Tide win is pretty enough for me

By Chris Stewart
Saturday’s win over Utah State was not one that will be honored with a commemorative video. The Tide’s 35-3 victory was certainly no Crimson Classic.

Frankly, I don’t care.

Two possessions. Two touchdowns. A cakewalk in the making? Not exactly.

The Tide began to look sloppy. The head coach was ticked at the half. And the alumni would have to wait until the middle of the fourth quarter to head for the exits, certain that victory was in hand on a gorgeous homecoming day.

Don’t ask me to be concerned that Alabama didn’t win by 50. Nor will I sweat the fact that the Tide offense struggled most of the first half after cutting through the Aggie defense like a hot knife through butter.

I’m not worried in the least that the man they call money, Jamie Christensen, missed a short field goal just before the half. Nor did I miss a moment of sleep over the fact that the Crimson Curtain defense gave up more than 300 yards and the first third quarter points of the season to a team that is struggling along at 2-5.

Again, I don’t care.

It’s not that I am apathetic or disinterested. Far from it. I am so thankful to have a 50-yard line seat (at most games) for what has been a wonderful season. Which explains why I don’t care that the win over Utah State was far from perfect.

It matters not to me how Alabama won, nor how the Tide looked in getting the win. There are times to expect and demand perfection, but for me, this is not one of those times.

This is a time to dwell on the bigger picture. Alabama is the only undefeated team in the Southeastern Conference, stands 8-0 overall, and ranked No. 4 in the nation. That’s all I care about.

Two years ago, we were in the midst of total chaos. We went through three head coaches in less than a year. Our team was beaten and battered, and suffered a major loss in confidence.

A little more than 12 months ago, it looked like we were ready to turn the corner only to see Brodie Croyle go down first in what would be a long list of wounded for the Tide. A return to glory would have to wait.

Now Alabama is back among the nation’s elite. Are we really that good? Time will only tell. As well as things have gone, three big regular season games remain – each of which could bring a loss.

That’s why I won’t allow myself to be concerned with a missed kick or tackle, an errant pass or busted assignment. Don’t bother me with the details. The Tide is 8-0.

We haven’t been here in awhile, and I’m going to enjoy it.

Chris Stewart is the pre and post game host for the Crimson Tide Sports Network's coverage of Alabama Football. In addition, he hosts a talk show each weekday morning from 7 until 9 on Tuscaloosa's Sports Radio 1420, The Tusk. Stewart is also the radio play-by-play announcer for University of Alabama men's basketball.   Bama Fever is a company devoted to providing University of Alabama Crimson Tide merchandise. We have stores in Birmingham, Tuscaloosa  and Huntsville and have now created an online catalog for Crimson Tide fans all over the world searching for that hard to find merchandise. We carry over 7,000 items in our stores and have posted many of these items right here in our online catalog.

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Read all of Chris's 2005 Game Recaps