Alabama and Georgia: Then and Now

It has been four years since the Alabama Crimson Tide have met the Georgia Bulldogs on the gridiron, but that game still lingers in the minds of Crimson Tide fans.  On that late September night in 2008 the Bulldog nation did their best to blackout Alabama; instead it was the Tide that turned the lights out on Georgia.

It was the game that officially announced to the country that Alabama football, under then second year head coach Nick Saban, had returned to the national stage in college football.

An efficient John Parker Wilson in his first year under a new offensive coordinator from the west coast, Jim McElwain, looked cool and collected under center, assembling one of his finest performances in an Alabama uniform; 13-of-16 for 206 yards and one touchdown. Joining Wilson in the backfield was a stable junior in running back, Glen Coffee and a dynamic freshman running back by the name of Mark Ingram. At receiver another freshman, Julio Jones developed a rapport with his senior quarterback, hauling in 5 catches for 94 yards and a touchdown reception that is captured on canvas paintings throughout the southeast.

This year, the story is not much different.

Alabama is led by a veteran quarterback in AJ McCarron, who is also in his first year under an offensive coordinator who came from the left coast in Doug Nussmeier.  In the backfield it has been Junior Eddie Lacy and freshman TJ Yeldon carrying the workload. At receiver, it is another freshman, Amari Cooper that is making an impact in his first year at the Capstone, threatening Jones’ freshman receiving record.

This time around, the meeting will take place at a different point in the season, yet each will still be looking to make a statement.   SEC cynics have declared for weeks that the conference is down in 2012, and secretly hoped a team from the Southeast would be shut out of the BCS National championship game.

It will be the complete opposite as the SEC Championship has become a semi-final to prove once and for all who deserves to take their talents to south beach.  The stakes have been raised: an SEC title and BCS national championship birth on the line. In fact, the loser of this game will likely miss out on the BCS party all together. It is an all or nothing game.

The spotlight will be a little brighter this time around, but the story is still the same. When Alabama and Georgia take to the Georgia Dome turf, they will again be two teams eager to show the country they are the best in the game.