Connect with us

Alabama

3 Stars from Oklahoma's 24-3 upset win over the Alabama Crimson Tide

Published

on

3 Stars from Oklahoma's 24-3 upset win over the Alabama Crimson Tide


Oklahoma stunned their fanbase, the SEC, and the college football world on Saturday night putting a stamp on the 2024 season with an upset over the No. 7 Alabama Crimson Tide 24-3. It was Alabama’s first visit to Norman since 2002.

There have been very few things to be excited about this season for Oklahoma football. Oklahoma dominated Alabama along the line of scrimmage for three hours. The Sooners’ season could end on a high note, depending on how they fare in Baton Rouge against LSU and how the Sooners perform in their bowl game.

Saturday’s win was a masterclass in desire, toughness, and physicality. The Sooners were the aggressors from the opening snap, and it didn’t stop until the clock read 0:00.

Oklahoma needed heroic performances to pull off this upset, and we wanted to highlight the three stars we thought lost pivotal to the win.

Advertisement

No. 1 Star – Jackson Arnold/Xavier Robinson

It would be a disservice to not include both Jackson Arnold and Xavier Robinson as the No. 1 star. The two combined for 43 carries, 238 yards, and two touchdowns. Robinson scored twice, but Arnold’s toughness as a runner showed the type of competitive fire we’ve come to expect from Oklahoma quarterbacks.

Robinson’s ability to run through contact as a freshman may be his best trait.  It looks even more impressive against a veteran Tide defense.

Joe Jon Finley routinely hit the right button for the offense and Arnold and Robinson rewarded his faith in the run game. With a dominant performance from the offensive line, the Sooners rode the run game to a monumental win.

No. 2 Star – Eli Bowen, Cornerback

The younger of the two Bowens, Eli, brother is entirely out of his five-star brother Peyton’s shadow. Eli has become one of the best freshman defensive players in the country.

Not only did he hold budding superstar freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams to two catches, but he did so by traveling with Williams most of the game. Wherever Williams lined up, Bowen was there, and the effectiveness never waned. When Bowen was in coverage on Williams, Alabama’s true freshman phenom had just one reception on four targets. The one catch went for 30 yards, but other than that, Bowen put the clamps on.

Advertisement

He completely shut down an entire facet of Alabama’s offense, which made Jalen Milroe’s job even more complicated, considering the Sooners had bottled up the run game.

Did we mention Bowen’s incredible interception? He read the play before Milroe even threw it and blew up the screen while picking off the pass in the process. That’s the highlight that will stand out, but Bowen put together a complete performance in coverage and in run support for the Oklahoma Sooners defense.

No. 3 Star – The Offensive Line

Bill Bedenbaugh’s finest work this season was on display last night. Whatever was said, practiced, or reviewed leading up to the game was flawless. The Sooners had a plan, and they executed it to perfection.

Clearly, the offensive brain trust watched what Vanderbilt did to Alabama earlier this season, and they wondered if they could do the same. It started with the boys up front who just beat up on the Alabama defensive line for 60 minutes. Even though the Crimson Tide knew the Sooners weren’t going to ask their quarterback to drop back and throw it 40 times, Alabama still struggled to stop the Sooners rushing attack. 

Oklahoma started the game with this offensive line combination

Advertisement
  • Left Tackle – Logan Howland
  • Left Guard – Heath Ozaeta
  • Center – Troy Everett
  • Right Guard – Febechi Nwaiwu
  • Right Tackle – Spencer Brown

The Sooners rotated in true freshman Eddy Pierre-Louis, too, and the aggression and movement they created didn’t drop off. Could this be the game that helps spark a massive step forward for the younger Sooners offensive linemen and something they can build on over the remainder of the season?

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Bryant on X @thatmanbryant.





Source link

Alabama

Alabama football fans invited to pep rally at River Market

Published

on

Alabama football fans invited to pep rally at River Market


Alabama football fans are invited to a preseason pep rally Aug. 4 at the Tuscaloosa River Market.  

The pep rally is part of the annual fall kickoff event hosted by the Tuscaloosa County chapter of the University of Alabama National Alumni Association. 

