Alabama

NFL Thursday night: Pick-6 pair have Alabama football roots

Published

2 years ago

August 23, 2024

NFL Thursday night: Pick-6 pair have Alabama football roots

Two defensive backs with Alabama football roots returned an interception for a touchdown during an NFL preseason game on Thursday night.

Former Alabama safety Jordan Battle’s pick-six came in the Cincinnati Bengals’ 27-14 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

Former Troy cornerback Reddy Steward’s pick-six came in the Chicago Bears’ 34-21 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.

Battle picked off Indianapolis starter Anthony Richardson and returned the interception 14 yards for a touchdown as the Bengals tied the score at 7-7 with 3:01 left in the first quarter.

Steward picked off former Samford quarterback Chris Oladokun and returned the interception 48 yards for a touchdown as the Bears took a 20-7 lead with 22 seconds left in the first half.

Battle wasn’t the only Alabama alumnus who scored for the Bengals. Rookie wide receiver Jermaine Burton caught a 21-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Logan Woodside

The touchdown was the second of the preseason for the third-round draft choice. Burton caught a 37-yard touchdown pass from Woodside during Cincinnati’s 17-14 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Bengals’ preseason opener on Aug. 10.

Burton had four receptions for 56 yards against the Colts.

And Steward wasn’t the only Alabama prep standout who scored for the Bears. Former Saraland High School star Velus Jones Jr. ran 39 yards for a touchdown with 28 seconds left in the third quarter.

A wide receiver in his first two NFL seasons, Jones has been working at running back this preseason, and against Kansas City, he ran for 111 yards on 13 carries, caught two passes for 11 yards and made two tackles – one on special teams and one after a fumble.

Battle and Steward are in different circumstances.

A third-round selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, Battle started the final seven games of his rookie season. But he’s back competing for playing time this year after the Bengals signed safeties Vonn Bell and Geno Stone.

Battle also had five tackles on defense and one tackle on special teams against Indianapolis.

A two-time All-State selection for Austin High School in Decatur before becoming an All-Sun Belt Conference choice at Troy, Steward is trying to convert a long-shot opportunity to make the Bears’ roster as an undrafted rookie.

The pick-six was Steward’s second interception of the game. Steward also intercepted Oladokun with 11:28 left in the second quarter with the Chiefs at the Chicago 3-yard line. He intercepted the pass at the goal line and returned it 11 yards. Steward also had two tackles in the game.

Twenty other players with Alabama football roots got on the field as the final week of the NFL’s preseason started on Thursday night:

Cincinnati Bengals safety Jordan Battle returns an interception for a touchdown during an NFL preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati.(Photo by Jeff Moreland/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Indianapolis Colts 27, Cincinnati Bengals 14

· Travis Bell (Jeff Davis) started at defensive tackle for the Bengals. Bell did not record any stats.

· Colts defensive tackle Raekwon Davis (Alabama) made one tackle. Davis had not practiced at training camp until Tuesday, when he was cleared after being held out because of high blood pressure.

· Allan George (Andalusia) started at cornerback for the Bengals. George made eight tackles.

· Colts safety Ronnie Harrison (Alabama) made two tackles on defense, registered one tackle for loss and recorded three tackles on special teams.

· Shedrick Jackson (Hoover, Auburn) started at wide receiver for the Bengals. Jackson had an 8-yard reception.

· Cedric Johnson (Davidson) started at left defensive end for the Bengals. Johnson made three tackles. He lost a sack to a penalty on a teammate.

· Ryan Kelly (Alabama) started at center for the Colts.

· Bengals kicker Evan McPherson (Fort Payne) made two extra points. He did not have a field-goal attempt.

· Colts cornerback Jaylin Simpson (Auburn) made one tackle on special teams.

· Braden Smith (Auburn) started at right offensive tackle for the Colts.

· Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt (Park Crossing) did not play.

Indianapolis and Cincinnati kick off their regular-season schedules on Sept. 8. The Colts host the Houston Texans, and the Bengals host the New England Patriots.

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Chris Oladokun passes under pressure during an NFL preseason game against the Chicago Bears on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo.(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Chicago Bears 34, Kansas City Chiefs 21

· Khari Blasingame (Buckhorn) started at fullback for the Bears. Blasingame also had a 4-yard run.

