Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

If Alabama wins out, the Crimson Tide has a good shot at defending its BCS national title. That’s true because Bama’s remaining schedule is deemed the toughest in the nation with its three FBS foes — LSU, Mississippi State and Auburn — having a combined record of 21-3.

All of the opposing trio are also ranked in the Top 25 — Auburn at No. 2, LSU 12 and Miss. St. 21. Of course, running the table for Alabama would mean meeting and defeating an almost certainly still undefeated Auburn team in what will have to be one of the biggest Iron Bowls in a long, long time.

But before that epic battle, Alabama has to win the Battle of Baton Rouge this Saturday.

With both teams coming in tied for the runner-up spot in the SEC West with matching 4-1 league, 7-1 overall records, the No. 5-ranked Tide at No. 12 LSU (Line: Alabama by 6) is the biggest of three league games on tap for Week 10 of the 2010 SEC grid season. It is the main attraction of the week — something that Alabama can thank its lucky stars is the case.

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Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

I can see it now, the proclamation in big letters for all who came to Legion Field in Birmingham to see: “Football Capital of the South.” I used to think it referred to Birmingham. Now I understand it means the state of Alabama.

The Alabama Crimson Tide finished last year as No. 1 in all the college football world and on the way, running back Mark Ingram won the Heisman Trophy. This week, atop the BCS standings in the No. 1 spot is none other than the Auburn Tigers.

And judging from the comments from the talking heads on ESPN, radio sports shows and in print, the front runner — and not by just a head — for this year’s Heisman award is AU quarterback Cam Newton. In fact, if the voting were held today, Newton would win by a landslide!

It’s a well-known fact that in Alabama, football is the bomb, the most important thing in the state that lags behind in almost every other category (although not at the bottom of the numerous lists — thank God for Mississippi). If the two top college football programs in the state of Alabama win the national championship in successive years … and the top player from those No. 1 teams are back-to-back Heisman winners, no one can argue with the Legion Field proclamation. It will be obvious that Alabama is the “Football Capital of the South.”

And while we are talking about Alabama and Auburn, let’s talk Iron Bowl.

TV Schedule and Lines Below…
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Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

It’s a strange “Third Saturday in October.” That is, or more correctly was, traditionally the weekend that Alabama plays Tennessee. For decades, Tide and Volunteer fans waited impatiently for that third weekend and the latest edition of the heated gridiron rivalry.

But divisional play and schedule makeovers changed all that. This year, the “third Saturday” game will be played on the “fourth Saturday” — that would be this Saturday. And what makes it even more strange is the fact that the Bama-Tennessee battle is not the marquee game on the eighth-week lineup.

This week’s Southeastern Conference football schedule is low on quantity — with only six games on tap — but high on quality, with five of the six being league contests.

The top game this week has to be on The Plains of Auburn, where the only two remaining undefeated teams in the SEC will meet (Line: Auburn by 6). Auburn and visiting LSU come into the big game with matching records — 7-0 overall, 4-0 in the SEC.

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The Big Picture
by Glynn Wilson

The news could not be any worse.

I honestly wish there was some good news to report. Sorry to say, there’s not any.

Well, the Crimson Tide did manage to pull out a victory over Ole Miss in Tuscaloosa on Saturday, football being about the only thing worth mentioning on the good side of the ledger in Alabama. But the Atlanta Braves were knocked out of post-season play last week, so baseball season is over. So much for sports.

I traveled to the Gulf Coast again last week for Shrimp Fest, hoping upon hope to see some signs of things getting better along the formerly beautiful Gulf of Mexico. I’ve spent a fair portion of my life visiting the Gulf, and lived in Gulf Shores and New Orleans for some very interesting runs over the years.

Alas, I came away with empirical data indicating that the air and water are still dangerous and may not get well anytime soon.

On the political front, the elections of 2010 are shaping up to be compared to Richard Nixon’s midterm elections in 1970 and his reelection campaign in 1972, when corporate and individual donations were secretly pouring in to the Committee to Re-Elect the President, otherwise known as CREEP.

Nixon said he was “not a crook,” but he was certainly a creep. No historical rehabilitation will ever exonerate him for that.

The record of all that illegal Republican campaign cash was stored in the president’s secretary’s desk, and is now in the National Archives and referred to as “Rose Mary’s baby.” Unfortunately, the Washington Post‘s investigation of the Watergate break in did not pick up enough steam to stop Nixon’s reelection, even though it did culminate in his impeachment and resignation after the election — and jail time for some of his cronies.

Is it possible that a similar scenario is developing this time around?

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Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

Wow! What a difference a week makes!

As we head into Week 7 of the 2010 Southeastern Conference football season, all bets are off on who will compete for the league title in December in the Georgia Dome. Before what has been called “the shocker in Columbia,” Alabama was riding high in the driver’s seat at No. 1, undefeated and, so it appeared, unstoppable.

In fact, the question posed in this very column was, “Can anybody stop the Crimson Tide offense?” The answer was, obviously, “Yes, South Carolina can.”

Not that the Gamecocks’ upset — and it was that — was a complete surprise. Some, including yours truly, said before the season began that the South Carolina might be the most dangerous on the schedule.

TV Schedule and Lines Below
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Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

It’s Week 6 of the 2010 Southeastern Conference season and at the halfway point a few things stand out.

First off, the league has been playing like it has been hyped — the best football conference in the nation.

