Alabama Crimson Tide 2015 Spring Game Recap: 5 Takeaways from A-Day
Apr 18, 2015; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Marlon Humphrey (26) celebrates after making an interception in the annual A-day game at Bryant Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
Alabama finished their spring practice with their annual A-Day spring game and these are the five biggest takeaways from the day.
The crowd saved its loudest applause of the day for the new comer.
No, that new comer was not talking about the freshman quarterback Blake Barnett, but several members of the crowd were very interested in seeing the touted youth take the field. The crowd was applauding Avery Johnson… the new men’s basketball coach.
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Let’s talk about the crowd that applauded Johnson. It was small. In fact, it was the worst attended spring game since Saban came to Alabama. That small crowd still topped out at just over 65,000 according to the University, but that was an 8,000 person decrease from the previous worst attended scrimmage under Saban (73,000 in 2014).
The clouds above seemed ominous. The forecast projected rain, and that might have been why the crowds skipped out on this year’s A-Day. Although perhaps the fans have simply lost faith in Saban’s invincibility. It has been a whole two years since he won a national title. The doubters were already circling.
“Don’t believe me, just watch.”
Uptown Funk blared its familiar tune over Bryant-Denny Stadium’s loudspeakers during the pregame warm-up. The players seemed to take the message to heart.
Senior quarterback Jake Coker has looked flustered before. On the sidelines Saturday, Coker did not seem worried about the high expectations, his past or even the chance of imminent rain. Instead he just laughed and continued to warm up while he waited his turn to play.
The quarterback position was just one of the many position battles that continued into A-Day. Alabama has holes to fill across the board, and A-Day just might tell the fans and the coaching staff who to watch in the fall. The weather, the low attendance and the pressure to play well did not seem clear on the faces of the other players either.
At the beginning of the game the music began to play in earnest and Alabama’s players could be seen bouncing to the beat on the sidelines. It was finally time to play.
Next: Jake Coker's job to lose?