The family friendly event will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the River Market, 1900 Jack Warner Parkway. Tickets, which include a barbecue dinner, cost $30 for adults and $15 for children ages 8 to 12. Children 7 years old and younger will be admitted for free.   

Advertisement

The pep rally will feature live entertainment, a silent auction and a range of family-friendly activities. There will also be a cash bar with wine and beer. 

Tickets can be purchased on the chapter’s website, tuscaloosacountyuaalumni.com. Membership in the local alumni chapter is not required for attendance. 

University of Alabama President Peter Mohler and UA baseball coach Rob Vaughn will be part of the festivities. 

Advertisement

Mohler began his duties as UA president on July 21, 2025.

Before being named UA president, Mohler spent nearly 15 years at Ohio State University, where he held senior leadership roles overseeing research, innovation and economic development. He also served as OSU’s acting president, providing leadership during a pivotal period for one of the nation’s largest public universities. 

Mohler earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Wake Forest University and a PhD in cell and molecular physiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Duke University Medical Center before joining the faculty at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. 

Advertisement

Vaughn has been UA’s head baseball coach for three years, leading the Crimson Tide to the College Baseball World Series in 2026. 

The Humble, Texas, native served as head baseball coach at Maryland for five seasons before coming to Tuscaloosa.

Vaughn played collegiate baseball at Kansas State, where his position was catcher. 

Alabama begins the 2026 football season on Sept. 5 with a home game against the East Carolina Pirates. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. at Bryant-Denny Stadium. 

Advertisement

Other Alabama home games include Florida State on Sept. 19, South Carolina on Sept. 26, Georgia on Oct. 10, Texas A&M on Oct. 24, Chattanooga on Nov. 21 and Auburn on Nov. 28.

Reach Ken Roberts at ken.roberts@tuscaloosanews.com.  To support his work, please subscribe to The Tuscaloosa News. 



Source link

Continue Reading

Alabama

Alabama teen charged with stabbing mom to death issued vile threat to dad — as new pic shows bloodbath left behind

Published

on

Alabama teen charged with stabbing mom to death issued vile threat to dad — as new pic shows bloodbath left behind


The Alabama teen charged in a heinous knife attack on his parents in their sleepy private community hissed that he was “gonna kill” his dad as he allegedly stabbed him — as new photos show the blood-soaked front porch where his butchered mom died.

The grisly scene unfolded on home surveillance footage Sunday night along Augustine Drive in the handsome Belforest complex — which captured the 17-year-old threatening his father, while allegedly knifing him.

“You can hear both of them coming out of the house, and there’s like one scream from the mom,” neighbor Shawn Scurry, 51, told The Post Wednesday.

“Then the dad is arguing with the [son] — and when I say arguing, I mean like, ‘Why are you doing this?’

Advertisement

“He’s basically saying, ‘I don’t want to die. Please stop. No.’ And then he’s repeating, ‘Somebody help me, please, help me’ very loudly,” Scurry said of the clip. 

Samantha Baker (left) was allegedly stabbed to death by her 17-year-old son — as her husband, Lance Baker (right), begged the boy to stop the sickening attack. Facebook/Lance Samantha Baker

At one point, the audio captures the son “telling [the dad] he was gonna kill him.”

“Those words are in the video,” she said. 

Meanwhile, a large pool of blood stained the front entrance of a neighbor’s home where cops say 37-year-old Samantha Baker was butchered around 9 p.m. Sunday.

Another haunting image exclusively obtained by The Post shows blood splattered and smeared across a glass window overlooking the spot where Samantha was found dead.

Advertisement

The bloodbath began after Samantha and her 46-year-old husband Lance Baker got into a heated argument with their 17-year-old son over a disciplinary issue inside their family home, Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office Captain Justin Correa told The Post Wednesday. 

That’s when the boy — whose name is being withheld by police — turned a kitchen knife on his parents, allegedly stabbing them both “multiple times,” according to Correa. 

A large pool of blood stained the front entrance of the Belforest community home in Baldwin County, where cops say Samantha Baker was found dead from multiple stab wounds Sunday night. Obtained by NY Post
Another haunting video clip exclusively obtained by The Post shows blood splattered and smeared across a glass window overlooking the spot where Samantha was found dead. Obtained by NY Post

The parents fled outside in a desperate bid to escape — but the attack continued.  

