Tide Tidbits - December 19, 2008

Little-guy Utah aims for upset of Alabama in Sugar Bowl
Boise State's upset of Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl delighted mid-major programs around the nation, but the Boise buzz has been replaced by the Hawaii hangover. Georgia of the lordly Southeastern Conference pounded Hawaii of the Western Athletic Conference 41-10 in the Sugar Bowl last January to stir up the politics and perceptions of big schools vs. little schools in games of the Bowl Championship Series. Now comes No. 7 Utah (12-0) into the Sugar Bowl to play No. 4 Alabama (12-1). There will be questions before the game of how fit the Utes are for a BCS contest.

Alabama's Cody announces he will return in 2009
It’s all just a huge mistake, Terrence Cody insists. No matter what you’ve heard, Alabama’s largest starter plans to return in 2009. “It was a big deal, am I coming back or am I leaving,” Cody said, “but I talked to coach (Nick) Saban – I talked to him quite a few times about it – and I told him what I really wanted to do and he felt like it was good for me to do that, too. “I told him I felt like I needed another year to get full control, to get my weight down and to get my knee back to full health and get in better conditioning.”

Tide's Smith looking into NFL draft status
Andre Smith will say this much publicly: He has submitted the paperwork to receive an evaluation of his NFL draft status. Beyond that, Alabama's All-American left tackle is keeping up his season-long refrain that he's more worried about the next game than the NFL. Smith, who won the Outland Trophy, has been projected as a potential No. 1 overall draft pick if he opts to skip his senior season.

Crimson Tide tailback Roy Upchurch to miss Sugar Bowl after neck surgery
Alabama reserve tailback Roy Upchurch is out for the Jan. 2 Sugar Bowl against Utah after undergoing neck surgery, Coach Nick Saban said today. Upchurch's surgery was to address painful neck spasms that greatly limited his role during the past four games.

Coffee, not Cody, files NFL advisory
Outland Trophy winner Andre Smith may have company on his likely early entry into the NFL draft, although it's not the Alabama teammate many would have expected. Junior tailback Glen Coffee joined Smith in submitting paperwork to the NFL draft advisory committee. Each will receive a projection from the panel before finalizing his decision after the Jan. 2 Sugar Bowl against Utah. Players must declare for the draft before Jan. 15. "It's there. I've definitely thought about it," Coffee said of the NFL.

Roll Tide!