Alabama
NFL Thursday night: Former Alabama prep star catches 2 TD passes in Falcons’ OT win
Atlanta quarterback Kirk Cousins threw for 509 yards and four touchdowns, including a 45-yarder to wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge on the opening possession in overtime, in the Falcons’ 36-30 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night.
Two of Cousins’ touchdown passes in the NFC South game went to wide receiver Darnell Mooney. The former Gadsden City High School star came down with a 24-yard touchdown toss as Atlanta took a 14-10 lead with 11:58 left in the first half and caught a 12-yard TD pass as the Falcons tied the game at 27-27 with 13:18 left in the fourth quarter.
Mooney had nine receptions for 109 yards as Cousins set a franchise record for single-game passing yards. But in his first NFL game with two touchdown receptions and his fifth 100-yard game, Mooney almost went from hero to goat.
With Atlanta trailing 30-27, Mooney dropped a third-and-6 pass that would have been a first down and, because the Tampa Bay defender had fallen down, maybe a touchdown with 6:37 to play.
The Bucs then blocked Younghoe Koo’s field-goal attempt to keep a three-point lead.
On the Falcons’ next possession, Cousins was intercepted trying to connect with Mooney.
Atlanta got one more chance with 64 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, and Cousins hit Mooney for 17 yards as the longest play in a 51-yard drive that netted a game-tying field goal by Koo as time expired in the fourth quarter.
Three other players with Alabama football roots got on the field during the Tampa Bay-Atlanta game:
· Buccaneers safety Marcus Banks (Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Buccaneers outside linebacker Chris Braswell (Alabama) made one tackle.
· K.J. Britt (Oxford, Auburn) started at linebacker for the Buccaneers. Britt made a career-high nine tackles.
· Jamel Dean (Auburn) started at cornerback for the Buccaneers. Dean made nine tackles and broke up one pass.
· Falcons linebacker Rashaan Evans (Auburn High, Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Falcons safety DeMarcco Hellams (Alabama) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Buccaneers cornerback Keenan Isaac (Midfield, Alabama State) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Falcons running back Jase McClellan (Alabama) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Falcons outside linebacker Monty Rice (James Clemens) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Buccaneers running back D.J. Williams (Auburn) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
The teams stay in the NFC South for their next games. The Buccaneers (3-2) play the New Orleans Saints at noon CDT Oct. 13 at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. Atlanta (3-2) plays the Carolina Panthers at 3:25 p.m. CDT Oct. 13 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Jamel Dean breaks up a pass to Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London during an NFL game on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.(AP Photo/John Bazemore)
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker K.J. Britt tackles Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson during an NFL game on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.(AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
Alabama
Woodrow Lowe, Alabama Star Linebacker and 11-Year Chargers Defender, Dies at 71
Woodrow Lowe, a three-time All-American linebacker at Alabama and an 11-year starter for the NFL’s San Diego Chargers, has died. He was 71.
Lowe died at his home in Collierville, Tennessee, on Thursday, according to the National Football Foundation.
Lowe was a 2009 National Football Foundation Hall of Fame inductee. He starred at Alabama (1972-75) and was the second player in program history to make the first-team All-America list three times. He helped the Crimson Tide make the Sugar Bowl in 1973, losing to eventual national champion Notre Dame, and was a consensus All-America selection the following year.
“Woodrow Lowe was one of the finest linebackers ever to play the game, and we are deeply saddened to learn of his passing,” NFF Chairman Archie Manning said. “A three-time All-American and one of the most decorated linebackers in college football history, he defined excellence at one of the top programs in the country.
“After his playing days, he dedicated himself to shaping young lives as a coach and mentor, carrying forward the lessons of excellence and dedication that defined his own career. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and the entire Alabama football community.”
Born June 9, 1954, in Columbus, Georgia, Lowe got his football start at Phenix City Central High in Alabama. He stayed in state for college and set a single-season record at Alabama with 134 tackles in 1973. The Tide went 43-5 during his four seasons in Tuscaloosa, and his 315 career tackles still rank fourth in school history.
A fifth-round draft pick by the Chargers in 1976, Lowe played in 164 of 165 possible games during his NFL career and tallied 21 interceptions, including four returned for touchdowns.
He coached at the high school, college, and professional levels before retiring in Tennessee. Lowe also was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, the Sugar Bowl Hall of Fame and the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
Alabama
Quilts of Valor brings comfort to Alabama veterans
Alabama
Alabama Trending Towards Securing Commitment from Elite Recruit
Nothing is set in stone just yet, but it’s looking like Alabama is going to build on its trenches.
According to On3 / Rivals’ National Recruiting Reporter Sam Spiegelman, the Crimson Tide are trending toward receiving a commitment from four-star 2027 interior offensive lineman Ismael Camara.
Should Alabama nab the talented recruit out of Gilmer, TX, it would be the second high-ranked interior lineman of the 2027 class.
Earlier this season, the Crimson Tide had secured a commitment from Jatori Williams, the four-star lineman out of Phenix City, AL, and one who is the fifth ranked player at his position in the country.
Camara spoke with Spiegelman and revealed that he, along with 20 other recruits will be in Tuscaloosa for the LSU game – a game that holds such importance.
Not only that, he spoke on the relationship that he holds with offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic, and how that relationship resonates with him.
“Coach Kap told me two things when we first talked — he has the best job in the world and that all the things he wants from his players are passion, a good attitude, maximum effort, being a good teammate, being prepared and available, and being coachable. That requires zero talent.”
He then went on to say how much the persistence in maintaining that relationship is something that he will always hold onto.
“I appreciate him investing in me like that, and I am trying to get better to live up to the standard at ‘Bama.”
The “Standard” is a real thing, and it’s not something that the brass take lightly. Nick Saban spent 17 seasons implementing a culture of greatness and players that have the dog in them to be great.
So Kalen DeBoer and his staff don’t want to lose sight of it. It may have been in question for a little, but for the time being, what you’re seeing is what you’re getting.
But the “Standard” is something that means a lot to Camara too, and it’s what has set apart Alabama from other schools.
“When we got into the facility and saw all the nattys, the SEC championships and Heisman Trophies, I really had the butterflies,” Camara said. “The way they treated each other and the way they treated me — it was not just an honor for me to be there, it was an honor for them to be there. They practiced like that. They operated like that. They hung together like that. That was when I really started to understand what makes Alabama ‘Bama,’”
Aside from it being a big game on the schedule, it’s a big game for the coaches take make sure the people they’re bringing in for the future know that the staff’s future is just the beginning for these young men.
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