Lance’s spine-chilling screams could be heard as he ran door to door down the block, leaving bloodied handprints on neighbors’ front doors while seeking help — with his son right on his tail, according to the traumatized neighbor. 

“It was like fighting off a bee that keeps stinging you,” Scurry said, and claimed that another neighbor’s surveillance camera captured the teen repeatedly stabbing his father outside another nearby home. 

Advertisement

Correa confirmed that doorbell camera footage of the assault had been handed over to police, and said at least “a few” of the neighbors were not home when Lance was looking for help. 

Lance only “went to doors where people were on vacation — that’s why they didn’t answer, and that’s why he was becoming helpless,” Scurry claimed.  

Scurry, who was home at the time, only became slightly aware of the horror unfolding when she spotted the Bakers’ dog wandering around her front door. 

“I walked with the dog back to their house, rang their doorbell. Nobody answered, and I went around to the garage,” she recalled. 

Advertisement

That’s when she heard cries in the distance. 

“I heard … ‘Help me.’ I couldn’t find where it was coming from,” Scurry said, adding that she went back into her home after that. 

The bloodbath began after Samantha and Lance got into a heated argument with the knife-wielding son over a disciplinary issue, according to authorities. Facebook/Lance Samantha Baker

The teen eventually retreated to his family’s home and called 911, said authorities, who described the attack as an isolated domestic matter. 

Cops arrested him at the home without incident, according to Correa, who pushed back on reports that the alleged killer barricaded himself inside the house.

As emergency crews flooded their typically quiet street, Scurry said she stepped outside again and saw Samantha’s body before the coroner arrived. 

Advertisement

“I saw her face down with stab wounds all over her back,” the shaken neighbor said. 

Samantha, a realtor, was pronounced dead at the scene. 

Lance, a US Army Reserve Battalion Commander with the 1184th Deployment and Distribution Support Battalion in Mobile, was flown to a local hospital in critical condition, according to cops. 

Nest camera footage from a neighboring home allegedly captured chilling audio of Samantha’s final moments — along with Lance’s frantic pleas for the teen to drop the knife.  Obtained by NY Post

As of Wednesday, the father of two was still in the hospital, where his condition had become stable, Correa said. 

The teen, who will be tried as an adult, is facing charges of murder and attempted murder. He is being held in jail on a $1 million bond after his arraignment on Monday.

Advertisement

The family’s younger teen son was not at the home at the time of the attack, police said.

“A very sad event for sure,” Correa said.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Alabama

Mac Jones asked who was his craziest teammate at Alabama

Published

on

Mac Jones asked who was his craziest teammate at Alabama





Jan 8, 2018; Atlanta, GA, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Tony Brown (2) against the Georgia Bulldogs in the 2018 CFP national championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Mac Jones joined “Bussin With The Boys” and was asked who his craziest teammate ever was, and he went back to his Alabama days to highlight Tony Brown.

Brown is a former Alabama cornerback.

“There’s this guy, Tony Brown,” Jones said. “I don’t know if you guys know him. Look him up on there. His name’s Crazy Tony, but he was a stud at Alabama. He played on that defense with like Daron Payne, like all those guys, Minka (Fitzpatrick), everybody. He played in the league for a little bit. He was the man, like scout team, me and him. Every day, like going at it, like pretty much fighting. He was just crazy, dude. I’d throw a dig route over the middle, and he would just crush our scout team receiver. Like, Mac Hereford… he would go over the middle and Crazy Tony would just crush him. Saban would just look the other way. I’m like, dude, he just got smoked. Like, what are we doing? It’s like same thing, fighting at practice and stuff. But he was a great teammate. He just had his thing on the field where it was like he just blacked out. It wasn’t because he was a bad guy or anything. That’s what he does. He goes and knocks people out.”

Advertisement

Brown played for Alabama from 2014 to 2017, and he was a part of two National Championship teams. He finished his career at Alabama with 89 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and three interceptions before moving on to the NFL.







Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending