Tide Tidbits - September 22, 2008

Alabama right on track after easy win at Arkansas
Not since Gene Stallings was coach had Alabama scored this many points in a Southeastern Conference game. That's good news for Crimson Tide fans, who are hoping Nick Saban can do what Stallings did — win a national championship. "My message to my team was, you really don't have to be sick to get better," said Saban, in his second season as Alabama coach. "There's a lot of things we can improve on from this game."

Alabama runs wild over Arkansas
It didn't take No. 9 Alabama much time to establish a run game against Arkansas on a day when the team gained 328 rushing yards on 35 touches. Junior running back Glen Coffee rushed up the middle for 17 yards on the first offensive play of the game, and Alabama later punched the ball in with a 1-yard touchdown run. And the backfield didn't look back from there. On the first play of the second drive, Coffee darted up field for an 87-yard touchdown run, setting a tone for the rest of the game, he said.

Crimson Tide turns its focus on Georgia
Alabama (4-0) now turns its attention to Georgia (4-0), which defeated Arizona State on Saturday night, setting up a battle of top-10 teams in Athens this weekend. "I don't think we could ask for a better situation," said Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson. "They're the team to beat right now in the SEC and we get a chance to face them on the road. We're looking forward to it. I know I am. We just have to have a good week of preparation and continue this momentum that we have from (the Arkansas win)."

Crimson Tide first and 10
The University of Alabama’s 49-14 victory at Arkansas was both convincing and dominating, as the Crimson Tide won its 17th consecutive SEC opener. Not only was it the most points scored by the Tide in an SEC game since the 59-28 victory over Vanderbilt in 1990, but the most points in an SEC road game since the 62-27 win at Ole Miss in 1989. It was also Alabama’s largest margin of victory in an SEC game since a 42-7 victory over Ole Miss in 2002. Here are 10 things you may not have noticed about Saturday’s game:

SEC 'Worst to First' -- Part II
Hopefully you saw the Worst to First SEC ratings that we debuted on The Chatter last Sunday. It's a feature we'll be doing each Sunday throughout the season and we'll crank it up against when basketball gets started with league play in January. So here we go again with our second edition:

Tide moves to No. 8 as it prepares for No. 3 Georgia
The Crimson Tide moved to No. 8 nationally after a fourth consecutive victory, none of which were particularly difficult and all but one — the post-Clemson battle versus Tulane — was downright impressive. "It didn't surprise me," Georgia coach Mark Richt said of the Arkansas result. "Alabama's a great football team, and I know they're just trying to get under way there at Arkansas with the new staff, new scheme and all that kind of thing. Alabama, they're in year two (under Saban) — that magical year two, you know — and they're playing outstanding ball right now."

UGA expects 'blackout' for Saturday's game with Crimson Tide
It's to be the biggest game of the weekend in college football, and authorities are responding accordingly. Soon after ESPN GameDay confirmed it would broadcast from Saturday's 6:45 p.m. game in Athens, Ga., between No. 8 Alabama and No. 3 Georgia, the Bulldogs announced a "blackout" of Sanford Stadium for the second time in as many seasons.

Roll Tide!