Alabama coach Nick Saban says Alabama fans shouldn't worry about the Andre Smith suspension being an NCAA issue.
Saban says it's an institutional issue and not an NCAA issue.
Saban made his comments a few moments ago in a post-practice news conference at the Super Dome.
GS
Text of Saban's comments here.
"We have really enjoyed our time here so far, the hospitality from the Sugar Bowl and the city of New Orleans has been outstanding. Our players have had a good time and have had the opportunity to do some positive things, but I am also very pleased with the way that our players have kept it a priority to practice well and do the things that they need to do in meetings. We have gone out and done a pretty good job each and every day in preparing for what should be a pretty challenging opponent in Utah. Our players had the chance to go see the Saints play on Sunday, some had the chance to see that Hornets game Tuesday night, and about 50 players went to Children's Hospital yesterday. Obviously the hospital visit is a unique experience for all of us – you really appreciate what you have when you see what others have to suffer through. I hope it was a helpful and rewarding experience for those young people that our players got to meet. I know there is an issue that you want to discuss and I will make a statement about it. Andre Smith is a fine young man and he did a great job here for us. He may be doing a great job for someone else in the future or he may be doing a great job for us in the future. That decision has not yet been made. He has represented himself, his family, and this university in a fine fashion and we are pleased with what he has done to help make this team successful. His legacy as a player here should be the fact that he made All-American here and that is a reflection of the hard work that he has put in during his three years here. It is very disappointing and unfortunate that judgment was used in a circumstance that has created consequences in him not being able to participate in this game. It is unfortunate, but hopefully it is something we can learn from and other players on this team can learn from as well. If you do what is right, things usually turn out the right way. If you don't do things right, things won't go your way. Sometimes your actions create consequences and that can go in the right or wrong way. This is an institutional matter that is not an NCAA matter. That has been verified by the NCAA. Anyone that is out there worried about the NCAA doesn't need to think about that. The way that we will handle this is the way we have handled it before when Andre Smith didn't play. Mike Johnson will move to left tackle and David Ross will play left guard. That is all I have to say about that, so that is all I am going to say about it."
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
More From New Orleans
hi gang,
more from the video blog on the luxury boutique hotel we're staying in...and also you have to be a rocket scientist to figure out parking in New Orleans.
Later!
Greg Screws
more from the video blog on the luxury boutique hotel we're staying in...and also you have to be a rocket scientist to figure out parking in New Orleans.
Later!
Greg Screws
Wed AM in New Orleans
Slow day here in New Orleans.
Slow for us....not for the action in town. After walking a few miles tracking fans down and going from parking lots to fans....parking lots to SAT trucks...walking walking walking...I'm actually sore.
Maybe it's a reminder that I need to work out.
Weather is perfect down here but rain expected for Friday. That is perfect because we will be parked outside and get to roll back and forth thru the rain while going from the Dome to the truck.
Okay...I'm through whining.
The weather is great today...but I've frozen down here before. When Auburn beat Michigan 9-7 in the 1984 Sugar Bowl, the entire south was slammed with an ice storm. No ice in New Orleans but we froze...wind chill was awful.
I've mentioned before that the vibe in New Orleans was a little different than past Sugar Bowls.
One thing is that there aren't as many people. Haven't had to much trouble moving around...except at Jackson Square.
If you are going to Jackson Square....prepare to park and walk.
Also, the town seems to have a softer edge to it. Maybe more of a live and let live from the locals...the town seems to not be as tense as in the past.
Bama fans are still bummed about losing Andre Smith. He was sent home by Nick Saban after Monday's practice.
It's looking more and more like this is going to be over a deal/talks with an agent.
It reminds Tide fans of the Antonio Langham deal from the 1993 Sugar Bowl when he signed a deal with an agent in the wee hours of the morning after the Tide beat Miami. This is a little different. Back in the Langham deal, many Tide athletic department administration officials found out about the Langham deal, kept quiet, and hoped it went away. That backfired.