· Byron Cowart (Auburn) started at defensive end for the Bears. Cowart made one tackle.

· Bears tight end Gerald Everett (UAB/South Alabama) did not play.

· Neil Farrell Jr. (Murphy) started at defensive tackle for the Chiefs. Farrell did not record any stats.

· Chris Oladokun (Samford) started at quarterback for the Chiefs. Oladokun completed 9-of-16 passes for 66 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions and ran four times for 6 yards.

· Justyn Ross (Central-Phenix City) started at wide receiver for the Chiefs. Ross had two receptions for 16 yards.

· Chiefs tight end Irv Smith Jr. (Alabama) had a 3-yard reception.

· Kadarius Toney (Blount) started at wide receiver for the Chiefs. Toney had two receptions for 26 yards.

· Bears cornerback Ro Torrence (Bessemer City, Auburn) made three tackles on defense, broke up two passes and made one tackle on special teams.

· Bears punter Corliss Waitman (South Alabama) averaged 44.3 yards on three punts, with a 39.0-yard net.

· Chiefs wide receiver Montrell Washington (Samford) had a 49-yard reception and a 30-yard kickoff return.

Kansas City kicks off the NFL’s regular-season schedule on Sept. 5 when the Chiefs host the Baltimore Ravens. Chicago opens on Sept. 8 with a home game against the Tennessee Titans.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.

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Decades after violence in Selma spurred the Voting Rights Act, organizers worry about its fate

Published

7 hours ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

Decades after violence in Selma spurred the Voting Rights Act, organizers worry about its fate

SELMA, Ala. — Sixty-one years after state troopers attacked Civil Rights marchers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, thousands are gathering in the Alabama city this weekend, amid new concerns about the future of the Voting Rights Act.

The March 7, 1965, violence that became known as Bloody Sunday shocked the nation and helped spur passage of the landmark legislation that dismantled barriers to voting for Black Americans in the Jim Crow South.

But this year’s anniversary celebrations – events run all weekend and end with a commemorative march across the bridge Sunday – come as the U.S. Supreme Court considers a case that could limit a provision of the Voting Rights Act that has helped ensure some congressional and local districts are drawn so minority voters have a chance to elect their candidate of choice.

“I’m concerned that all of the advances that we made for the last 61 years are going to be eradicated,” said Charles Mauldin, 78, one of the marchers who was beaten that day.

FILE – State troopers hit protesters with billy clubs to break up a civil rights voting march in Selma, Ala., on Sunday, March 7, 1965.

AP Photo/File

Justices are expected to rule soon on a Louisiana case regarding the role of race in drawing congressional districts. A ruling prohibiting or limiting that role could have sweeping consequences, potentially opening the door for Republican-controlled states to redistrict and roll back majority Black and Latino districts that tend to favor Democrats.

Democratic officeholders, civil rights leaders and others have descended on the southern city to pay homage to the pivotal moment of the Civil Rights Movement and to issue calls to action. Like the marchers on Bloody Sunday, they must keep pressing forward, organizers said.

Former state Sen. Hank Sanders, who helped start the annual commemoration, said the 1965 events in Selma marked a turning point in the nation and helped push the United States closer to becoming a true democracy.

“The feeling is a profound fear that we will be taken back – a greater fear than at any time since 1965,” Sanders said.

Tear gas fills the air as state troopers, ordered by Gov. George Wallace, break up a march at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., on Sunday, March 7, 1965.
AP Photo/File

U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures won election in 2024 to an Alabama district that was redrawn by the federal court. He said what happened in Selma and the subsequent passage of the Voting Rights Act “was monumental in shaping what America looks like and how America is represented in Congress.”

“I think coming to Selma is a refreshing reminder every single year that the progress that we got from the Civil Rights Movement is not perpetual. It’s been under consistent attacks almost since we’ve gotten those rights,” Figures said.

In 1965, the Bloody Sunday marchers led by John Lewis and Hosea Williams walked in pairs across the Selma bridge headed toward Montgomery. Mauldin, then 17, was part of the third pair behind Williams and Lewis.

At the apex of the bridge, they could see the sea of law enforcement officers, including some on horseback, waiting for them. But they kept going. “Being fearful was not an option. And it wasn’t that we didn’t have fear, it’s that we chose courage over fear,” Mauldin recalled in a telephone interview.

