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Nick Saban responds to critics of Alabama’s schedule
Yardbarker ^ | July 28, 2019 | Larry Brown

Posted on 07/29/2019 4:27:05 AM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?

The Crimson Tide play Duke (at a neutral site) and host New Mexico State, Southern Mississippi and Western Carolina for their four non-conference games this season. That has led to criticism that they are playing too soft a schedule.

During an appearance Friday on “Golic and Wingo,” Saban shared his side. The Crimson Tide coach says he has long advocated for Power 5 teams to only play each other. He also says the reason Alabama struggles to schedule strong non-conference opponents is because teams don’t want to play the Crimson Tide. Furthermore, he says Alabama ends up playing neutral site games because that’s the only way some teams will agree to face the Crimson Tide.

(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...


TOPICS: Education; Sports
KEYWORDS: alabama; bama; crimsontide; nicksaban; rtr; saban; thetide
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To: Tennessean4Bush

It’s the whole Power-5; they’re pretty much all run by cowards, demanding home games against weaklings. But the SEC is especially bad at scheduling games against FCS teams, like West Carolina.


41 posted on 07/29/2019 6:45:46 AM PDT by dangus
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To: FLT-bird

>> Florida opens the season against Miami on August 24th and finishes the season against fsu. <<

And in between plays UT-Martin and Towson St. That’s pathetic. Look, I get that it’s not Florida’s fault that Miami and Florida State have both collapsed, but when you see that your marquee non-conference rivalries have fallen apart, you gotta do better than playing community colleges.


42 posted on 07/29/2019 6:50:17 AM PDT by dangus
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To: foreverfree

Baseball blew an opportunity when leagues were first starting out right after the WBTS to establish such a system (imagine the Bronx Bombers in a top flight or relegation-avoidance duel with Billings, MT).


What is the WBTS in baseball?


43 posted on 07/29/2019 7:02:43 AM PDT by Dilbert San Diego
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To: dangus

And plays LSU and Auburn and Georgia in between.

Look, I get that you think somehow playing 5 elite programs in one year is somehow “not enough” for UF to take on, but I’d love to see how many your team plays.

By elite I mean top 20 in all time winning percentage and multiple rel national titles just so we’re clear about our terms.

So, what’s your team and how many elite programs do y’all play this year?


44 posted on 07/29/2019 7:09:01 AM PDT by FLT-bird
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To: All

College football is about TV ratings. That’s where much of the revenue comes from. In a free market, the consumer rewards a good product. The SEC’s TV contract and ratings proves they’re doing something right. The market has spoken.

Couch potatoes who have never paid for a game ticket expect a Top 10 match up every week. Similar bitching comes from the idiots in the sports media. These two groups can safely be ignored.


45 posted on 07/29/2019 7:12:46 AM PDT by FirstFlaBn
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

SEC has more cupcakes than Gibson’s Bakery.

Yeah, sure, Bama can’t get anyone to play them except Little Sisters of the Poor and the Electoral College. I’ll buy that.


46 posted on 07/29/2019 7:15:23 AM PDT by OrangeHoof (Trump is Making the Media Grate Again)
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To: OrangeHoof

No need to worry, Nebraska is coming back and the Tide will be old news in a couple years... ;o) GBR!


47 posted on 07/29/2019 7:20:51 AM PDT by Paco
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To: dangus

The only FCS school that FBS teams should be allowed to play is North Dakota State.


48 posted on 07/29/2019 7:30:03 AM PDT by wrcase
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To: Tennessean4Bush

Comparing Alabama’s schedule to Ohio State’s is unfair for a number of reasons. Both teams focus on scheduling to make as much money as possible, but use different methods.

Alabama: Profits are maximized through home games and a neutral site game (most often close to home in Atlanta). The last time Alabama played 5 away games and the last time they played an away game out of conference was 2011. Their schedule is easy because they do not schedule the home-and-home games required by any program with even a little self-respect. Their next home and home games are against Texas in 2022 and 2023. An eleven year stretch without playing more than 4 away games in any season, and zero out of conference away games, is an advantage.