This time, it appears that Bama AD Mal Moore and Coach Nick Saban acted quickly to get Andre Smith out of New Orleans when
the found out about the situation.
Alabama Attorney General Troy King is on this. Says they are going over all the evidence and working closely with UA on this to see if an agent violated any Alabama laws. Alabama has very strict laws on the book about agent conduct.
(GS Opinion Alert-Is every legal problem in Alabama solved? Is every bad guy behind bars? Has every fugitive from Alabama justice been apprehended? I think is a University of Alabama/Andre Smith problem. I know the laws are on the book about agents. But at best, resources used by the state to punish agents in the state seem to be misguided, and at worst, it seems to be pandering to a fan base. Is there a law on Alabama books directed at the players? Maybe there needs to be a law that says the Andre Smiths of the world can't sign with an unsanctioned agent before their class graduates. You won't see that law passed because it's easier to get pitchforks and torches and go after the agents rather than the players.
More Later
GS
Slow for us....not for the action in town. After walking a few miles tracking fans down and going from parking lots to fans....parking lots to SAT trucks...walking walking walking...I'm actually sore.
Maybe it's a reminder that I need to work out.
Weather is perfect down here but rain expected for Friday. That is perfect because we will be parked outside and get to roll back and forth thru the rain while going from the Dome to the truck.
Okay...I'm through whining.
The weather is great today...but I've frozen down here before. When Auburn beat Michigan 9-7 in the 1984 Sugar Bowl, the entire south was slammed with an ice storm. No ice in New Orleans but we froze...wind chill was awful.
I've mentioned before that the vibe in New Orleans was a little different than past Sugar Bowls.
One thing is that there aren't as many people. Haven't had to much trouble moving around...except at Jackson Square.
If you are going to Jackson Square....prepare to park and walk.
Also, the town seems to have a softer edge to it. Maybe more of a live and let live from the locals...the town seems to not be as tense as in the past.
Bama fans are still bummed about losing Andre Smith. He was sent home by Nick Saban after Monday's practice.
It's looking more and more like this is going to be over a deal/talks with an agent.
It reminds Tide fans of the Antonio Langham deal from the 1993 Sugar Bowl when he signed a deal with an agent in the wee hours of the morning after the Tide beat Miami. This is a little different. Back in the Langham deal, many Tide athletic department administration officials found out about the Langham deal, kept quiet, and hoped it went away. That backfired.
This time, it appears that Bama AD Mal Moore and Coach Nick Saban acted quickly to get Andre Smith out of New Orleans when
the found out about the situation.
Alabama Attorney General Troy King is on this. Says they are going over all the evidence and working closely with UA on this to see if an agent violated any Alabama laws. Alabama has very strict laws on the book about agent conduct.
(GS Opinion Alert-Is every legal problem in Alabama solved? Is every bad guy behind bars? Has every fugitive from Alabama justice been apprehended? I think is a University of Alabama/Andre Smith problem. I know the laws are on the book about agents. But at best, resources used by the state to punish agents in the state seem to be misguided, and at worst, it seems to be pandering to a fan base. Is there a law on Alabama books directed at the players? Maybe there needs to be a law that says the Andre Smiths of the world can't sign with an unsanctioned agent before their class graduates. You won't see that law passed because it's easier to get pitchforks and torches and go after the agents rather than the players.
More Later
GS
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Tuesday in N'awlins
Back at Sat Truck at the Superdome.
Busy today. carson and i haven't stopped since about 8ish Got to truck around 2:30.
All this cajun cuisine and we can't get a pizza delivered.
Called a pizza place and told them i was Harry Connick Jr.....and they delivered it.
Asked them if i could deliver the next pizza to Harry's place and they said sure..."Harry is a great tipper."
Judging from what I remember about Harry's lovely wife, he can apparently talk a good game as well.
