Cameron Newton—gone.
Ryan Pugh, Lee Ziemba, Mike Berry and Bryon Isom—gone.
Even backups Bart Eddoms and Jorrell Bostrom are gone in 2011, while juniors Brandon Moseley and Jared Cooper, sophomore offensive lineman John Sullen and redshirt freshman Blake Burgess have very little game time experience.
Gone is WR Kodi Burns, backup QB Neil Caudle and RB Mario Fanin. WR Terrell Zackary—gone.
And that's just the offensive players. Gone from the defense are seniors Antoine Carter, Michael Goggans, Mike Blank, Zach Clayton, Craig Stevens and Josh Bynes. The secondary is depleted with the loss of starters Zack Ethridge, Aairon Savage and Demond Washington.
And the No. 1 defensive player in the nation, junior Nick Fairley, is out the door!
Never has an SEC team been so depleted following a championship year. Never has a follow-up year seemed so bleak to an SEC champion and national champion. So many players and playmakers on both sides of the ball.
What's left? Not much, with the exception of true freshman RB Michael Dyer. Darvin Adams will return to the wide receiver position as well.
While Dyer did have a sensational freshman campaign, much of the success was attributable to the option threat that Newton brought to the offense. Adams had 52 receptions, and many were thanks to the excellent accuracy of Newton, in the pocket or on the run. Yet collectively, the two playmakers had only 11 touchdowns between them—five for Dyer, seven for Adams.
Tight end Philip Lutzenkirchen added 15 receptions, 185 yards and five touchdowns to the offensive production. Yet again, his success was in large part attributable to the "oh sheet" tight end delay, made possible by the run threat to the opposite side of the field by Newton.
And to think, Mark Ingram had a setback year behind a line that was 50-50 with experience and youth. Ingram still had a successful junior campaign, leading the Alabama rushing attack with 875 yards on 158 carries. Richardson followed up his freshman year with 700 yards on 112 carries, while Lacy and Goode combined for 546 yards on 56 and 34 carries, respectively.
Ingram and Lacy combined for 19 touchdowns, while Lacy and Goode combined for seven more scores. Production for Julio Jones was at a peak in 2010 as well, yet the offense was only good enough to land the 2009 champs in fourth place in the west.
Not much of an outlook for the Tigers. Well, it's wait and see time. Time to let the talking heads do their damage control and plaster their propaganda for the upcoming Auburn 2011 campaign. Looks like on the outset, sixth place in the division is a pretty good bet.
Meanwhile, Alabama football is poised for another championship fun run. First in the SEC, and then on the national stage. The preseason polls for 2011 are placing Auburn anywhere from 17-20th, while Alabama is once again recognized as one of the top five teams in the country.
The defense is almost entirely intact. Marcel Dareus is on his way to a professional career, and Luther Davis also has a chance to be drafted in the first five rounds. Offensively, with Julio Jones departing early, there is plenty of talent waiting to step up.
McCarron will be challenged by Phillip and Blake Sims for first-team snaps. The battle is on, and it will be a fun thing to watch. No worries in the quarterback or wideout positions. The offensive line has a full season of maturity, and all but Carpenter will return. While the left tackle spot is the most important for passing downs, there is talent waiting in the wings and new blood from the JUCO coming in to challenge for the starting position.
Nick Saban and his coaching staff have Alabama poised for success on the gridiron, year in and year out. Once again, it's great to be from Alabama.
And with the Crystal Trophy on it's way to the Wal-Mart in Auburn, it will be interesting to see the enthusiastic fan base line up for their photo opportunities with the 2010 stars. Can't wait for that, considering all the condescending comments Auburn fans plastered on the blogs and boards last season. Can't wait!
Monet Mazur Rozonda Thomas Rachel Weisz Miranda Kerr Sarah Shahi
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