What Lies Ahead for Alabama? You Can Quote Me On It

A wise man once said you should never look past your next opponent. It's a saying all college football teams kicking their season off this weekend would be wise to heed.

Since I won't be taking the field this weekend, I thought it would be safe for me to take a look at what remains of Alabama's schedule beyond this weekend's matchup in Atlanta.

"Remember Boys, Goliath was a 40-point favorite over David." - Coach Shug Jordan, Auburn University

Weeks two and three will likely see the Tide a rather large favorite in contests at home against Florida International and North Texas. No, neither team is a huge threat to beat the Crimson Tide.

That doesn't mean Alabama can afford to cruise into either game if they hope to accomplish all the goals important when you play such an opponent.

Winning is, of course, the primary objective. Taking a big enough lead early on to allow your second and third teams to find critical playing time is crucial as well. These games are where you build depth.

Make the mistake of playing down to the level of your competition and keep the game fairly close going into the third and fourth quarter and you blow any chance of getting quality playing time for those players.

"There is nothing that cleanses your soul like getting the hell kicked out of you." - Woody Hayes, Ohio State University

Week Four will bring the Tide's opening contest in the SEC. The Arkansas Razorbacks suffered through a painful first season under Razorbacks head coach Bobby Petrino. They look for significant improvement in year two, particularly on the offensive side.

Quarterback Ryan Mallet finally gets his chance to take the reins of Petrino's complicated offensive system. There have been glowing reports from Hawgland leading to fairly high expectations of what to expect from the Razorbacks passing game.

The air game appears to be everything one would expect from a Petrino offense with Mallet under center. His scrimmage performances have been nothing less than explosive.

The Arkansas running game appears primed for a solid year with power backs Ronnie Wingo and Broderick Green. Speedy Micheal Smith also returns from a 1,000-yard season.

They should produce a sound challenge for a powerful Alabama defense.

The real question facing the Razorbacks is a defense that struggled badly at times last season. Much like Alabama, the Hawgs started a lot of freshman last season, 16 in all.

Many of those came on defense. With another year's experience they hope to see a lot of improvement in stopping opposing offenses.

"It's not necessary to see a good tackle; all you have to do is hear it." - Knute Rockne, Notre Dame

Next will come a road trip to horse racing country where the Tide will go head-to-head with Coach Rich Brooks and his Kentucky Wildcats. The Cats gave Alabama one of their most physical match-ups of the year last season.

On offense, coaches feel as though quarterback Mike Hartline has matured in the off-season. They feel as though this is his time to lead the Cats offense.

Rich Brooks likes to be able to run the ball. Alfonso Smith has been often injured during his Kentucky career. He's spent the Summer recovering from a stress fracture in his foot.

Smith finally feels he's at 100 percent physically and needs now to only get over the mental aspect of running full speed.

Improvement in the Wildcats receiving corps has led the Kentucky secondary to work harder than ever before.

Both corners, Trevard Lindley and Paul Warford, feel the competition has led them to elevate their games, leaving them better prepared for the start of the season.

Alabama remembers escaping with a narrow win last year and will look to improve upon that.

"Confidence doesn't come out of nowhere. It's a result of something...hours and days and weeks and years of constant work and dedication." - Football great Roger Staubach

Coming out of what will likely be a physical game against the Cats, the Crimson Tide will stay on the road to face the Ole Miss Rebels.

The Johnny Rebs are coming off their best season in recent memory. The question remains as to whether they can maintain a high level of play over multiple seasons.

Ole Miss is loaded at the skill positions on the offensive side of the ball. Jevan Sneed, coming into the 2009 season, is the best drop-back passer in the SEC.

He has a list of very competent receivers to work with including Shay Hodge and Dexter McCluster. Both are playmakers that can stretch the field.

Their stable of running backs include Brandon Bolden, Cordera Eason, and Enrique Davis. All three are capable guys who will likely split time to keep a fresh set of legs in the game at all times.