We've worked a ton today. One thing that is tough about bowl games is that you have to cover so much ground and you can't
get a parking place and towing is a revenue source.
(NO CARSON! THAT IS A REAL FIRE HYDRANT AND THEY DON'T KNOW US HERE! KEEP MOVING)
The French Quarter is jammed today. No parking places. It's easier to take a cab and just have them drop you off.
Or you can park three miles away, and walk in....and that cost you time which is the most valuable commodity you have working out of town under deadline. We grab a bite anywhere we can...just wolf something down and keep walking.
So Carson and I have been doing a ton of hiking around the Quarter and downtown. Walk 30 minutes. Do interviews. Walk 30 minutes back to the car and hope it hasn't been towed cause Carson parked it in a loading zone.
By the way....many of the New Orleans police officers are some of the nicest people in the world. (Long story and no chance of it making on this blog....but if you see me at Masons, I might tell you the story.)
The Sugar Bowl showdown special is tonight. Got a ton of work to do!
Bama fans outnumber Utah fans pretty substantially.
We went to the National World War II museum today. Extraordinary. The guy who designed the boats used to hit the beaches on D-Day was from New Orleans. Eisenhower once said that the man that designed the boats....Andrew Jackson Higgins...was the man who won the war for the Allies. The "Higgins Boats" ran on the beach ad the front dropped down letting soldiers hit the beach.
Emotional visit to a remarkable museum.
More later when I have time.
Also more from the Quarter with Carson below.
Busy today. carson and i haven't stopped since about 8ish Got to truck around 2:30.
All this cajun cuisine and we can't get a pizza delivered.
Called a pizza place and told them i was Harry Connick Jr.....and they delivered it.
Asked them if i could deliver the next pizza to Harry's place and they said sure..."Harry is a great tipper."
Judging from what I remember about Harry's lovely wife, he can apparently talk a good game as well.
We've worked a ton today. One thing that is tough about bowl games is that you have to cover so much ground and you can't
get a parking place and towing is a revenue source.
(NO CARSON! THAT IS A REAL FIRE HYDRANT AND THEY DON'T KNOW US HERE! KEEP MOVING)
The French Quarter is jammed today. No parking places. It's easier to take a cab and just have them drop you off.
Or you can park three miles away, and walk in....and that cost you time which is the most valuable commodity you have working out of town under deadline. We grab a bite anywhere we can...just wolf something down and keep walking.
So Carson and I have been doing a ton of hiking around the Quarter and downtown. Walk 30 minutes. Do interviews. Walk 30 minutes back to the car and hope it hasn't been towed cause Carson parked it in a loading zone.
By the way....many of the New Orleans police officers are some of the nicest people in the world. (Long story and no chance of it making on this blog....but if you see me at Masons, I might tell you the story.)
The Sugar Bowl showdown special is tonight. Got a ton of work to do!
Bama fans outnumber Utah fans pretty substantially.
We went to the National World War II museum today. Extraordinary. The guy who designed the boats used to hit the beaches on D-Day was from New Orleans. Eisenhower once said that the man that designed the boats....Andrew Jackson Higgins...was the man who won the war for the Allies. The "Higgins Boats" ran on the beach ad the front dropped down letting soldiers hit the beach.
Emotional visit to a remarkable museum.
More later when I have time.
Also more from the Quarter with Carson below.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Monday-Sugar Bowl PM
Exhausted.
No poker for Greggles tonight.
It's almost 9 and we're still in the SAT truck getting ready to feed more tape.
Just another fun-filled bowl trip...LOL. Fans just don't understand.
We went to the French Quarter to interview some wildlife and found some!
More Sugar Bowl stuff tomorrow.
Our special is tomorrow (Tuesday at 630pm) and we have twice as much work tomorrow as we did today.
But we will get it done.....we always do. LOL.
More later.
GS
No poker for Greggles tonight.