Second, the defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide is at least as good as figured preseason. After five weeks, the Bama defense has looked better and better, while the offense has functioned like a well-oiled machine with movable parts. In fact, the question has become — can anybody stop the Crimson Tide offense? If the defense keeps improving game by game as has been the case, the question will become — can anybody stay on the field with Bama?

A third stand out has to be the Auburn Tigers. The Eagles have turned out to be better than almost anyone thought and AU quarterback Cam Newton looks more and more Tim Tebow-like every week. Behind Newton’s direction, the Tigers lead the nation in passing efficiency and Newton leads the Tigers in rushing. His ability to make a big play out of a broken play and the pressure his running puts on opposing defenses is invaluable. Word is that Newton’s name is going up the Heisman list. Two winners in a row from the state of Alabama?

Week six finds half the league’s teams still listed in the Top 20, a quarter or them in the Top 10, Bama leading the way, followed by Auburn (8), LSU (9), Florida (12), Arkansas (13) and South Carolina (19). The top game of the week probably depends on who is “your” team.

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Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

“Is it December already? I’ve got to get busy, haven’t bought a single Christmas preset yet!”

That thought had to have fleetingly raced through the mind of at least one (I’ll bet several) football fans who sees a promo touting the Alabama-Florida meeting this Saturday. Who can blame him?

Alabama vs. Florida says, “December” as much as seeing Santa Claus ringing the Salvation Army bell beside the donation kettle. The Gators and Tide have met on the gridiron 11 times since 1992 — back when the Southeastern Conference was split into East and West divisions — and seven of the 11 were in the SEC championship Game.

In fact, the two schools met in each of the first three title games. Alabama won the inaugural SEC title contest in 1992 on its way to a national title, but Florida took the next two in ’93 and ’94. The two also faced off for the SEC crown in ’96, ’99, ’08, and ’09. Alabama leads the overall series 21-14 and also holds the edge in conference meetings at 13-7.

The 37th meeting of the Tide and Gators is not only the SEC game of the week. It is also the nationwide Game of the Week this fifth week of the 2010 college football season.

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Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

War Eagle! This week’s musings on Southern Conference football must begin with an apology to still-undefeated (3-0) Auburn. It seems that last Saturday’s Tigers vs. Tigers battle on The Plains was not mentioned in last week’s column. That was indeed a shame, since it turned out to be one of the most entertaining games of the weekend with Auburn edging Clemson 27-24 in overtime on a missed field goal by the visitors.

Some readers who know this writer’s historical connection (two first-cousins played quarterback for the Tide and an uncle who played both baseball and football at the Capstone in the ‘40s — Jack Rutledge and his two sons, Gary and Jeff) to the Alabama Crimson Tide probably think that leaving out Auburn was on purpose. Not true, not consciously anyway. If it was on purpose, blame my sub-conscious, which marches to its own drummer.

In any case, the Plains Tigers (as opposed to the Bayou Tigers from Baton Rouge) will get plenty of mention this week, although AU fans may not like what is said.

Now down to the business of looking at upcoming Week 4 of the 2010 SEC college football season. This week looks to be very interesting indeed. The SEC has half its members among the Top 20 teams in the national polls (Bama still No. 1, followed by Florida (8), Arkansas (10), South Carolina (12), LSU (15) and Auburn (17). That number could go down next week, with four of the six ranked league teams going head-to-head against each other on Saturday.

Saturday’s seven-game lineup includes four conference matchups and three intersectional contests.

The game of the week has to be the battle of Top Ten teams in Fayetteville, Ark., set for 2:30 p.m. on CBS. It’s No. 1 Alabama at No. 10 Arkansas. (Line: Alabama by 7).

TV Schedule and More Lines Below
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Time Out
by Dan Rutledge

It’s Week Three of the 2010 college football season and so far the Southeastern Conference is looking good with an 18-6 overall record – and two of those six losses game at the hands of another SEC team. After two weeks of play Alabama has looked like the No. 1 team in the nation, Florida has won but has looked shaky.

South Carolina is atop the Eastern Division standings — the Ol’ Ball Coach, Steve Spurrier, is getting close to having the “perennial loser” tag removed from the Gamecocks’ program. S.C. now has an dead even overall record (536-536-44) and after this week will be officially in the “winners” book.

The SEC has half its members among the Top 20 teams in the national polls – Bama is still No. 1, followed by Florida (7), Arkansas (12), South Carolina (13), LSU (15) and Auburn (16).

One of the interesting story lines this week is the return of Mark Ingram to the Crimson Tide starting lineup. The talking heads on TV have been going on and on about whether or how much missing the first two games will hamper Ingram’s chances of winning a second straight Heisman Trophy.

Perhaps the most injurious to his chances has been the play of backup Trent Richardson in the first two Bama wins. The sophomore has been running the ball with authority, leading the way in rushing with 210 yards and three TDs and is second in pass receptions with seven. Ingram’s return means Richardson’s totals will go down.

But while Ingram is the starter, and should be, the fact of the matter is that Alabama has two Heisman-worthy tailbacks. Maybe Coach Nick Saban should say that they both are co-starters. That would be fair, right?

Saturday’s eight-game lineup includes four conference matchups and one interesting if not intriguing intersectional contest that features top-ranked (2-0) Alabama against the Duke Blue Devils (1-1) (Line: Alabama by 24).

What would make any game against Duke — a team that is a perennial loser in the Atlantic Coast conference, not really a football conference — interesting or intriguing you ask?

The answer is history…

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