Alabama
Predicting the 2024 Alabama Crimson Tide Football Season: Wisconsin Badgers
The third installment of wild blind dart-throwing predictions of Alabama opponents takes us deep into the Rust Belt wilderness.
GAME 3, September 14: at WISCONSIN BADGERS
Coach: Luke Fickell (7–6, 5–4 B1G in one full season as head coach, plus 1-0 as interim at Wisky in 2022; 71–31 overall with one plagued year at anOhio State and six acceptional seasons at Cincy; 3-4 in bowls)
2023 record: 7-6 (4–4 AAC, lost Tampa Bowl to LSU 35-31)
Looking back: In their first five games, UW beat up on Buffalo, Georgia Southern, Purdue, and Rutgers, but somehow managed to drop a game at Washington State in between. Then, the conference schedule kicked in and true colors were exposed. The Badgers would lose four of their next five, averaging 10 points scored in those four defeats. Wisky rebounded for wins over Nebraska and Minnie, but couldn’t outscore defense-optional LSU in the bowl game to finish with the dreaded 7-6 record. It’s a winning record, but the ugliest kind.
Key losses: RB Braelon Allen (Round 4, Jets), C Tanor Bortolini (Round 4, Colts), QB Tanner Mordecai (grad), LB Maema Njongmeta (grad), DT Gio Paez (xfer to LSU), 3rd leading tackler ILB Jordan Turner (to Sparty), 3rd leading receiver and former team captain Chimere Dike (to Florida), co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Colin Hitschler (now at Alabama), wide receiver coach Mike Brown (to Notre Dame)
Top returnees: Leading tackler SS Hunter Wohler, CB Ricardo Hallman, #1 WR Will Pauling, #2 WR Bryson Green, LB Jake Chaney, OL Riley Mahlman (6’8”/308).
Returning Starters: 5 on defense, 5 on offense, punter and kicker.
Top newcomers: QB Tyler Van Dyke (from Miami-FL), FCS All-American OLB John Pius (William & Mary), RB Tawee Walker (Oklahoma, 513 YDS, 7 TD), Lincoln Riley’s former DC Alex Grinch 2019-2023 is the new Wisconsin DC (because those LR defenses have been so good. Amirite?)
Strengths: Van Dyke’s potential… Stout defense (20.2 ppg allowed in 2023 – 21st best)… Secondary…
Weaknesses: Wisky had a heck of a time scoring points in league play in 2023. They averaged a hair under 20 ppg and tallied 14 or less on four occasions (Iowa, Ohio State, Northwestern, at Indiana)… Receivers need to step up… Defensive line is suspect… Special teams were mediocre last year and the same guys are back…
Outlook: At Miami-FL in 2021, QB Tyler Van Dyke took over for injured starter D’Eriq King and never looked back. He had a fine freshman season (2,931, 25 TD, 6 INT), but the next two campaigns were a little rocky (1,844-10-5 / 2,703-19-12) which included some benchings. Will a change in scenery do him good?
The UW defense probably does not have the speed, depth, or bulk to keep up with the Tide.
Fickell was supposed to be the Wisconsin Messiah, but he has not gotten off to a start that Badgers fans were hoping for. He lost two key staffers in the off-season and the schedule is a daunting one, exchanging two B1G patsies for a trip to Southern Cal and home game vs Oregon.
Bama is currently favored by nine points with the game taking place in Madison with an 11am/noon kickoff. Look for a score around Tide 38 UW 20.
Wisconsin Win Total Odds*
Over 7 -105 (bet $105 to profit $100)
Under 7 -115 (bet $115 to profit $100)
*Source: DraftKings
2024 WISCONSIN BADGERS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE:
Fri, Aug 30 vs Western Michigan – W
Sat, Sep 7 vs South Dakota – W
Sat, Sep 14 vs Alabama – L
Sat, Sep 28 @ Southern Cal – L
Sat, Oct 5 vs Purdue – W
Sat, Oct 12 @ Rutgers – W
Sat, Oct 19 @ Northwestern – W
Sat, Oct 26 vs Penn State – L
Sat, Nov 2 @ Iowa – L
Sat, Nov 16 vs Oregon – L
Sat, Nov 23 @ Nebraska – L
Fri, Nov 29 vs Minnesota – W
Poll
It’s WAY early, but not too early to bet. What say you?