Ohio State: Profits are maximized through home games and the Big Ten Network, which requires (relatively) stronger regular season schedules. The Big Ten schedules 9 Conference games (including Rutgers) compared to 8 in the SEC and ACC. That helps the Big Ten Network make boatloads of money, but it also locks in 5 conference games on the road every other year.

The Big Ten distributed $54 million per school last year, while the SEC distributed $43.7 million. And, Alabama and Ohio State each got neutral site game money in 2018. Both big winners in the money game, which is the game that matters the most to them.


49 posted on 07/29/2019 7:34:06 AM PDT by Kaisersrsic
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To: RegulatorCountry; Littlejon

Alabama plays WCU.

Annihilation commeth.


50 posted on 07/29/2019 7:42:44 AM PDT by Rebelbase
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To: pepsionice
If you were a normal Bama opponent, then playing and losing to them isn’t one of your thrills.

I take issue with that. When Bill Curry scored a game for Georgia State to play Bama, it was a boon for the program there. I personally talked to some of the players and it was the greatest day of their life to lose to the National Champion Tide in Bryant-Denny Stadium. They LOVED it.

51 posted on 07/29/2019 7:53:06 AM PDT by numberonepal (WWG1WGA)
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To: Tennessean4Bush

If I was an Alabama season ticket holder, there would be no way to describe the 2019 schedule as anything other than a dumpster fire. Alabama 2019 home games: New Mexico State (3-9 2018), Southern Miss (6-5 2018), Ole Miss (1-7 SEC 2018), Tennessee (2-6 SEC 2018), Arkansas (0-8 SEC 2018), LSU (I would love to go to this one!), Western Carolina (3-8 2018). It is tough to justify season tickets with one good game.


52 posted on 07/29/2019 7:55:35 AM PDT by Kaisersrsic
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

Well that’s 4 games Alabama’s fans won’t need to watch. Bor-ing...


53 posted on 07/29/2019 7:57:17 AM PDT by subterfuge (RIP T.P.)
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To: AlexisHeavyMetal1981

It’s rigged for all the big screwls. Ohio State comes to mind.


54 posted on 07/29/2019 8:02:10 AM PDT by subterfuge (RIP T.P.)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?
The Crimson Tide play Duke (at a neutral site) and host New Mexico State, Southern Mississippi and Western Carolina for their four non-conference games this season

In baseball, this is called "spring training". Alabama gets 3 tomato cans who get paid enough to support for their sports programs for a year or 2 and a semi-respectable tune up (Duke).

And I thought that the NCAA ruled a year or two ago that 3 of those games (FCS teams, I assume) don't count towards the required wins for Alabama at the end of the year. Like they need easy wins to reach the minimum 6 games.

55 posted on 07/29/2019 8:03:49 AM PDT by ssaftler (The opinions expressed here have not been peer reviewed, fact checked or focus group tested.)
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To: yarddog

In Saban’s first year at Bama, they lost to Louisiana-Monroe.


56 posted on 07/29/2019 8:04:23 AM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: OrangeHoof
SEC has more cupcakes than Gibson’s Bakery.

SEC West:
Alabama
Auburn
Mississippi
Mississippi State
LSU
Arkansas
Texas A&M

Which one of these teams is cream puff (I'll give you Arkansas if you say it). Also every year all SEC West teams get to play 2 SEC East teams. That's a possibility of eight smash mouth games. Some of these rivalries are 100+ years old.

57 posted on 07/29/2019 8:04:23 AM PDT by numberonepal (WWG1WGA)
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To: dangus

You mean like last year when Florida opened the season against Michigan?


58 posted on 07/29/2019 8:05:10 AM PDT by subterfuge (RIP T.P.)
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To: subterfuge

The thing is, the last time Florida played a non-conference game out of State at an opposing team’s stadium, was in 1992, against Syracuse.


59 posted on 07/29/2019 8:07:16 AM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: FLT-bird

>> And plays LSU and Auburn and Georgia in between. <<

We’re talking non-conference schedules here.


60 posted on 07/29/2019 8:08:46 AM PDT by dangus
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