Alabama Football: Latest News, Injuries and Team Updates

Alabama began its journey to defend its national championship title once spring practice began. Now that the practices and the spring game are over and done with, they'll take a few months off until the regular season is ready to take place.

With there being a couple of months off before the season picks back up again, here is some news that you may have missed over the last couple of weeks concerning your Alabama Crimson Tide.

Alabama Great Billy Neighbors Passed Away

Billy Neighbors passed away at the age of 72.

He was a key part of head coach Bear Bryant's first national championship team back in 1961 and was an All-American who played both sides of the ball. He was also part of one of the greatest defenses the game has ever seen—one that allowed a total of only 25 points and included six games that resulted in shutouts in an 11-game season.

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"He was more than a teammate to me," UA athletics director Mal Moore said Monday. "He's just a dear friend, a close friend that I have stayed in very close contact with over the years. He will be missed by a lot of people and certainly missed by me.

"He was also a great player, a leader at a time when we needed leaders."

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Neighbors is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, and he played eight years in the NFL for the Boston Patriots and the Miami Dolphins.

Phillip Sims Makes Transfer Complete

Alabama now has questions at the backup quarterback position, with Phillip Sims transferring to Virginia. Sims saw limited action last year, only throwing 23 passes, two of which were intercepted. Sims is actually from Virginia and will see some familiar faces: wide receiver Tim Smith and running back Perry Jones are former high school teammates of his.

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"Virginia football welcomes Phillip Sims to our family," said Cavaliers head coach Mike London in a school release. "Hopefully he will have a productive career here at Uva as his previous accolades have shown."

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Sims hopes to receive an NCAA waiver that would allow him to play immediately instead of sitting out for a year. If one is granted, he could provide tough competition for Michael Rocco and David Watford as the starter this season for the Cavaliers.

Saban Is in Favor of a Playoff

As you may know, college football will likely have a playoff format real soon and get rid of the BCS. Although the SEC has won the last six national championships in a row, Alabama head coach Nick Saban is in support of a playoff system.

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I have always been for a plus-one, but I think it’s important to keep the integrity of the bowls because I think they provide a lot of positive self-gratification for the kids in college. I’d like to see [the playoffs] incorporated into the bowl system some kind of way.

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How those top four teams will be decided is one of the issues that is still being discussed, along with where those games will be played and when they will take place. Saban says that the scheduling shouldn't be a big deal and that they're over-thinking this whole thing.

“Why don’t we play [the semifinals] in the those Jan. 1 bowls? And on Jan. 9 play the next game? It’s not as complicated as we’re trying to make. It’s one game.”

Maybe the three-time national champion should get in on these meetings and help hammer out the final details.

Linebacker Melvin Jones Was Extended an Offer

Alabama has already landed 11 recruits from the 2013 class, but Saban isn't finished. An offer was recently extended to 3-Star linebacker Melvin Jones, who played his ball in Lake Charles, LA. Jones has offers on the table from schools like TCU, Nebraska and Arkansas, among others, but was shocked to hear the Tide wanted him.

"The offer from Alabama, wow, I can’t explain it. I don’t even know what to say. Getting an offer form the national champions is crazy. I plan on going up there this summer." Jones said via Scout.com.

At 6'3", 248 pounds, Jones really fits the mold of the big linebackers that Alabama likes to use

"I really like their defense," Jones said. "That’s what stands out to me. They have big linebackers who go in the first round of the NFL Draft. I like that."

Alabama Sits at No. 3 in New ESPN Poll

Despite dominating LSU in the national championship last season and returning several starters from a year ago, ESPN has the Crimson Tide ranked No. 3 in a new preseason poll they released. 

According to a recent poll that I took, nearly 49 percent of you believe that the ranking is fair, while 39 percent believe the Tide should be ranked higher than what they are.