The Fat Lady Does Not Wear Crimson

The 2008 storybook season came crashing down in a span of weeks with consecutive losses to Florida and underdog Utah.  It was hard to imagine such a humble end for a team that had accomplished so much. 

The pain unfortunately is quite familiar to Tide fans. 

Since the Stallings era Alabama football has rarely put forth its most notable performances at the end.    

Things weren’t so bad in 1999.  Alabama had defeated Florida to win the SEC title and was going to a BCS bowl game.  But they lost to Michigan in a heart breaker.  

But aside from that unexpected tolerable ending the 97 season ended with 4 consecutive losses and the 2000 Tide lost the final 5 games and an entire coaching staff.  

Sadly the lone exception to this pattern came under the leadership of the vilified Dennis Franchione.  His 2001 squad came back from a hard fought loss to Nick Saban’s LSU squad and trudged past Miss State pulling ahead late in the game,  decimated Auburn 31-7, powered past Southern Mississippi in a rescheduled match and edged Iowa State in the Independence Bowl.
   
It’s a fact that teams often do schedule better competition at the end to give their team time to develop and grow and this can lead to late season losses but nothing in Alabama fans experience prepared them for the pattern beginning in 2003. 

In that year Alabama was pounded by LSU, battered by Auburn, then barely beat lowly regarded Hawaii in a non bowl consolation match.  In 2004 Alabama lost to LSU, Auburn, and Minnesota in Nashville. 

I’ll never forget that loss personally as I was there and Alabama played the game with a backup quarterback.  I won’t say his name because I don’t want to beat up the guy, but with mere seconds on the clock it was forth down and we were within striking distance of what would be the winning touchdown.  I figure he throws it to the end zone no matter what because the next play is the last and you’re not worried about picks.  He ended his Alabama career and the season by throwing it out of bounds nowhere near the end zone. 

This single play more than any other symbolizes the futility that Alabama football had become.    2005 was exciting because Alabama ripped off nine consecutive wins but lost to LSU in overtime and was blown out by  Auburn in a sack fest that was never as close as the final score indicated. 

They slid just past Texas Tech on the last play of the game with one of the ugliest three point kids you’ll ever see.  2006 turned into a total meltdown closing with consecutive losses to Tennessee, Miss State, LSU, Auburn, and Oklahoma State.  That one got favorite son Mike Shula and staff fired. 

When Nick Saban was hired I predicted we had seen the end of late season collapses but I could not have been more wrong.  In 2007 after several important players were suspended on a book selling violation Alabama lost to Miss State, LSU & Auburn.  Only a win in Shreveport over  Colorado gave bama fans a little hope. 

In  Saban’s second year Alabama fans were filled with visions of championships with the tide winning the west and heading to Atlanta with an undefeated 12-0 record.    Alabama fought hard and fell to the eventual National Champion Gators and most people were proud of the effort but weeks later Alabama would get run off the field by mid major Utah.  

Some of this record of futility can be explained away by the overall lack of talent and depth from the years of NCAA troubles and probation but not all of it.  Some programs have a knack for building momentum as the season goes on.  Until we get a playoff the polls are going to count and where you finish can be closely related to where you start the year,  and where you start the year is closely related to how you finished the season before.   Alabama after losing the SEC championship this year was in position to pound an undefeated Utah team and the final ranking of #2 was not out of the question assuming Florida won the title game.  Florida did their part but Alabama wound up the butt of the Bowl season jokes

Alabama is still working on rebuilding depth but that excuse is quickly evaporating as Nick Saban reels in one four or five star recruit after another to the Capstone.  I’m not sure if I can put my finger on the rest of it.  I know some teams have a habit of playing their best ball at the end and I’ve noticed they are most often the ones hoisting the big shiny cups that we love to put in glass cases. 

The Bear Bryant museum is a great place but the shiny things in there are getting dull with age.  We need some fresh bling for a new generation and one ingredient that we absolutely must find is the knack for winning at the end.