Tide Tidbits - October 22, 2008

Intensity level high in practice
Saban tries to maintain the same consistency every week, but there's something special about the Alabama-Tennessee game that seems to get every player's attention. "Today was one of the best practices we've had in the last couple of weeks," Crimson Tide center Antoine Caldwell said. "Everybody was flying around. It started off early, a lot of guys were intense and jumping around. That's what you need, especially in a game like this. It's a huge game just because it's the next game but when you have a rivalry week like this, the more intense it is the better. And that's what we've been doing."

Vols gaining confidence
Tennessee’s 34-3 victory over Mississippi State was just what the Volunteers’ offense needed, though, as it prepares for their biggest game of the season against No. 2 Alabama. “Winning solves a lot of problems and a lot of issues,” coach Phillip Fulmer said Tuesday. “It’s just been a real battle because we’ve been our own worst enemy, and to play a complete game like that ... it gives you some momentum. It gives you a good feeling about yourselves.”

Alabama-Tennessee Preview
Alabama will likely have nobody but itself to blame if it doesn't land a spot in the BCS title game. With a trip to No. 11 LSU on Nov. 8 looking as the only major road block on its remaining schedule, Alabama is in a good position, but coach Nick Saban knows his team must improve on playing a complete game. ``We have to find a way to strike more consistency for 60 minutes in the game,'' Saban said. ``That's going to be critical to us in the future.''

Alabama game means much to UT's Fulmer
Publicly and to his players, Saban tries not to pitch the Tennessee game as different from any other. His counterpart on the other sideline, meanwhile, doesn't stop. "This is one of the games that is special to me," Vols coach Phillip Fulmer said. Each year before the Alabama game, Fulmer likes to play the Crimson Tide's fight song in its dressing room. Team members have also heard plenty from Fulmer about the history and passion of a series that, particularly to long-time Vol fans, represents the biggest contest on the schedule each year.


Roll Tide!