Tide basketball picks up international big man

It looks like Alabama basketball coach Anthony Grant will get a little help with his absence of big bodies.

According to BamaOnLine.com, 7-foot-1 Carl Engstrom of Sweden committed to play for the Crimson Tide next season. 

Take a look at this video of Engstrom to see how the big guy runs the floor. Not too bad for a 7-footer. With Grant’s fast-paced style, big men must be able to move like this.

Check out more footage of the newest member of the Tide here, here and here. It would helped if you spoke Swedish.

Andre Smith (finally) signs with Bengals

The hold-out is over.

Andre Smith is officially a Bengal.

The former Alabama offensive lineman signed a 4-year, $26 million contract with Cincinnati after missed most of the preseason. Read more about the new developments in the Cincinnati Enquirer by clicking here.

Glen Coffee impresses in preseason debut

While former Alabama teammate Andre Smith continued his holdout, Glen Coffee started his first preseason game of his 49er career. The Crimson Tide leading rusher from a year ago ran 14 times for a team-high 67 yards in a 17-16 win over the Broncos. Read a little more on Coffee here.

A few other ex-Tide turn NFL rookies could make preseason debuts today.

• Antoine Caldwell and the Houston Texans play the Chiefs at 7 p.m. Read a little more about the center taken in the third round of the draft by clicking here.
• John Parker Wilson will get one quarter to prove himself in today’s game at Detroit. According to this Atlanta Journal Constitution story, all four Falcon QBs will play a quarter against the pathetic Lions who will send another former SEC quarterback out for his debut — No. 1 pick Matt Stafford.
• As mentioned previously, Smith is still not practicing or playing for the Bengals. The sixth pick of the draft is talking with Cincinnati about ending the hold out according to this story. Stay tuned for updates on this story.

Good Monday morning update

It’s that time again to take a daily look at what is making news in the Alabama athletic universe as we approach the one-month-to-go point in the countdown to kickoff.

• First, an NFL note. It appears as if Andre Smith still hasn’t signed a contract with the Cincinnati Bengals. A long hold-out won’t do much to repair the image of the former Crimson Tide Outland Trophy winner. Stick with the blog for updates.
• All the transfer news over the summer was hard to track. Linebacker Brandon Fanney was one of the Tide players said to be on the way out. He was reportedly headed to Terry Bowden’s UNA program, but the Times Daily is saying he isn’t on the roster and practice begins today. Read more here.
• Could ESPN’s College Football Gameday be at Alabama’s Sept. 5 opener with Georgia Tech? It’s a good possibility according to the Atlanta Journal -Constitution. Read more here.
• The Washington Times says Alabama is the No. 6 team in the country. To see the rationale, click here.
• You also may have noticed the new poll posted on the left-hand side of the site. Vote today.
• On a final note, please check out one of the funniest YouTube videos ever posted. It never gets old.

Glen Coffee signs with ‘Niners

Read the story posted below from the Associated Press concerning the signing of former Crimson Tide running back Glen Coffee with the San Francisco 49ers. In other non-news, Andre Smith has still to sign a contract with the Bengals. Stay tuned for updates. Also, add your entry to the caption contest in the previous post.

Now, from the AP:

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The San Francisco 49ers have signed running back Glen Coffee, their third-round draft pick, to a four-year contract.

The deal was announced by the team Monday night.

The 6-foot, 209-pound Coffee, out of Alabama, is expected to be Frank Gore’s backup this season in coach Mike Singletary’s power running offense. Coffee ran for 1,383 yards and 10 touchdowns last season for the Crimson Tide. He finished his collegiate career with 2,107 yards on 410 carries with 14 TDs, and 42 catches for 351 yards and two touchdowns.

First-round pick wide receiver Michael Crabtree remains San Francisco’s last unsigned draft pick. He could hold out when the team hold its first training camp practice Saturday.

Rashad Johnson signs, Andre Smith doesn’t

Former Tide safety Rashad Johnson signed a 3-year deal with the Arizona Cardinals according to several media outlets including this one. The financial terms were not included, but he has a deal and is set for training camp.

His former teammate Andre Smith isn’t.

The sometimes troubled Outland Trophy winner still isn’t officially a member of the Cincinnati Bengals after being selected sixth overall in the NFL draft. Stories on the web indicate he is looking at upwards of $20 million guaranteed.

Stay tuned to see if he signs and avoids more public scrutiny that a long hold-out would bring.

Good Thursday morning update

It’s that time again to take a daily look at what is making news in the Alabama athletics universe.

• As noted last night, LSU beat Texas for the opportunity to make a dogpile at the College World Series. A few lucky Tigers even got a shot at interviewing by Erin Andrews.
• Speaking of my favorite sideline reporter, Andrews caught up with LSU football coach Les Miles. See what they spoke about here.
• The adventure continues for former Alabama lineman Andre Smith. Read this story about his adventure on the back roads of the Midwest. Coming from someone who recently moved from the region, the cornfields can hypnotize you.
• Also on the topic of the sometimes troubled Outland Trophy winner, this Bengals beat writer expects a lengthy holdout.
• Read how summer football camp differs under Nick Saban as opposed to the days of Mike Shula here.

Report: Andre Smith will not fire second agent afterall

The Andre Smith saga just keeps getting better. The Outland Trophy winner from Alabama has reportedly decided not to fire his second agent Rick Smith, according to NFL.com

On Tuesday afternoon and evening, multiple sources were reporting Smith’s decision to fire Rick Smith and go back to first agent Alvin Keels. Apparently, that isn’t the plan anymore.

This story just won’t go away will it?