The big question remaining for the Rebels offense is on their offensive line, having to rebuild their line in certain spots much the way Alabama has had to do. Their opener against Memphis should help show the progress they've made with the line.

"There's one sure way to stop us from scoring, give us the ball near the goal line." Matty Bell, SMU

The Tide then returns home for a tough three-game stretch. First up is the South Carolina Gamecocks. The Cocks looked solid enough defensively in their opener against NC State.

Offensively, though there are still questions that needed to be answered. They'll need more than seven points, and that was set up on a short field, to be able to pull out a win against Georgia in week two.

"Show me a gracious loser, and I'll show you a failure." - Knute Rockne, Notre Dame

The next week will bring the annual hatefest with the Volunteers of Tennessee. New head coach Lane Kiffin has spent the entire off-season making friends with other coaches in the conference.

By the time the Vols roll into Tuscaloosa they will have already faced SEC East favorites Florida and Georgia. It will be interesting to see how Kiffin's new friends Urban Meyer and Mark Richt greet him to the conference.

It should be well known by then whether Tennessee has managed to develop a quarterback or whether they will once again have to depend on their running game to move the ball.

The Volunteers defense should be pretty solid led of course by All-American safety Eric Berry. Questions on their defensive front will need to be answered before they get into the meat of their SEC schedule. If not it could be another long season for the Volunteers.

"Confidence is a very fragile thing." - Football great Joe Montana

The last of the three to step into the friendly confines of Bryant Denny Stadium will be the always-talented LSU Tigers. The Tigers are looking to shake the memories of an 8-5 season coming the year after winning a National Championship.

Head coach Les Miles plans on sticking with his starters, at least for the beginning of the season. That of course leaves him with the cream of the crop on the field.

Quarterback Jordan Jefferson will likely handle the large majority of snaps with five-star recruit Russell Sheppard possibly coming in under certain circumstances.

The Bengal Tigers open the season with the Washington Huskies, a team that was winless in 2008. The only thing that should make this game interesting is the fact that LSU will have to travel to Washington and play a late night game the day after arriving.

"If lessons are learned in defeat, our team is getting a great education." - Murray Warmath, Minnesota

The Tide will spend two out of its next three games on the road. The Tide will travel into Starkville, Miss., to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The Bulldogs are coming off a brutal season under former head coach Sly Croom. 

By the time they roll into Tuscaloosa the Bulldogs should be well seasoned in their new offensive. It will be interesting to see how much of the talent Mullen inherited is suited to run his spread offense.

"I've found that prayers work best when you have big players." - Knute Rockne, Notre Dame

Chattanooga will wander into Bryant Denny Stadium to offer the Tide not much more than a glorified scrimmage and tune up for the Iron Bowl.

"When you make a mistake, admit it; learn from it, and don't repeat it." - Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, Alabama

Alabama will then hit the road one last time in the regular season. They will travel to the loveliest village on the Plains to face the Auburn Tigers for their annual in-state grudge match.

For the second year in a row the Tigers have brought in an offensive coordinator with a gimmicky offensive scheme. Tiger fans hope Malzahn will have more success than the train wreck coach Tony Franklin brought to the Plains.

There are many questions yet to be answered on the offensive side of the ball. Will Chris Todd be successful running Gus Malzahn's offense? Will the Tigers bring into the game a productive power running game? Who will have stepped up on Auburn's receiving core to produce big plays?

Perhaps the biggest question will be how much depth the Tigers have managed to develop over the course of the season and how talented that depth is.

Good luck in the injury department will be crucial in determining how far the Tigers advance in the win column this season. Injuries at linebacker or on the offensive line could derail any shot the Tigers have at a winning season.

New coach Gene Chizik faces a tough road in his first year as head coach on the Plains.

Of course, Alabama fans are hoping for a return trip to the SEC Championship game and an SEC Title followed by at least a BCS bowl game.

A good first step down that path would be a victory Saturday night against the Hokies.