It's almost 9 and we're still in the SAT truck getting ready to feed more tape.
Just another fun-filled bowl trip...LOL. Fans just don't understand.
We went to the French Quarter to interview some wildlife and found some!
More Sugar Bowl stuff tomorrow.
Our special is tomorrow (Tuesday at 630pm) and we have twice as much work tomorrow as we did today.
But we will get it done.....we always do. LOL.
More later.
GS
Monday Afternoon
Hi all,
Good news-Media hotel is within walking distance of Harrahs.
Bad News-Don't have time to go to Harrahs,
Better News-The sun is out.
Worse News-Everyone is playing/partying/cutting up/partaking but us.
After working most of the day, we've checked into our hotel. It's a great travel lodge.
If you google "Ed's Chainsaw Service, Tax Preparation, Tanning Beds, and Motor Lodge that is where we are staying."
I'm bunking with a family of troubadours heading to Las Vegas to find their fortune.
We have this really cool flip phone which I'm sure that Carson Clark and I will get in trouble with at some point.
Check out today's tour of the first half of the workday.
Later.
GS
Good news-Media hotel is within walking distance of Harrahs.
Bad News-Don't have time to go to Harrahs,
Better News-The sun is out.
Worse News-Everyone is playing/partying/cutting up/partaking but us.
After working most of the day, we've checked into our hotel. It's a great travel lodge.
If you google "Ed's Chainsaw Service, Tax Preparation, Tanning Beds, and Motor Lodge that is where we are staying."
I'm bunking with a family of troubadours heading to Las Vegas to find their fortune.
We have this really cool flip phone which I'm sure that Carson Clark and I will get in trouble with at some point.
Check out today's tour of the first half of the workday.
Later.
GS
Monday AM In New Orleans
Here I make my weather debut..
"Right now in New Orleans, it's 54 and overcast."
Thank you! Thank you very much!
In about an hour Carson Clark and I are off to find Alabama fans. It's been
interesting watching local morning television. One station has a version of Robert Reeves "Robert on the Road." It's called "Al in the Alley" and it's about the hot spots to eat, see, and visit in the French Quarter and surrounding area.
I'm just kidding. But it's idea to pass along isnt it...LOL.
Found out today that the economic impact of the Sugar Bowl is back to almost pre-Katrina levels. The dollars generated from Bama and Utah are going to be within
90% of the Sugar Bowl before Katrina. Also, before Katrina there were 38,000 hotel rooms. Now there are a little mover 34,000 rooms. That is according the New Orleans folks in charge of "Keeping up with tourism numbers for reporters who come to the Sugar Bowl Department.
Again, I have mixed emotions about this game. It's hard to beleive that Gene Stallings brought his 1992 team down here 16 years ago. You've heard that time flies. It's true. Emily was seven years old. Did bring Emily down here a couple of times. I had the only pre-schooler that could read a map of the French Quarter.
"Dad, the Mason du Puy is just off Royale. Not Bourbon."
It's a good thing DHR isn't reading this.
Many people don't know the most important figure in the 1992 Sugar Bowl. It wasn't anyone wearing or cheering for Alabama. It was a small loud-mouthed linebacker name Rohan Marley. Marley had two footnotes in history. One is that he was the youngest son of reggae singer Bob Marley. The second was saying "We've got no respect for Alabama. Why should we respect them."
From there he went on and on and on and one about how great the Hurricanes were and how Alabama couldn't stand up to them.
Later that week, some Miami players ran into a big and not exactly ripped in muscles Roosevelt Patterson. Patterson was a good lineman. His strength was disguised by a big think layer of well....baby fat.
The Miami players started taunting Roosevelt about his size and lack of "apparent athletic ability." It was mean and cruel. Also profane.
The trash-talking could have escalated into an altercation but it didn't. Bama players went back and told there teammates.
At that point Marley began a marked man as did the Hurricanes.
