2008 Alabama Crimson Tide
Written June 20, 2008 by Jason Lowry
Its getting time to start thinking about the upcoming football season, and Jason Lowry is ready to help you out with his 2008 Alabama Crimson Tide football predictions. The Tide are coming off a solid season with a 7-6 overall record that included a 30-24 victory over Colorado in the Independence Bowl. Head coach Nick Saban will be in his 2nd season at Alabama and it will likely be a matter of time before he has this team competing for a National Championship. The Tide return 13 starters from a year ago, but most of their top talent is back this season. It will likely take another year for Saban to get his type of players, but for now he is a good enough coach that he can win no matter what. Lets take a look at both sides of the ball and then we will make our predictions for the upcoming season.
Offense:
With 7 returning starters this unit could be much improved from a year ago. They have a great quarterback in senior John Parker Wilson, who threw for 2,846 yards and 18 touchdowns a year ago. Wilson should be glad to see the new face of freshman Julio Jones at wide receiver, as many are already picking him as one of the best in the conference. Besides Jones the team could be hurting at the receiver spot, as they lost their top 3 from a year ago. It looks like junior Mike McCoy and senior Nikita Stover will be the starters at the other two spots. The team is pretty set at running back as they return the duo of sophomore Terry Grant and junior Glen Coffee who combined for over 1,400 yards and 12 touchdowns a year ago. Expect the bulk of the carries to go to Grant, as he enters his 2nd season. The tide also return 4 starters on the offensive line led by star junior left tackle Andre Smith, and a very talented center in senior Antoine Caldwell. The only open spot was the right tackle spot, and as it looks now freshman Tyler Love will be the go to guy to start the season.
Defense:
The Tide only return 6 starters on this side of the ball, and will really miss the departure of All-SEC DE Wallace Gilberry. But there is still plenty of talent left to be a solid line in 2008. There are 2 of the last years starters back on the line including junior Brandon Deaderick at defensive end and junior defensive tackle Lorenzo Washington. It looks like senior Bobby Greenwood will take over at the other defensive end spot. The Tide run a 3-4 and return only 1 of the starters from last year, but one of them is a serious talent in sophomore Rolando McClain. McClain had a big season as a freshman, and there is talk that Jerrell Harris will do the same this season. In the secondary the team returns two starters who are some of the best i the SEC in senior Rashad Johnson at free safety and sophomore Kareem Jackson at corner. Junior Javier Arenas will likely hold down the other corner spot, while fellow junior Justin Woodall will team up with Johnson at the safety spot.
Prediction: 3rd In the SEC West
You can already see the signs of young talent on this team, and you can only expect more with the recruiting class Saban will bring in. Even with only bringing back 13 players we got them as one of the better teams in the SEC. While they aren’t quite up there with Auburn and LSU, they are definitely a team that can be a serious threat next season. We are predicting right around a 9-4 year for the Crimson Tide.
If you are looking to get a head start on the upcoming football season, head over to Sportsbook.com and get an account up and going today. Looking for a prediction on your favorite team? Be sure to keep checking back as professional handicapper Jason Lowry will keep bringing you his predictions for the best teams and conferences in the country.
