Great BAMA Plays and Quotes

"I scored a touchdown on the first reception I made in the NFL and spiked the ball. The instant I did, I felt horrible and couldn't wait for the game to end so I could call Coach Bryant and apologize. He said he didn't even notice, but I never spiked the ball again." - Ozzie Newsome

"If someone in Los Angeles asks you and you say 'I played at Alabama,' everyone knows what that means. If you had to say 'I played at Auburn,' that would be about like saying 'I played at Rutgers.' People aren't even sure where it is." - Leon Douglas




The Kick
November 23, 1985
Legion Field
Birmingham, AL

Van Tiffin's last second 52 yard field goal lifted Alabama to a dramatic 25-23 victory over archrival Auburn in the 1985 Iron Bowl and is considered by many to be the greatest play in Alabama football history.




The Rundown
January 1, 1993
The Superdome
New Orleans, LA

Alabama was thoroughly dominating heavily favored Miami in the national championship game when Gino Toretta managed to hook up with wideout Lamar Thomas on a deep route. Thomas appeared to be on his way to an easy score when George Teage appeared from nowhere to not only stop Thomas, but strip him of the ball.

"Everyone says we can't beat Miami, but we are not just anybody, we are Alabama."--former Alabama receiver David Palmer

Audio of Teague In "The Rundown"
http://www.tidentenn.com/sounds/rundown.wav




The Goal Line Stand
January 1, 1979
The Superdome
New Orleans, LA

Bear Bryant's #2 ranked Alabama squad held a 14-7 lead late in the third quarter against #1 ranked Penn State with the Nittany Lions threatening to tie. Alabama defensive back Don McNeal had made a touchdown saving tackle at the 1 on second down and the defense had tightened, stuffing Penn State on third. Bama lineman Marty Lyons was prophetic when he told Lions QB Chuck Fusina "You better pass." Instead, Paterno decided to run and Bama held, giving Bama Bryant's fifth National Title.

"Here's a moment you dream about happening, and here it was staring at us in the face. Gut-check time. Coach always preached it, jaw to jaw, cheek to cheek. They weren't going anywhere." - Former Tide star Rich Wingo, of the goal-line stand in '79 for the National Championship

"If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride--and never quit, you'll be a winner. The price of victory is high but so are the rewards."--A favorite quote of Coach Bryant's

Coach Bryant, after announcing his retirement, was asked if he was dissappointed that an Alabama player had never won the Heisman Trophy while he was the coach. He said, "No!", and added, "At Alabama our players do not win Heisman Trophies, our teams win national championships."

In 1966 Notre Dame & Michigan State played to a 10-10 tie. Michigan State turned the ball over to Notre Dame on downs with a little more than 1 1/2 minutes to go in the game. Ara Parashegian elected to run out the clock instead of trying to get into field goal range. His reasoning was that his team had played too hard and he did not want to take a chance of turning the ball over and losing. Both teams wound up tied for first with an undefeated Alabama finishing third even though they beat Nebraska 34-7 in the Sugar Bowl (in my humble opinion, the '66 team was BAMA's best).
Coach Bryant, when asked what he thought about ND going for a tie said; "At Alabama, we teach our men to win."

In 1926 "BAMA" traveled west to become the first southern football team to play in the Rose Bowl. Getting no respect from the media or fans across the country, this "BAMA" team was supposed to roll over and many said that was the only reason to invite a team like Alabama. No on gave this little "BAMA" team a chance to win. Final score "BAMA" 20 -- Washington 19. When the coaches met at midfield after the game, the Washington coach told coach Wade we could have beat you on any other day. Coach Wallace Wade's responce. "WE DIDN"T COME OUT HERE TO PLAY NO DAMN SEIRES"

You boys were eight and ten years old last time Alabama was on top. That was before any of you were paying much attention to it. What are you doing here? Tell me why you are here. If you are not here to win a national championship, you're in the wrong place. You boys are special. I don't want my players to be like other students. I want special people. You can learn a lot on the football field that isn't taught in the home, the church, or the classroom. There are going to be days when you think you've got no more to give and then you're going to give plenty more. You are going to have pride and class. You are going to be very special. You are going to win the national championship for Alabama."--Coach Paul Bryant in his first meeting with his first team at Alabama, 1958.

