Alabama Returns to Practice after Holiday Break (VIDEO)

The No. 2 Alabama football team practiced in full pads on Thursday afternoon during its second practice since returning from Christmas break in preparation for the Discover BCS National Championship Game.

The Crimson Tide worked for two hours inside the Hank Crisp Indoor Practice Facility as the team’s focus has begun to shift to Notre Dame and the challenges the Fighting Irish will present on Jan. 7.

“We started to do some game prep this week, which is important,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said. “We are going try to give the players the best tools we can to help them be successful in the game, but when the game comes they will have had to prepare correctly so that they can go out and execute the things they need to do to use those tools to their advantage.”

Alabama returned to the practice field Wednesday evening for a 90-minute workout inside the Hank Crisp Indoor Facility in shells (helmet and shoulder pads).

The Crimson Tide has two more workouts scheduled for 2012 with practices on Friday and Saturday. The team will have Saturday and Sunday off before returning to preparations on Tuesday, Jan. 1. Alabama will also practice on the morning of Jan. 2 before departing for Miami that afternoon. The 2013 Discover BCS National Championship Game will be played at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.

The game can be heard locally as part of the Crimson Tide Sports Network broadcast on 95.3 FM, 99.1 FM, and 790 AM.