Tag: Alabama Crimson Tide

Former Alabama assistant to reportedly become head coach at FBS program

The former Alabama assistant has reportedly landed a FBS head coaching job.

According to multiple reports, former Alabama Crimson Tide assistant  Charles Kelly will be named the next coach of the Jacksonville State Gamecocks.

Kelly, who replaces former Jacksonville State coach Rich Rodriguez, spent the 2024 season with the Auburn Tigers as safeties coach and co-defensive coordinator. This was the lone season for Kelly at Auburn.

Prior to Auburn, Kelly served as the defensive coordinator with the Colorado Buffaloes for a season. Before that, he spent four seasons (2019-22) at Alabama as an assistant on Nick Saban’s staff. At Alabama, Kelly served as assistant defensive coordinator and safeties coach.

Kelly also served as an assistant coach with the Florida State Seminoles, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and Tennessee Volunteers as well as two Alabama high schools, Central-Phenix City and Eufaula.

Former Alabama golfer Nick Dunlap named PGA Tour’s Rookie of the Year

PGA Tour names former Alabama golfer Nick Dunlap as their 2024 Rookie of the Year.

At only 20 years of age, Nick Dunlap is the next big thing in United States golf. The former Alabama Crimson Tide standout burst onto the scene becoming only the second player to ever win the US Amateur Championship (2023) as well as the US Junior Am (2021) alongside the legend Tiger Woods.

Dunlap became a household name when he received a sponsor exemption to play in The American Express on the PGA Tour in January of 2024 and then won the whole Tournament. He became the first amateur to win a PGA Tour event in 33 years. At just 20 years and 29 days old, Dunlap became the second-youngest winner on the PGA Tour in the past 90 years, behind Jordan Spieth, who won at 19 years and 352 days old. Dunlap then turned professional the following week.

Despite being the youngest player on the Tour, Dunlap was outstanding as a Rookie playing in 23 events (making 15 cuts) resulting in a pair of wins, four top 10 and seven top 25 finishes. As a result, the PGA Tour announced that Dunlap was the 2024 Arnold Palmer Award Rookie of the Year honoree.

Dunlap missed the cut at all three major events he attended in 2024 including the Master’s, however I believe he will be a name to keep an eye on in the coming years.

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Alabama transfer commits to Bill Belichick and the North Carolina Tar Heels

Bill Belichick and UNC land commitment from former Alabama OL Miles McVay.

It’s still hard to believe it happened, but the greatest coach in NFL history, Bill Belichick, is now the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels. As if imagining Belichick outside of the pros wasn’t weird enough, the college game has never been in a more bizarre spot between NIL and the transfer portal.

The Tar Heel program will be a bit of a rebuild as they finished 6-6 in 2024, but it sounds like they have solid NIL plans in place to assist the Patriots legend.

So far, Belichick doesn’t appear to be having any issues adapting to the changes as he’s already finding great success in the transfer portal. On Thursday, the Tar Heels landed a commitment from former four star recruit and Alabama Crimson Tide OL Miles McVay. Coming out of East St. Louis, McVay was the rated No. 138 player on the ESPN300 and the 16th-rated offensive tackle in the 2023 recruiting cycle.

With three years of eligibility remaining, McVay’s decision to enter the portal isn’t shocking after limited playing time, a redshirt and being stuck behind Kadyn Proctor on the depth chart. McVay will also become the first player to play for both Nick Saban and Belichick at the college level.

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Alabama RB Jam Miller to return to Tuscaloosa for 2025 season

Crimson Tide starting RB Jam Miller to return to Alabama for senior season.

In the world of NIL and the transfer portal, it is almost impossible to predict what will happen once the portal window opens up. Fans of the Alabama Crimson Tide have grown to be quite familiar with it after a plethora of departures following Nick Saban’s retirement.

The start of the 2024-25 portal cycle has unfortunately been no different for the Tide with several key departures. However, that’s just the new reality of the sport and a difficulty that all programs are facing. For coaches, it makes it so difficult to make long-term plans when you don’t know who will be on campus the next semester even.

One person that Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer will be able to rely on in 2025 is RB Jam Miller who announced he will be back with the Crimson Tide next fall. With his counterpart Justice Haynes departing for the portal, it’s not a shocking move, but big for the Alabama offense nonetheless.

We are all still eagerly waiting on QB Jalen Milroe’s decision for his future, but it will be good to have a familiar face in the backfield in Miller. Milroe led the team in every rushing statistic, but Miller was the Tide’s clear No. 1 RB with 152 carries for 641 yards and seven scores. and should be an ever larger work load next fall.

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Assessing Alabama’s national championship hopes after grueling non-conference schedule

Can Alabama basketball make a legitimate run at the 2024-25 national championship?

The Alabama Crimson Tide have two games remaining in their non-conference portion of the 2024-25 schedule after narrowly beating the North Dakota Fighting Hawks on the road Wednesday evening. The Tide will wrap up the month with home games against Kent State and South Dakota State before opening up SEC play against the No. 14 Oklahoma Sooners on Jan. 4 in Tuscaloosa.

