Once upon a time, early enrollees in college football were almost unheard of. The first one I can remember at Alabama came under Ray Perkins in 1984 when quarterback Gene Newberry enrolled early from Blytheville, Ark.
Basically all new football signees in those days arrived in June if they could afford it, August in time for fall camp if they didn’t have the resources to pay in the summer for a room and meals (and if they were lucky, maybe get an academic head start).
Finally, that was rectified when the NCAA allowed schools to pay room, board, tuition, etc. for the summer enrollment of signees.
Also in that time and before, many, many players used the summer months to get jobs. Dennis Franchione was the first Alabama coach I can remember pressuring players to stay in Tuscaloosa and work out through the summer. “They don’t have to,” he said, “but I don’t have to play them if they don’t.”
I may not remember the exact details. For instance, I think the bridge between not being able to pay for summer school and being able to pay for it by NCAA rule was eased into by a school being able to pay for it if the player didn’t need the hours to be eligible; and that’s just about stupid enough that I tend to think my memory is correct.
I believe that in those days when schools were not permitted to pay for summer school and/or pay for incoming signees to be on campus in the summer, Alabama’s “plan” for the players to be physically ready for preseason practice in August was to follow a regimen prescribed by the trainer.
Those players who were leaving The University for the summer would be given a list of activities to stay in shape, while those signees who would be coming in were mailed a similar conditioning guide.
Assistant coaches would also mail their players “thinking of you” messages of encouragement during the summer. Players in the Paul Bryant Era would also be reminded that on their first day back the medical examination would include each player having to run a mile in a prescribed time based on position. Everyone knew that a mile run had approximately zero correlation to football performance. It was a matter of finding out which players would be prepared to do what they knew was expected of them.
Today, football players are out of the shadow of their sport only occasionally. A couple of days at Christmas, spring break, and maybe two or three weeks total in the summer. They see their strength and conditioning staff frequently.
Alabama football under Coach Nick Saban has often had a spring football practice schedule that included a day before the start of spring break and the remaining 14 days following the spring break.
This is a different time.
The pandemic COVID-19 from the coronavirus has altered life for everyone, including athletes with universities shut down, sports events canceled.
There was no spring football practice at Alabama this year as, first, there was a suspension by the Southeastern Conference of all intercollegiate competition, followed soon after by the temporary suspension of all athletics activity (practices, meetings, etc.), and most recently by that suspension of all athletics through (at least for the time being) the remainder of the spring semester.
Government at the state and Federal level was slow to recognize the seriousness of the worldwide pandemic and it is possible that Alabama Football Coach Nick Saban was as much in the dark as most of us. It’s reasonable to assume that his last meeting before players were released for spring break addressed a period of only nine days before their expected return on March 23.
By University edict, that return date has been moved back and there is no reason to expect Bama football players back on campus anytime soon. In any event, the SEC has determined there will be no spring football practice, no A-Day Game, and no Pro Day.
One suspects that Saban’s address to his players before they left included some ‘do’s and probably at least as many ‘don’t’s’. “Do some workouts to stay in shape,” “Don’t sacrifice sleep for being out late,” etc.
With the new abnormal of American life, expect Saban and/or his staff to stay in touch with players through the new normals – texts and e-mails and Twitter. How long that will need to continue is the unknown.
As difficult as adjustment to football will be for Bama headed towards the scheduled season-opening game against Southern Cal in Arlington, Texas, on Sept. 5, consider the plight of some others.
Alabama may have had a quarterback competition in the spring, but the Crimson Tide does have Mac Jones, who has started and played well for Bama. Early enrollee Brynce Young will have to wait.
On the other hand, Georgia Coach Kirby Smart has barely met his new quarterback, transfer Jamie Newman, who moved from Wake Forest to the Bulldogs following the unexpected decision of Jake Fromm to enter the NFL draft. Ed Orgeron at LSU has to replace the Heisman Trophy winner, quarterback Joe Burrow, and also the man who coached him; and his defensive coordinator. LSU fans expect a miracle.
The Alabama coaching staff is familiar with Tide players. And with unusual staff stability, the playbook is in place. Think about how important the loss of spring practice is to men like Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss, Mike Leach at Mississippi State, Sam Pittman at Arkansas, and Eliah Drinkwitz at Missouri, all new head coaches having to wait for their first practices with their new teams and new coaching staffs.
And no one knows when that will be.
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March 18, 2020 at 05:59PM
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Alabama Football Players Given Advice During Shutdown - 247Sports
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