Marley probably had more to do with getting Miami beat than UA defensive coordinator Brother Oliver.
Coming up today....hitting on funny media moments from Sugar Bowls, checking in with Tide fans, and Bill Curry grabbing a facemask.
Later...
GS
"Right now in New Orleans, it's 54 and overcast."
Thank you! Thank you very much!
In about an hour Carson Clark and I are off to find Alabama fans. It's been
interesting watching local morning television. One station has a version of Robert Reeves "Robert on the Road." It's called "Al in the Alley" and it's about the hot spots to eat, see, and visit in the French Quarter and surrounding area.
I'm just kidding. But it's idea to pass along isnt it...LOL.
Found out today that the economic impact of the Sugar Bowl is back to almost pre-Katrina levels. The dollars generated from Bama and Utah are going to be within
90% of the Sugar Bowl before Katrina. Also, before Katrina there were 38,000 hotel rooms. Now there are a little mover 34,000 rooms. That is according the New Orleans folks in charge of "Keeping up with tourism numbers for reporters who come to the Sugar Bowl Department.
Again, I have mixed emotions about this game. It's hard to beleive that Gene Stallings brought his 1992 team down here 16 years ago. You've heard that time flies. It's true. Emily was seven years old. Did bring Emily down here a couple of times. I had the only pre-schooler that could read a map of the French Quarter.
"Dad, the Mason du Puy is just off Royale. Not Bourbon."
It's a good thing DHR isn't reading this.
Many people don't know the most important figure in the 1992 Sugar Bowl. It wasn't anyone wearing or cheering for Alabama. It was a small loud-mouthed linebacker name Rohan Marley. Marley had two footnotes in history. One is that he was the youngest son of reggae singer Bob Marley. The second was saying "We've got no respect for Alabama. Why should we respect them."
From there he went on and on and on and one about how great the Hurricanes were and how Alabama couldn't stand up to them.
Later that week, some Miami players ran into a big and not exactly ripped in muscles Roosevelt Patterson. Patterson was a good lineman. His strength was disguised by a big think layer of well....baby fat.
The Miami players started taunting Roosevelt about his size and lack of "apparent athletic ability." It was mean and cruel. Also profane.
The trash-talking could have escalated into an altercation but it didn't. Bama players went back and told there teammates.
At that point Marley began a marked man as did the Hurricanes.
Marley probably had more to do with getting Miami beat than UA defensive coordinator Brother Oliver.
Coming up today....hitting on funny media moments from Sugar Bowls, checking in with Tide fans, and Bill Curry grabbing a facemask.
Later...
GS
Sunday, December 28, 2008
More From New Orleans
I can chart my life by Sugar Bowls I've covered.
The first one was Auburn's win over Michigan. That was "pre-Emily."
Emily is now 23-years-old and a much better kid than I deserve credit for having.
Luckily she got her mom's brains. Not sure what she got from me. Will get back to you on that.
I covered the great Sugar Bowl matchup where Bama crushed an obnoxious and highly overated Miami team. That was fun. Watching jerks get popped in sports or real-life is entertaining. (Another example would be Tony Stewart hit a wall in a NASCAR race.)
Watched Virginia Tech beat Texas down here once. That was great to watch unfold.
Hokie coach Frank Beamer is a class act. Great to see him win.
I've always loved New Orleans. Many people just think of that naked lady in the door of that Bourbon Street bar. But there is a unique history and culture here
is steaming back from Katrina.
Speaking of Katrina.....
I'm ambivalent about being here. At one point I had no interest in coming back here ever. Just watching the pain and misery from Katrina had me crossing this town off my list. But friends have travelled down here, and enjoyed their stay.
Friends of friends who know business owners are urging everyone to come back and help the city rebuild. The Saints may be playing in the Dome, but there is still more work to be done.
Gotta go eat. No shrimp and grits for us. We're looking for a drive through and a bed.
More later.
