“Whatever they throw at us, we still have the basic principles,” Upchurch said. “We just go by the rules of football.”

How big a victory would it be for Tulane? The Green Wave is 10-104-2 against ranked opponents. Tulane hasn’t defeated a team in the Top 25 since knocking off LSU 31-28 in Baton Rouge in 1982. Since then, the Wave is 0-32 against ranked teams.