Alabama

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

Published

1 year 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.

Source link

Click to comment

Alabama

May they see your driver license?: Down in Alabama

Published

7 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

May they see your driver license?: Down in Alabama

Driver license, please

A case we followed here in 2022 has found its way to the Alabama Supreme Court.

AL.com’s Sarah Whites-Koditschek reports that the question is whether Alabama Police officers can demand to see people’s driver licenses or other IDs if they have probable cause.

In 2022, Childersburg Police answered a call about somebody on the property of people who were not home. The man, Michael Jennings, said he was watering flowers for his neighbors. The officers told him to provide an ID. He would only give his name as “Pastor Jennings” and refused to provide identification. Eventually the officers arrested him on a charge of obstructing government operations.

Attorney Ed Haden is representing the city and a group of police officers. He argued before the justices that state law gives officers with probable cause the authority to identify people, and that means a full name verified by identification.

Jennings attorney Henry Daniels argued the opposite, telling the justices that “Entitlement to live one’s life free from unwarranted interference by law enforcement or other governmental entities is fundamental to liberty.”

How low can you go?

Alabama’s preliminary, seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for December came in at a low 2.7% and was accompanied by record-breaking employment totals, reports AL.com’s Heather Gann.

Alabama Department of Workforce Secretary Greg Reed announced the figures on Wednesday.

Records fell for the number of people counted as employed and wage and salary employment. The difference between those two stats is that “wage and salary employment” doesn’t include a few types of workers such as the self-employed.

Alabama’s 2.7% rate was down from 3.3% in November ’24. And it was tracking well below the national rate.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. unemployment rate was 4.6%. That’s low, historically speaking, but the highest it’s been since September 2021.

RIP, songwriter Jim McBride

Huntsville native, country-music songwriter and Alabama Music Hall of Famer Jim McBride has passed away, reports AL.com’s Patrick Darrington.

McBride, who was from Huntsville, wrote or co-wrote No. 1s such as Johnny Lee’s “Bet Your Heart on Me” and Waylon Jennings’ very last chart-topper, “Rose in Paradise.”

With legends such as Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and George Jones cutting his songs, he became a Nashville mainstay himself during the 1980s. In the country-music business, a lot of figures like McBride aren’t the household names of the recording artists, but the smart recording artists are going to gravitate to somebody who can take a song or a hook or an idea and turn it into something that might hit. So the songwriters become famous inside the industry and many of them are like family to the Opry stars and in high demand for late-night guitar pulls. We had another one — Bobby Tomberlin — on the podcast on Sept. 12, and he told some great stories about that life.

Well, one of those smart recording artists who wound up in McBride’s orbit in the late ’80s was a fresh-faced Alan Jackson. Their songwriter partnership produced the No. 1 songs “Someday” and CMA Single and Song of the year “Chattahoochee” as well as many others, including the Top 5s “Chasing That Neon Rainbow” and “(Who Says) You Can’t Have it All.”

That alone is a career.

Jim McBride was 78 years old.

Quoting

“To all our ICE agents in Minnesota and across the country: if you are violently attacked, SHOOT BACK.”

U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, in a response to a woman’s being shot and killed in Minnesota on Wednesday after she allegedly tried to drive her SUV into an immigration officer.

By the Numbers

60%

That’s the percentage of Alabamians in an AL.com survey that said they expect to spend more on housing or rental costs this year compared to 2025.

Born on This Date

In 1977, actress Amber Benson of Birmingham.

The podcast

Source link

Alabama

Former Alabama OL starter transferring to SEC rival

Published

20 hours ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

Former Alabama OL starter transferring to SEC rival

Alabama football will see one of its ex-starters next season. Wilkin Formby is joining Texas A&M out of the transfer portal, after three seasons with the Crimson Tide.

Formby shared the news to his Instagram account on Wednesday. He opted to enter the transfer portal after the 2025 season came to an end with a 38-3 loss to Indiana in the Rose Bowl.

The Tuscaloosa native and Northridge product played both guard and tackle this past season. Coaches praised his versatility.

“Wilkin obviously has the athleticism to to play inside, and the size,” offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said in September. “So I think there’s a couple things that happen for Wilkin in there, his natural pad-level because he’s got his hand in the dirt, and he’s got a good base and wide frame, so he’d done a really nice job in there. So we keep working on that and expand. As long as he can stay right-handed, playing on the right side, I think the transition for him is easy.”

Formby started out the year at right tackle, where he had previously played. He eventually moved over to guard, after Michael Carroll emerged as a viable tackle option.

The departure of Formby is part of a larger renovation of the Crimson Tide’s offensive line, which has now lost every starter besides Carroll. Kadyn Proctor and Parker Brailsford opted to leave early for the NFL Draft, while Geno VanDeMark, Kam Dewberry and Jaeden Roberts are out of eligibility.

Alabama is also losing several reserve linemen to the portal. Arkel Anugwom is entering, joining Olaus Alinen (who committed to Kentucky), Joseph Ionata and Micah DeBose.

UA has made one offensive line pickup from the portal. Former Michigan center Kaden Strayhorn is joining the Tide.

Alabama will face Formby in Tuscaloosa this season. Texas A&M visits Bryant-Denny Stadium on Oct. 24.

Undergraduate players can opt to enter the transfer portal through Jan. 16.

Source link

Alabama

Prediction, odds for Alabama vs. Vanderbilt in Top 15 SEC showdown

Published

1 day ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

Prediction, odds for Alabama vs. Vanderbilt in Top 15 SEC showdown

After an impressive home win over Kentucky this past Saturday afternoon, the SEC road opener has now arrived for the Alabama Crimson Tide, which is a trip to Nashville to face the unbeaten Vanderbilt Commodores on Wednesday night.

Two teams ranked in the Top 15 nationally in the latest USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll, Alabama and Vanderbilt have emerged as two of the SEC’s top teams this season, and are also both currently among the top scoring teams in all of college basketball.

Both of Alabama and Vanderbilt are also loaded with talent as well, headlined by a talented group of guards such as Labaron Philon Jr. and Aden Holloway for the Crimson Tide, as well as the Commodores duo of Duke Miles and Tyler Tanner.

Stream Alabama vs. Vanderbilt on Fubo

Stream Alabama vs. Vanderbilt on ESPN+

One of college basketball’s top matchups of the week, following are the latest odds for the SEC showdown between Alabama and Vanderbilt in Nashville.

Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Tuesday, Jan. 6:

Money Line: Alabama (plus-145), Vanderbilt (minus-180)
Spread: Vanderbilt by 4 1/2
Over/Under: 178 1/2

Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Vanderbilt Commodores prediction, pick:

Memorial Gymnasium can be a difficult place to play for a road team at times, and it will likely be challenging for the Crimson Tide on Wednesday night, especially with the undefeated Commodores on the opposite end of the floor. A matchup in which Alabama has won four-straight dating back to 2023, as well as the last five in Nashville, I’ll go with Alabama to hand Vanderbilt their first loss Wednesday night in a high-scoring contest. Prediction: Alabama 88, Vanderbilt 82

Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Vanderbilt Commodores channel, start time, streaming:

A Top 25 showdown, Alabama and Vanderbilt are set to meet Wednesday, Jan. 7, from inside Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville, Tennessee. The game is set to begin at 9 p.m. ET live on ESPN2.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.

Source link