Texas and a Penny: Similar?

Tuscaloosa, AL

This morning I pulled into my favorite fast food restaurant to grab some breakfast. Ordering the usual: chicken-biscuit and soda, I heard a voice say, "$4.01."

How was I to know that breakfast would change my whole day?

As I pulled to the window, digging for a penny, I heard the lady at the window say, "Don't worry about it, it's just a penny." With little thought to the matter, I paid and proceeded to head to campus.

As I sat in my car eating my breakfast, I thought about all I had seen on ESPN. How the guys from Gameday were all but counting Texas out of the championship game. Then the thought hit me. 

Are they (the media) comparing Texas to a penny?

Does the media think Alabama's winning is such a sure thing that they are discarding Texas like a mere penny?

Let me assure you of one thing, Nick Saban is not buying the hype.

He stated in an interview to ESPN:

"I don't know why you guys have to seem like you gotta make somebody Goliath and somebody David... Why can't it just be a great game with two great teams playing?"

There is another group of individuals on campus who are not so easily swayed: the students. Even though it is finals week, there is much discussion about both Saturdays game and the BCS National Championship Game to be played January 7. 

Believe me, if there is any group who understands a team struggling like Texas did Saturday, It is the students.

We remember the Third Saturday in October when our dreams almost fell by the wayside. We remember the Iron Bowl where the same team that blew the Gators out of the water, struggled to get points on the board.

This is my point, as a student, I understand a team struggling. That is exactly what I saw in Saturdays game of Texas v. Nebraska. That is not the Texas the Tide will square-off against in January. 

If you think Texas' performance in Pasadena will mirror that of the Big 12 Championship, you are wrong. 

You can believe one thing, it will take the same "Will-Not Be Denied" mentality Coach Saban talked about Saturday in the post-game to win in California.

Colt McCoy has racked up a phenomenal 3512 yards this year with a completion rate of 70.5% completion. He averages a most impressive 7.5 yards per attempt. 

While they may not have an extremely strong rushing game, you can look for Shipley to perform at his best. Shipley has posted an Impressive 11 touchdowns this season while averaging just under 13 yards per catch. 

Texas is a football powerhouse, they have been as far back as anyone can remember. To count this game in the "W" column before it is played would be a fatal mistake to the Tide. And it is one that Saban will have to prevent in the minds of his players. 

I want the Tide to win as much as anyone who bleeds Crimson, but to discard Texas like a penny would be ignorant.