"Woody is a great coach, and I ain't bad."--Coach Bryant after the Tide beat Ohio State 35-6 in the 1978 Sugar Bowl

"They play like it is a sin to give up a point."--Paul Bryant talking about his defense before the 1962 Sugar Bowl (from Talk of the Tide)

"Coach Thomas said, 'Red, this is my best football player. This is the best player on my team.' Well shoot, I could have gone right out the top. He was getting me ready. And I was, too. I would have gone out there and killed myself for Alabama that day."--Paul Bryant reminiscing about the 1935 Rose Bowl trip and Coach Thomas (from Talk of the Tide)

"Alabama has won the Rose Bowl before, but, Alabama, you have never met the likes of Southern Cal before. It will be a different story for you."--A West Coast writer on the eve of the 1946 Rose Bowl (from Talk of the Tide), BAMA defeated Southern Cal that day 34-14

"There goes a great coach. I'll never forget what he did today. If he had wanted, he could have named the score."--USC coach Jeff Cravath talking about Frank Thomas after the 1946 Rose Bowl won by Alabama 34-14 (from Talk of the Tide)

"Plow, Bear, Plow."--Auburn students yelling at Bryant before the 1979 game in response to Bryant's remarks he'd have to go back to Arkansas and plow if his team lost to Auburn.

"Our winning drive (13 plays, 82 yards) was one of the finest I've ever seen. We had to have it. I'm just thrilled to death with the win. We've got some mighty fine plow hands on this team."--Coach Bryant after the 25-18 win over Auburn in 1979.

"He can take his'n' and beat you'rn', and he can take you'rn' and beat his'n'.--Famous Florida A&M Coach Jake Gaither's evaluation of Paul Bryant as a head coach (from Talk of the Tide)

"If he'd kicked it straght, we would have blocked it."--Coach Bryant's remarks about Tennessee's missed field goal in the 1966 game in Knoxville, won by the Tide 11-10.

"I thought this must be what God looks like."--Former Kentucky star George Blanda talking about his former coach Paul Bryant (from Talk of the Tide)

"I didn't care if we ever quit practicing. I loved it. The only other guy I ever knew who loved to practice as much was Jerry Duncan. He would beg to practice even when he was hurt. I've actually seen him cry because the trainer told him he couldn't scrimmage."--Coach Bryant on Jerry Duncan, his star tackle from 1964 to 1966 (from Talk of the Tide)

"No, man, I majored in journalism. It was easier."--Joe Namath responding to a reporter who asked him if he majored in basketweaving at Alabama (from Talk of the Tide)

"It's the greatest football team I've ever been associated with. It's the greatest football team I ever saw."--Coach Bryant on his 1966 team (from Talk of the Tide), Tide and their perfect record finished #3 that year behind two teams with ties on their records.

"There is no way to describe the pride an Alabama player feels in himself and the tradition of the school."--All-time great Kenny Stabler (from Alabama Illustrated)

"Coach Bryant always taught us we were special and never to accept being ordinary. I think that is one thing that has sustained Alabama through the years. Players with ordinary ability feeling somehow, someway they would find it within themselves to make a play to help Alabama win a football game. There is no way to describe the pride an Alabama player feels in himself and the tradition of the school."--Kenny Stabler on tradition at the Capstone (from Alabama Illustrated)

"I know one thing, I'd rather die now than to have died this morning and missed this game."--Coach Bryant after Alabama's 31-7 win over unbeaten Auburn in 1971.

