Where, oh where is Nick Saban’s statue?

It sure isn’t in Tuscaloosa — at least not on its pedestal. As you can see, everything appears to be in place except for the coach himself.

Here is the marker commemorating the 2009 championship team that will be installed in the “Walk of Champions” near the statue.

A-Day parking plan

Things are still a little out of sorts around Bryant-Denny Stadium thanks to the south end zone expansion. So, for all your game day parking and transportation needs, the school set up a website, UAGameday.com.

Here are a few of the highlights as they pertain to Saturday’s A-Day Game.

There will be many more public parking lots for A-Day than for a regular season game. There will be areas designated for general public parking, Tide Pride parking, handicap accessible parking, RV parking, commercial bus parking and reserved parking (Coaches, players, vendors, etc)

Starting at 10 a.m., the entire core campus area will be closed to thru traffic.  A proper Gameday permit is required to enter this restricted area.
Please take note of the following street closings, and make your driving and parking plans accordingly.  Unless noted, these streets will remain closed until after the post-game pedestrian and vehicular traffic clears. 

The Tide Pride reserved parking will be in the following parking lots:

North ten Hoor Deck

South ten Hoor Deck

East ten Hoor Surface Lot

West ten Hoor Surface Lot

Bryant Drive Lot

NE Stadium Lot

Rose Administration

Elm Drive

South Rose Lot

11th Ave Media Gravel Lot

Only those with the proper Athletic Department issued parking permit will be allowed entry into these areas. 

A few Wednesday notes/links

It’s just a lazy afternoon in the media room for this beat writer (not really). But since I’ve neglected this space all day, here are a few nuggets to chew on. (Again, none of that Bleacher Report stuff will appear on this blog)

• The Associated Press wrote an interesting piece about Nick Saban/Steve Spurrier angle for Saturday’s game. Read it here.
• Doug Segrest, formerly of the Decatur Daily now of the Birmingham News, did a midseason report for the SEC. Take a gander by clicking this.
• Bobby Jackson, the first quarterback to play under Bear Bryant at Alabama, died Monday at age 73. Read more about him in this story from the Mobile Press-Register.
• The original Big Al mascot costume is headed for its final resting place — the Bear Bryant Museum. Don’t believe me? Then click this.
• In case you’ve followed jtbowtie on YouTube, you’ll want to see his latest effort that breaks down the South Carolina and Tennessee games. It’s not flattering for the Gamecocks or Vols if you had to guess.

They love the Bear in Catland

Good Tuesday (afternoon) update

It’s that time again to take a daily look at what is making news in the Alabama athletic universe on the day before players report for football practice.

• The trailer for Nick Saban’s film debut was just released. Click here to see the preview of “The Blind Side” but don’t expect to see the Crimson Tide coach wearing his old LSU gear. Saban’s cameo did not make the preview. After watching it, I know where I will be when the movie is released in November. It looks like one of those truly inspiring movies based on a true story only sports can produce.
• Paul Finebaum and Mike Bianchi continue to disagree over Urban Meyer’s status as the next Bear Bryant. Click here to see how the Orlando Sentinel columnist views Finebaum’s column.
• New UNA coach Terry Bowden compared his first season with the Lions with Nick Saban’s at Alabama. Click here to read the column from the TimesDaily.
• If you need any more help getting excited about the season, watch this video.
• Don’t forget to vote on the poll to the left.

In other ranking news, Bryant No. 3 coach ever says Sporting News

Fans might not like Nick Saban, but Bear Bryant’s peers think he was pretty darn good. The Sporting News just released the results of its poll of “118 hall of famers, championship coaches and other experts” that put Bryant at No. 3 behind only John Wooden and Vince Lombardi.

There will be more in the Sporting News magazine when it hits newsstands this week. But for a peak at the story click here. What do you think of these rankings? Post a comment below.

Here are the other members of the top 10:

1. John Wooden, college basketball
2. Vince Lombardi, NFL
3. Bear Bryant, college football
4. Phil Jackson, NBA
5. Don Shula, NFL
6. Red Auerbach, NBA
7. Scotty Bowman, NHL
8. Dean Smith, college basketball
9. Casey Stengel, MLB
10. Knute Rockne, college football

Good Monday morning update

It’s that time again to take a daily look at what is making news in the Alabama athletic universe. After skipping the daily ritual at SEC Media Days, it’s back again.

• Is it blasphemy to suggest any coach is the next Bear Bryant? Well one writer is suggesting it could be Urban Meyer stepping into that role. Read more here.
• Check out this story (written by my first sports editor at my college paper) about Virginia Tech’s chances of beating Alabama in the season-opener (less than 40 days away). Clemson’s C.J. Spiller apparently likes the Hokies’ odds of winning in the Georgia Dome.
• According to this writer, Alabama’s Javier Arenas is ready for the big time.
• Don’t forget to vote on the new poll posted Sunday night.

Good Thursday morning update

Again, I must apologize for the lack of excitement in the world of Alabama athletics this week. I promise and I’m sure you know, this is just the calm before the storm building on the horizon.

In response to the lagging news of today, I will direct you to a resource loaded with news of yesteryear. Sports Illustrated (the Bible of sports) made its massive archive public not too long ago and some fans, I’m sure, haven’t come up for air yet. The “Vault” is incredible.

Every cover, every story and even photo gallery and online video is easily found with a few taps of the keyboard and a right-click. I promise this can be addictive so please view it in moderation so not to alienate family and friends.

To get you started, follow this link to see everything associated with the “Crimson Tide” search term. (There are 603 stories containing Alabama’s unique nickname)

What do you think? Is Richard Petty on Bear Bryant’s level?

Read and react to the following selection for an espn.com story about Richard Petty.

“Kyle likens his father to former Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant, who stalked the Crimson Tide sideline for 25 years before stepping down at the age of 69 with more wins than anyone in Division I at that time.

A year later, he passed away.”[Bryant] just wanted to stand with the players and be a part of the game he loved so much,” Kyle said. “That’s the way Richard Petty is. He still just wants to be a part of something he loves so much.”

Joked Petty, “I’m a hardhead. That’s the reason I keep coming back.”

A few videos for a slow Thursday

It’s going on 4 p.m. and zero posts on this slow Thursday in mid-May. So as you kill some time before Alabama plays Auburn on the ball diamond (6 p.m. on CSS), check out the following assortment of YouTube videos that may interest an Alabama fan. (I confess to being a huge YouTube fan and claim to be able to find a video on nearly any subject).

Enjoy. (Note: None of these videos were produced by The Decatur Daily. Just something fun while you pretend to work at your computer)

“The best Alabama football video”

“The Tradition (Alabama football pregame)”

Big Al takes out Florida Gator”

“Seymour vs Big Al – mascot fight – Southern Miss vs Alabama 2002”

“Alabama football best 50 plays of last 30 years”

“Bear Bryant gives sideline reporter a hard time”

Bear Bryant show following 1979 win over Auburn