“We were all hit. We were trampled. We were tear-gassed. And we were brutalized by the state of Alabama,” Mauldin said.

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Alabama in Third Place After Opening Round of The Hayt: Roll Call

Published

19 hours ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

Alabama in Third Place After Opening Round of The Hayt: Roll Call

No. 15 Alabama men’s golf closed the opening round of The Hayt with a team score of 9-under par 279 and enter Sunday’s second round in a tie for third overall. The Crimson Tide trails leaders LSU by five strokes.

The Crimson Tide saw two competitors land in the individual top 10 as Nick Gross is tied for second at 5-under par 67 and Brycen Jones is in seventh overall at 4-under 68. Gross finished the day with three consecutive birdies. Jonathan Griz and Jack Mitchell finished the first round even on the scorecard and tied for 35th while William Jennings shot 4-over par.

Crimson Tide Roll Call: Sunday, March 8, 2026

Alabama Crimson Tide Saturday results:

Baseball: Alabama 9, North Florida 3
Soccer: Alabama 5, UAB 1
Men’s Golf: Tied for 3rd after the first round at the Hayt Tournament
Women’s Tennis: Texas A&M 4, Alabama 1
Men’s Basketball: Alabama 96, Auburn 84

Alabama Crimson Tide Sunday schedule:

Men’s Golf: The Hayt Tournament Round 1, North Florida, Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
Swimming and Diving: Diving NCAA Qualifying, Athens, Ga., 11:15 a.m. WATCH
Softball: Alabama at Ole Miss, Oxford, Miss., 1 p.m., SEC Network+, 100.1 FM
Men’s Tennis: Alabama at Auburn, Auburn, Ala., 1 p.m., WATCH
Baseball: Alabama vs North Florida, 1 p.m., Tuscaloosa, Ala., SEC Network +
Gymnastics: Alabama at Illinois, Champagne, Ill., 2 p.m. BIG10+

Countdown to Alabama Football’s 2026 season opener

181 days

On this date in Alabama Crimson Tide history:

March 8, 1982: More than 1,000 people, including a throng of Paul W. “Bear” Bryant’s former players, paid $125 a plate at a black-tie dinner at the Sheraton Hotel in Washington, D.C. honoring the fabled coach. In a telephone call, President Ronald Reagan told Bryant: “The real contribution you have made are the differences you have made in the lives of so many young people.”

Alabama Crimson Tide Quote of the Day:

“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.”
Paul W. “Bear” Bryant

We’ll leave you with this…

The Alabama football team had representatives on hand during the Alabama-Auburn basketball game to accept The Foy-ODK Sportsmanship Trophy. The trophy is awarded to the winner of the football game at said university’s home turn of the basketball series.

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South Alabama named first team in 88th National Invitation Tournament

Published

1 day ago

March 7, 2026

Press Room

South Alabama named first team in 88th National Invitation Tournament

INDIANAPOLIS – Ahead of the 88th National Invitation Tournament, South Alabama has been named as the field’s first team.

The automatic berth for South Alabama is based on a prior agreement made between the NIT Board of Managers and the university following the 2025 selection process that resulted in the Jaguars not being included in the NIT field.

The agreement included minimum requirements for South Alabama’s regular season results. The Jaguars surpassed the requirements with ease, finishing with a 21-10 regular season record. At 11-7 in Sun Belt Conference play, South Alabama tied for second in the league.

Regular season champions that do not make the NCAA Tournament either as an automatic qualifier or as an at-large team automatically get a bid to the NIT if they have an average ranking of 125 or better across the seven metrics that appear on team sheets.

A full overview of selection principles and procedures is available here.

The NIT semifinals and finals will take place in Indianapolis as part of a five-day celebration of basketball during which the NIT and NCAA Divisions I, II and III champions will be crowned. The semifinals will be played April 2 at Hinkle Fieldhouse at 7 and 9:30 p.m. on ESPN. The championship game on April 5 will tip at approximately 8 p.m. on ESPN2 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse following the conclusion of the Division II and III national championship games. The Men’s Final Four will be on TBS and takes place Saturday, April 4 and Monday, April 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium. For tickets, visit www.ncaa.com/mbbtickets.