"I thought Nebraska was the most football-crazed state until I came to Alabama. Coach Bryant got up and introduced members of the 1925 Rose Bowl team, and he got teary-eyed, and so did all the people in the audience who welcomed the team with an absolute admiration that is hard to describe."--James Michener in 1975 when he was writing his book Sports in America (from Talk of the Tide)

"I don't know if I'll ever get tired of football. One time I thought I might. . . I was out there on the practice field wondering whether football had passed me by. Then I heard the Million Dollar Band playing over on the practice field. When they started playing 'Yea, Alabama,' I got goosebumps all over me. I looked out there and those young rascals in those crimson jerseys, and I just wanted to thank God for giving me the opportunity to coach and contribute in some small way at my alma mater and be a part of the University of Alabama tradition."--Paul Bryant in the late 1970s about tradition at Alabama (from Alabama Illustrated)

"I grew up sneaking into Legion Field to see Alabama play. I vividly remember Joe Namath's first varisty game. I remember Kenny Stabler running down the sideline in the rain and mud against Auburn. I remember Lee Roy Jordan chasing down a running back and intimidating without even hitting. I really appreciate the people who have contributed to this legacy and the tradition that has been passed down. And the people who have continued it--the goal line stand and Van TIffin's kick and all those memories of people who have carried on the tradition of Alabama football. I really feel blessed to have had the opportunity to be part of the tradition of Alabama football."--all-time running back Johnny Musso (from Alabama Illustrated)

"I can honestly say that I didn't come to the University of Alabama because I thought it would be easy. No, I came because I knew it would be hard."--former 'Bama defensive back Tommy Wilcox (from Alabama Illustrated)

"He knocked me woozy. I have never been hit like that before, and hopefully I'll never be hit that hard again."--Notre Dame quarterback Steve Buerlein after Cornelius Bennett sacked him in the 1986 game (from Talk of the Tide)

When Coach Bryant was asked about the importance of beating Notre Dame he replied this way: "Sure I'd love to beat Notre Dame, don't get me wrong. But nothing matters more than beating THAT COW COLLEGE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STATE!"

"Whenever I see those crmison jerseys and crimson helmets, I feel humbled to have played football for Alabama. Other players in the NFL talk to me about their schools and their traditions. I just smile knowing the immense love Alabama fans have for our school and its football program. I'm proud to be a part of that Crimson Tide heritage."--former 'Bama star Derrick Thomas now of the Kansas City Chiefs (from Alabama Illustrated)

It was a 3rd down situation, but Coach Bryant thought it was a fourth down. At that time the rules were that if you sent a player into the game, he had to play one down. Coach Bryant sent his punter in--I knew that he was confused. Nevertheless, he sent his punter in, so I sent in a safety who could only field punts--he wasn't a football player, but he could field punts pretty well. Then I saw the Alabama coaching staff talking to Coach Bryant over on the sidelines, and finally he sent another player in and the punter came out. So I send my safety in so my other guy can come out, and the official over on the sideline says, "Whoa! You can't do that--he's got to stay in one play." So I said, "Now wait a minute, fellow. I'm sitting right here watching Coach Bryant send his punter in, and then Coach Bryant took him out!" He looked at me and said, "You ain't Coach Bryant!"--Gene Stallings in Talk of the Tide about the 1967 Cotton Bowl when Alabama was playing Texas A & M.

"Let's face it. Alabama just likes to hit you. They are the hardest hitting team I've ever played against."--Illinois quarterback Tony Eason after Alabama beat the Illini 21-15 in Paul Bryan'ts final game (from Talk of the Tide)

"You know you hear a lot of talk now about education and players getting a degree. Buddy, let me tell you something: It was big to Coach Bryant back in 1958. I wasn't doing too well in school my freshman year, and my second semester, matter of fact, I wasn't doing anything. I was cutting classes. So Coach Bryant asked me to eat lunch with him, and man, I was scared to death because I knew I had a problem, but I didn't know why he was mad. To tell you the truth I didn't think he knew what kind of grades I was making! He had the dean of the school with him, and I went and sat down with them. He introduced me to the dean, and we started talking. He pulled out my IQ and pulled out how many classes I'd cut, and boy, I didn't look up -- I just kept my head down. Coach Bryant said, 'Look up at me, boy, I'm talking to you!' So I looked up, and he said to the dean, 'Now this boy right here can help us win, but if he doesn't start getting better grades, he isn't going to be here!' The dean started talking about the classes I'd taken, what I should take, and all this stuff, and Coach Bryant said, 'Well, I'm going to give him one more semester. I'm going to move him into my house with me, and I'm going to do him like I do Paul, Jr., when he comes home with a C, I'll beat him with a damn dictionary!' So, I got straightened out real fast!" Billy Neighbors (from Talk of the Tide)