Head coach Nate Oats has made it a massive priority to play the toughest non-conference schedule possible to test his teams for the post-season, and so far it’s paid dividends as Alabama earned the No. 1 overall seed in March Madness in 2023 and made the Final Four in 2024.

Alabama is currently ranked No. 6 in the country at 9-2 on the year with their only two losses coming against No. 16 Purdue on the road and vs No. 10 Oregon in the Players Era Festival Tournament Championship. However, the Tide do have some of the most impressive wins of the early part of the season against Illinois, Houston, North Carolina and Creighton.

With five teams ranked inside of the top seven and eight total teams in the top 25, the SEC is without a doubt the deepest conference in the country. I do believe that Alabama’s gauntlet of a non-conference schedule as well as their depth will be a massive advantage in the race for the conference title because I don’t think anyone will be running the table in a league this good. By the time March rolls around, an already veteran Crimson Tide team will also be the most battle tested team in the country.

To the surprise of none, Grant Nelson and Mark Sears have paved the way for the Tide, but Labaron Philon and Aden Holloway are quickly emerging as key pieces for Oats. Losing Latrell Wrightsell to a season ending injury obviously hurts a lot, but Alabama has other pieces to overcome it.

March Madness is all about who’s hot at the right time, but Alabama will have all of the pieces to make a legit national title run. There are still things to clean up as the Crimson Tide surrender nearly 80 points per game and average 12.7 turnovers a game. Alabama has also struggled a little bit more on the road this year so that will be something to monitor as conference play starts, but their high octane offense will be a problem for any team in the nation.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Former Alabama defensive lineman Damon Payne to sign with the Michigan Wolverines

Michigan Wolverines land commitment from former Alabama DL Damon Payne.

There was some back-and-forth, but ultimately, former Alabama Crimson Tide DL Damon Payne will sign with the Michigan Wolverines. Payne reportedly initially signed with the Wolverines Wednesday morning, but there were conflicting reports that his signing was voided. However, he cleared up the confusion with a commitment post-Wednesday evening.

The former four-star recruit was ranked No. 39 overall in the 2021 recruiting cycle and the No. 9 DL prospect and will see significant minutes for the maize and blue immediately. He becomes the Wolverine’s fifth transfer portal commitment of the cycle with just one year of eligibility remaining.

In 2024, Payne recorded 14 tackles and a fumble recovery with Alabama after being mostly a rotational piece the previous two seasons. Payne is a Michigan native and had been heavily pursued out of high school by now-head coach Sherrone Moore.

For Alabama, it likely isn’t a massive loss as he wasn’t going to be a starter in 2025, but a lack of depth never helps. It will be interesting to see what DeBoer and his staff are able to find in the transfer portal.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Alabama baseball officially announces 2025 schedule, opponents

Alabama baseball’s 2025 schedule includes a home series vs. Tennessee, as well as road trips to Florida, LSU, and Texas A&M.

The 2025 baseball schedule for the Alabama Crimson Tide was officially announced Wednesday afternoon, with the program once again set to play some of the top teams the sport has to offer this upcoming season.

Entering year two of the Rob Vaughn era, Alabama is coming off a season in which they made a NCAA Tournament appearance where the Crimson Tide fell in the Tallahassee Regional. Alabama also ended last season with a 33-24 overall record, as well as a 13-17 mark in SEC play, college baseball’s most competitive and toughest conference.

This season, Alabama is expected to likely make the NCAA Tournament yet again, but it will not be without a tough road ahead during the regular season, in part due to the grind of the SEC conference schedule.

Here is the complete 2025 baseball schedule for the Alabama Crimson Tide:

Alabama Crimson Tide baseball 2025 schedule

  • Feb. 14-16: vs. Bradley
  • Feb. 18: vs. Middle Tennessee
  • Feb. 19: vs. Alabama State
  • Feb. 21-23: vs. Coastal Carolina, NC State, Ohio State at Jacksonville Classic in Jacksonville, Florida
  • Feb. 25: vs. Jacksonville State
  • Feb. 28-Mar. 2: vs. North Dakota State
  • Mar. 4: at Jacksonville State
  • Mar. 5: vs. Troy
  • Mar. 7-9: vs. Presbyterian
  • Mar. 11: at UAB
  • Mar. 14-16: at Texas A&M
  • Mar. 18: vs. South Alabama
  • Mar. 21-23: vs. Tennessee
  • Mar. 25: vs. North Alabama in Huntsville, Alabama
  • Mar. 28-30: vs. Oklahoma
  • Apr. 1: vs. Samford
  • Apr. 4-6: at Auburn
  • Apr. 8: vs. Southern Miss
  • Apr. 11-13: vs. Mississippi State
  • Apr. 15: vs. UAB
  • Apr. 17-19: at LSU
  • Apr. 22: at Samford
  • Apr. 25-27: vs. Missouri
  • May 2-4: at Vanderbilt
  • May 6: at Troy
  • May 9-11: vs. Georgia
  • May 15-16: at Florida
  • May 20-25: SEC Tournament in Hoover, Alabama

Alabama transfer wide receiver commits to SEC program

An Alabama wide receiver will play in the SEC once again next season.

