Alabama Football: Quinton Dial, Welcome to Nick Saban's Dog House

Nick Saban can tolerate—albeit very unhappily—mistakes. Dropped passes, missed tackles, minor mental errors. They wont get you benched for long, if at all. Blatant, stupid penalties, however, will. 

This is exactly happened to Quinton Dial when he nailed Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson square in the chin well after the ball was let go. When the next play began, Dial was on the bench and stayed there the rest of the game. 

Dont'a Hightower accrued a dumb penalty as well, but he's not "benchable" like Dial is. A second-string junior college transfer doesn't have the luxury of doing something stupid once in a while.

People always talk of how great Alabama is at this, or that. They take pride in the team's depth, its reputation as a pro factory and so on. They never seem to acknowledge how great Nick Saban and the Tide are at avoiding penalties.

In 2010 Alabama ranked first in the SEC and 24th nationally in fewest penalties. They also ranked first in the SEC and seventh nationally in fewest penalty yards. This indicates that most of them were small penalties, such as a false start, and a lack of big penalties, such as pass interference and roughing the passer. 

Saban and the Tide take pride in their reputation for playing a tough, physical, hard-hitting and clean game. Dial wasn't alone in his on-the-field shenanigans, however. Both teams engaged in "exchanges of words," including an Arkansas lineman delivering a right hand to the face of Barrett Jones on the sideline. 

Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson took a beating the entire night, often throwing the ball just as he got hit, but they were clean hits. Even Razorback fans could do nothing but shrug their shoulders. Quinton Dial's hit, however, happened pretty damn late. 

The worst part of the hit was just how dangerous it was. The first contact Dial made was with his helmet. This is dangerous for the quarterback, sure, and Tyler Wilson writhed in pain for a few moments, but the real peril lies in the possibility of a spinal cord injury for Quinton Dial. 

There has been more than one defensive lineman find himself in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Rutger's defensive lineman Eric LeGrand is the most recent, after his 2010 helmet-first hit during a kickoff return late in a game against Army. 

If there was any lingering hope for Quinton Dial to oust the starting position from Damion Square or Jesse Williams, it is officially out the window. 

Don't be surprised to see his playing time drop drastically for a while. 

Football is a violent, physical sport, but there is no room for violations like what Dial committed, and that is something Saban won't let him soon forget.