"Florida? Tennessee? Auburn? Georgia? They're all great teams, great programs. But in the grand scheme of things, none have overtaken Alabama as THE football program in the SEC."--An article in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette on game day of the Alabama-Arkansas tilt (from Talk of the Tide)

"I know that I picked up a great deal of things during my association with Coach Bryant. I know he influenced me as a coach by teaching me to never give up on your talent. And he told me there was no substitution for work. He convinced his people. And when players and coaches are convinced they can win, they're going to win."--Coach Gene Stallings on Bear Bryant

"Everyone says we can't beat Miami, but we are not just anybody, we are Alabama."--former Alabama receiver David Palmer (from Talk of the Tide)

"In the second quarter, I saw Torretta look over at me, and he froze for a second. I saw fear."--Alabama defensive end John Copeland after the 1993 Sugar Bowl (from Talk of the Tide)

"We had great respect for Alabama, especially it's defense, we knew they were a formidable opponent. But in retrospect, I think they were a lot stronger than a lot of our people thought."-- Miami coach Dennis Erickson after the '92 Sugar Bowl (from The Chamionship Season)

"You don't have to flaunt your sucess, but you don't have to apologize for it, either"-- Gene Stallings after the '92 Ole Miss game (Sports Illustrated-That Championship Season)

"Mama wanted me to be a preacher. I told her coachin' and preachin' were a lot alike."

"But it's still a coach's game. Make no mistake. You start at the top. If you don't have a good one at the top, you don't have a cut dog's chance. If you do, the rest falls into place. You have to have good assistants, and a lot of things, but first you have to have the chairman of the board."

"If anything goes bad, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, we did it. If anything goes really good, then you did it. That's all it takes to get people to win football games for you."

"I think the most important thing of all for any team is a winning attitude. The coaches must have it. The players must have it. The student body must have it. If you have dedicated players who believe in themselves, you don't need a lot of talent."

"The idea of molding men means a lot to me."

"You must learn how to hold a team together. You must lift some men up, calm others down, until finally they've got one heartbeat. Then you've got yourself a team."

"If wanting to win is a fault, as some of my critics seem to insist, then I plead guilty. I like to win. I know no other way. It's in my blood."

"Get the winners into the game."

"The old lessons (work, self-discipline, sacrifice, teamwork, fighting to achieve) aren't being taught by many people other than football coaches these days. The football coach has a captive audience and can teach these lessons because the communication lines between himself and his players are more wide open than between kids and parents. We better teach these lessons or else the country's future population will be made up of a majority of crooks, drug addicts, or people on relief."

"Sacrifice. Work. Self-discipline. I teach these things, and my boys don't forget them when they leave."

"It's not the will to win that matters - everyone has that. It's the will to prepare to win that matters."

"I'll never give up on a player regardless of his ability as long as he never gives up on himself. In time he will develop."

"Set goals - high goals for you and your organization. When your organization has a goal to shoot for, you create teamwork, people working for a common good."

"Don't talk too much. Don't pop off. Don't talk after the game until you cool off."

"You have to learn what makes this or that Sammy run. For one it's a pat on the back, for another it's eating him out, for still another it's a fatherly talk, or something else. You're a fool if you think as I did as a young coach, that you can treat them all alike."

"If a man is a quitter, I'd rather find out in practice than in a game. I ask for all a player has so I'll know later what I can expect."

"Find your own picture, your own self in anything that goes bad. It's awfully easy to mouth off at your staff or chew out players, but if it's bad, and you’re the head coach, you're responsible. If we have an intercepted pass, I threw it. I'm the head coach. If we get a punt blocked, I caused it. A bad practice, a bad game, it's up to the head coach to assume his responsibility."

"It's awfully important to win with humility. It's also important to lose. I hate to lose worse than anyone, but if you never lose you won't know how to act. If you lose with humility, then you can come back."

"Losing doesn't make me want to quit. It makes me want to fight that much harder."