After announcing his intentions to enter the NCAA transfer portal earlier this month, Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Caleb Odom announced that he would be committing to the Ole Miss Rebels on Wednesday night.

Odom is the second Alabama wide receiver to make a transfer commitment so far this cycle joining Kobe Prentice, who previously committed to Baylor.

RELATED: Alabama football 2024-25 offseason transfer portal tracker

A true freshman, Odom appeared in 12 games for the Crimson Tide in 2024 where he was one of the top names in Alabama’s wide receiver room late in the year. For the season, Odom hauled in a total of seven receptions, which he turned into 65 yards.

Prior to Alabama, Odom was a four-star, Top 100 overall prospect in the Crimson Tide’s 2024 recruiting class out of Carrollton High School in Georgia. Odom was also considered as the nation’s No. 2 overall tight end in the 2024 class according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Georgia misses out on SEC quarterback transfer target

Georgia football misses out on Alabama football transfer quarterback Dylan Lonergan.

The Georgia Bulldogs have been targeting quarterbacks since the transfer portal opened. One of their recent targets was Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Dylan Lonergan, a former four-star recruit in the class of 2023.

Similar to Jackson Arnold, Georgia was unable to land Lonergan. Instead, he committed to the Boston College Eagles, where he will play under coach Bill O’Brien, a former Alabama offensive coordinator.

Lonergan, the No. 13 quarterback in his class of 2023, was recruited by the Bulldogs coming out of high school. However, he chose to sign with Alabama. In 2024 with the Crimson Tide, he played sparingly, throwing for 23 yards on five completions and running for 16 yards.

Five-star Ty Thompson is projected to be Alabama’s future quarterback when Jalen Milroe leaves. With Boston College, Lonergan has a clear path to starting.

Georgia is still in the running for other transfer quarterbacks, including Cal’s Fernando Mendoza and Charlotte’s DeShawn Purdie. Signing one of those arms will strengthen Georgia’s transfer class, which has no current commitments.

Instant Recap: Alabama survives massive upset bid at North Dakota for close road win

Alabama survives North Dakota. Here’s how it happened.

The Alabama Crimson Tide got a much tougher fight than anyone expected Wednesday night in the state of North Dakota.

Pushed to the brink by a career-high 40 points from North Dakota shooting guard Treysen Eaglestaff, Alabama survived with a 97-90 win in nonconference play over the Fighting Hawks at Betty Engelstad Sioux Center in Grand Forks.

Thirteen first-half Alabama turnovers gave North Dakota a shocking 38-35 halftime lead over the No. 6 team in the nation. That included a 3-of-10 start from the field by Alabama in the game’s first seven minutes. UND jumped out to an 11-6 lead they would eventually stretch to nine on one of Eaglestaff’s many 3-pointers.

In the second half, the Tide started to roll by taking a 58-47 lead as part of a 13-0 run that included a steal and a dunk from freshman Labaron Philon.

It was nothing short of fitting that home state product Grant Nelson — the main reason for Alabama’s trip to Grand Forks — was a big reason for the Tide’s second-half surge. Nelson would finish the night tied for the team-high in points with 23, including a dunk with 8:40 to play in regulation.

Even so, closing out the Fighting Hawks proved to be an all-but-impossible task for Nelson and the Crimson Tide.

North Dakota refused to go away and tied the game at 78-78 with just over four minutes to play. But after Eli King drained a 3-pointer that tied it at 85-all with two minutes to go, Nelson put Alabama back ahead for good on a jump shot before adding a pair of clutch free throws to extend the lead to 89-85.

Nelson, who transferred to Alabama from North Dakota State ahead of the 2023-24 season, got the rebound when Eaglestaff missed from downtown with just over a minute to play. He also got the offensive board when Mark Sears missed what would have been a dagger from 3-point range, forcing North Dakota to begin fouling.

Mo Dioubate sank four foul shots in the final minute to help Alabama close out the victory. Nelson added 10 rebounds as part of a double-double, and Sears finished with 23 points on 7-of-14 shots from the field to help the Tide survive what would have been the biggest upset of the year in college basketball.

Eaglestaff’s 40 points for North Dakota included eight 3-pointers. He finished the night 15-of-30 from the field .

With the win, Alabama improved to 9-2 overall. North Dakota fell to 4-9 but will feel better about their chances in Summit League play after taking the No. 6 team in the country down to the wire.

RELATED: Instant reactions to Alabama’s close victory at North Dakota

Alabama basketball schedule 2024-25

The Crimson Tide return to Coleman Coliseum to face the Kent State Golden Flashes (8-2) Sunday. Tipoff is scheduled for noon CT. The game will be televised on SEC Network.