Greg Screws
Local Media Icon
The first one was Auburn's win over Michigan. That was "pre-Emily."
Emily is now 23-years-old and a much better kid than I deserve credit for having.
Luckily she got her mom's brains. Not sure what she got from me. Will get back to you on that.
I covered the great Sugar Bowl matchup where Bama crushed an obnoxious and highly overated Miami team. That was fun. Watching jerks get popped in sports or real-life is entertaining. (Another example would be Tony Stewart hit a wall in a NASCAR race.)
Watched Virginia Tech beat Texas down here once. That was great to watch unfold.
Hokie coach Frank Beamer is a class act. Great to see him win.
I've always loved New Orleans. Many people just think of that naked lady in the door of that Bourbon Street bar. But there is a unique history and culture here
is steaming back from Katrina.
Speaking of Katrina.....
I'm ambivalent about being here. At one point I had no interest in coming back here ever. Just watching the pain and misery from Katrina had me crossing this town off my list. But friends have travelled down here, and enjoyed their stay.
Friends of friends who know business owners are urging everyone to come back and help the city rebuild. The Saints may be playing in the Dome, but there is still more work to be done.
Gotta go eat. No shrimp and grits for us. We're looking for a drive through and a bed.
More later.
Greg Screws
Local Media Icon
Sunday Into Sugar Bowl Monday
Greetings all!
Just rolled into New Orleans with Carson Clark and Alex Lynch. 400 plus miles and about 4 of those it wasn't raining.
Nothing like driving through three states in the rain with 18-wheelers on my a** wondering why I'm not driving 90 miles in a downpour.
When you tell people "I have to go New Orleans to work the Sugar Bowl"...they say "Poor Guy! Sorry you have to do that! Poor guy hanging in the French Quarter eating oysters and jambalaya and drinking the best of the best."
Here is what we're doing now.
Standing in the rain in a hotel parking lot doing SAT feeds for various stations and looking for a fast food place.
But I'm not going to complain. Yesterday I watched "Band of Brothers" on The History Channnel all day long.
Those guys had a reason to complain on the road trip they took. We're just covering football.
Granted to Alabama fans, this is life and death. But it isn't. It's a football game.
(Phone ringing-"Hi, Is this Mr. Screws? Do you plan on playing in the Texas Hold em tournament at the casino Tuesday night?
We are confirming your reservation." Greg-"Yes, I'm going to play and don't call me at work anymore.")
There is one thing that does get old. New Orleans is unique. It tries my patience to be the only sober person in a sea or humanity...or crimson. So working these games does present a challenge.
More on the challenge later in the trip. Stay tuned.
Just rolled into New Orleans with Carson Clark and Alex Lynch. 400 plus miles and about 4 of those it wasn't raining.
Nothing like driving through three states in the rain with 18-wheelers on my a** wondering why I'm not driving 90 miles in a downpour.
When you tell people "I have to go New Orleans to work the Sugar Bowl"...they say "Poor Guy! Sorry you have to do that! Poor guy hanging in the French Quarter eating oysters and jambalaya and drinking the best of the best."
Here is what we're doing now.
Standing in the rain in a hotel parking lot doing SAT feeds for various stations and looking for a fast food place.
But I'm not going to complain. Yesterday I watched "Band of Brothers" on The History Channnel all day long.
Those guys had a reason to complain on the road trip they took. We're just covering football.
Granted to Alabama fans, this is life and death. But it isn't. It's a football game.
(Phone ringing-"Hi, Is this Mr. Screws? Do you plan on playing in the Texas Hold em tournament at the casino Tuesday night?
We are confirming your reservation." Greg-"Yes, I'm going to play and don't call me at work anymore.")
There is one thing that does get old. New Orleans is unique. It tries my patience to be the only sober person in a sea or humanity...or crimson. So working these games does present a challenge.
More on the challenge later in the trip. Stay tuned.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