"The biggest mistake coaches make is taking borderline cases and trying to save them. I'm not talking about grades now, I'm talking about character. I want to know before a boy enrolls about his home life, and what his parents want him to be."

"What are you doing here? Tell me why you are here. If you are not here to win a national championship, you're in the wrong place. You boys are special. I don't want my players to be like other students. I want special people. You can learn a lot on the football field that isn't taught in the home, the church, or the classroom. There are going to be days when you think you've got no more to give and then you're going to give plenty more. You are going to have pride and class. You are going to be very special. You are going to win the national championship for Alabama."

"I'm no innovator. If anything I'm a stealer, or borrower. I've stolen or borrowed from more people than you can shake a stick at."

"There is no sin in not liking to play; it's a mistake for a boy to be there if he doesn't want to."

"I'm no miracle man. I guarantee nothing but hard work."

"Don't overwork your squad. If you're going to make a mistake, under-work them."

"Be aware of "yes" men. Generally, they are losers. Surround yourself with winners. Never forget - people win."

"If there is one thing that has helped me as a coach, it's my ability to recognize winners, or good people who can become winners by paying the price."

"You take those little rascals, talk to them good, pat them on the back, let them think they are good, and they will go out and beat the biguns."

"If you whoop and holler all the time, the players just get used to it."

"I know what it takes to win. If I can sell them on what it takes to win, then we are not going to lose too many football games."

"If you want to coach you have three rules to follow to win. One, surround yourself with people who can't live without football. I've had a lot of them. Two, be able to recognize winners. They come in all forms. And, three, have a plan for everything. A plan for practice, a plan for the game. A plan for being ahead, and a plan for being behind 20-0 at half, with your quarterback hurt and the phones dead, with it raining cats and dogs and no rain gear because the equipment man left it at home."

"My approach to the game has been the same at all the places I've been. Vanilla. The sure way. That means, first of all, to win physically. If you got eleven on a field, and they beat the other eleven physically, they'll win. They will start forcing mistakes. They'll win in the fourth quarter."

"Little things make the difference. Everyone is well prepared in the big things, but only the winners perfect the little things."

"Scout yourself. Have a buddy who coaches scout you.

"The first time you quit, it's hard. The second time, it gets easier. The third time, you don't even have to think about it."

"But there's one thing about quitters you have to guard against - they are contagious. If one boy goes, the chances are he'll take somebody with him, and you don't want that. So when they would start acting that way, I used to pack them up and get them out, or embarrass them, or do something to turn them around."

"There's a lot of blood, sweat, and guts between dreams and success."

"People who are in it for their own good are individualists. They don't share the same heartbeat that makes a team so great. A great unit, whether it be football or any organization, shares the same heartbeat."

"I told them my system was based on the "ant plan," that I'd gotten the idea watching a colony of ants in Africa during the war. A whole bunch of ants working toward a common goal."

"We can't have two standards, one set for the dedicated young men who want to do something ambitious and one set for those who don't."

"I honestly believe that if you are willing to out-condition the opponent, have confidence in your ability, be more aggressive than your opponent and have a genuine desire for team victory, you will become the national champions. If you have all the above, you will acquire confidence and poise, and you will have those intangibles that win the close ones."

"If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride - and never quit - you'll be a winner. The price of victory is high but so are the rewards."

"Don't ever give up on ability. Don't give up on a player who has it."

"A good, quick, small team can beat a big, slow team any time."

"I have always tried to teach my players to be fighters. When I say that, I don't mean put up your dukes and get in a fistfight over something. I'm talking about facing adversity in your life. There is not a person alive who isn't going to have some awfully bad days in their lives. I tell my players that what I mean by fighting is when your house burns down, and your wife runs off with the drummer, and you've lost your job and all the odds are against you. What are you going to do? Most people just lay down and quit. Well, I want my people to fight back."

"If they don't have a winning attitude, I don't want them."

"I have tried to teach them to show class, to have pride, and to display character. I think football, winning games, takes care of itself if you do that."

"I always want my players to show class, knock'em down, pat on the back, and run back to the huddle."

"I tell young players who want to be coaches, who think they can put up with all the headaches and heartaches, can you live without it? If you can't live without it, don't get in it."