Tide Tidbits - September 17, 2008

Longtime Tennessee Coach Phil Fulmer feeling the heat from unhappy fans
Faithfulness and disappointment have gathered forces. The joint target is Phil Fulmer, the beleaguered football coach of the University of Tennessee. Faithfulness comprises the Tennessee fans who believe after 17 years, Fulmer can regain the pride he once carried into Knoxville as a national champion in 1998. Disappointment, however, looms over Fulmer's shoulder with every mounting loss. It has all the statistics to prove he's no longer the right guy for the job -- that he's 20-24 against ranked teams since 1998; that he hasn't coached in a Bowl Championship Series bowl since the 2000 Fiesta Bowl; that the Vols have had at least three losses for seven of the last eight seasons.

Patience pays off for Alabama starting safety Justin Woodall
There's much about Woodall that's hard to figure. Now a junior and the starting strong safety on Alabama's football team, Woodall remains a quiet guy. His words typically come slow and thoughtful, be it about football and/or baseball. He didn't offer many reasons why he turned down a potentially lucrative opportunity in professional baseball to sign with Crimson Tide coach Mike Shula two years ago. It's a decision the Oxford, Miss., native has second-guessed during times like last football season, when he played sparingly for new coach Nick Saban. But with Alabama's baseball team set to welcome him this past spring, Woodall decided to stay 100 percent with football and has been rewarded.

Alabama coach Nick Saban playing numbers game with jerseys
For the first time in his coaching career, Alabama's Nick Saban has to consider a jersey number when using players on special teams. "A lot of these guys that have duplications in numbers, they wanted these numbers and that was part of what really was important to them," Saban said. " ... So I promised them the number. Single digits are the problem because that's the fad now."

Terrence Cody rumbling, Marlon Davis' health... and other stuff!
"(The center) tried to turn me out and I just drove him in the backfield," Cody said. "I just pushed him toward the ball-carrier, who tried to cut back. The ball got knocked out of his hands, and I saw it. I could've picked it up and ran with it, but I just fell on it, because that's what we're told to do."

Big-man showdown
Terrence Cody, a.k.a. Mt. Cody, vs. Jonathan Luigs, considered the best center in collegiate football. When the University of Alabama football team visits Arkansas on Saturday, the two will square off in the middle whenever the Razorbacks have the ball, and they will be forced to deal with the 365-pound junior nose guard.

Arkansas braces for rough road
Bobby Petrino is back in the Southeastern Conference — and the rest of the league sure looks ready for him. There are a record five SEC teams in the AP top 10 this week, and Petrino's Arkansas team plays three of them in the next four weeks. The other opponent? No. 7 Texas. 'Yeah, it's a good stretch,' Petrino said, not wanting to look too far ahead. 'We just need to concentrate on Alabama.'

Roll Tide!