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0%
Bama does not cover 9.
(0 votes)
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0%
A 9 point Tide win sounds spot on.
(0 votes)
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25%
Bama wins by 10-14.
(1 vote)
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75%
Bama wins by 15-20.
(3 votes)
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0%
Bama wins 21 or more.
(0 votes)
4 votes total
Vote Now
2024 ALABAMA SCHEDULE PREVIEWS:
Sat, Aug 31 vs Western Kentucky
Sat, Sep 7 vs South Florida
Sat, Sep 14 @ Wisconsin
Sat, Sep 28 vs Georgia
Sat, Oct 5 @ Vanderbilt
Sat, Oct 12 vs South Carolina
Sat, Oct 19 @ Tennessee
Sat, Oct 26 vs Missouri
Sat, Nov 9 @ LSU
Sat, Nov 16 vs Mercer
Sat, Nov 23 @ Oklahoma
Sat, Nov 30 vs Auburn
Alabama
Top-30 overall recruit Jaxon Richardson commits to Alabama
Jaxon Richardson, the No. 27 overall recruit in the 2026 class per the Rivals Industry Ranking, has committed to Alabama.
The 6-foot-6 four-star small forward out of Southeastern Prep (FL) ultimately chose the Crimson Tide over USC, Creighton, and Ole Miss. He also received offers from Miami, Cincinnati, Michigan, Florida, Villanova, and others.
Richardson, a McDonald’s All-American, becomes the Crimson Tide’s third commitment of the 2026 cycle. He joins four-star shooting guard Qayden Samuels (No. 28 NATL) and four-star small forward Tarris Bouie (No. 54 NATL).
He’s the son of NBA veteran and two-time NBA Dunk Contest champion Jason Richardson. His older brother, Jase, played for Michigan State last season before being selected 25th overall in the 2025 NBA Draft by the Orlando Magic.
More on Richardson
Rivals’ National Recruiting Analyst Jamie Shaw says Richardson is one of the most explosive players in the 2026 class:
Jaxon Richardson is able to combine fluid athleticism with explosive burst in a way no other player in this class can. He uses his athleticism to his advantage on the floor. He fills the outside channels with a purpose in transition, he is aggressive in the passing lanes, and he plays as a vertical floor spacer in the dunker spots and lob plays. Last summer, playing with the Florida Rebels on Nike’s EYBL Circuit, the 6-foot-6 wing averaged 12.8 points on 54.0 percent shooting and 10.5 attempts per game. Last high school season, he averaged 12.9 points on 61.0 percent shooting on 8.9 attempts per game. He is a highly efficient player, as 84.4 percent of his makes last high school season were at the rim.
Alabama
Alabama Baseball Ties Stolen Base Record In Win Over Hornets
Alabama baseball cruised to a win over Alabama State on Wednesday night, beating the Hornets 13-4 to complete the season sweep. The Crimson Tide tied a program record with nine stolen bases in one of the stranger contests that will be played this season.
The tone was set for a tumultuous night on the basepaths in the opening minutes of the game. Leadoff batter Bryce Fowler, who exited Tuesday’s game after getting beaned in the head, was walked, and promptly took second base. He advanced to third on a wild pitch in Justin Lebron’s at-bat, paving the way for Lebron to steal second when he was ultimately walked as well.
The successful baserunning instantly paid off, as Brady Neal drove both in with a double to left-center field before John Lemm walked two at-bats later. Both runners stole their respective bases on the same pitch in Jason Torres’ plate appearance, meaning that four of the first five batters of the game stole a base.
Alabama has been exceptional on the basepaths, sitting at 30-for-30 on the season. Lebron, who swiped two bags on Wednesday, leads the team with 12. The junior had an up-and-down night, hitting his eighth home run of the season, but also committing an error at shortstop for the fourth consecutive game.
“Get those things out of there now, baby. The dude is unbelievable,” an unconcerned Rob Vaughn said on Tuesday of Lebron’s errors. “We’re going to look up at the end of the year, and that guy is going to have five or six errors, which one he’s got right now, and we’ll be like, ‘Man, that guy is the best of all time to do it.’”
Wednesday’s game was a very prototypical midweek contest with no shortage of quirks and oddities throughout its nearly four-hour runtime. Fifteen Alabama batters were walked, falling just one shy of the program record, and the hit by pitch record was tied as seven batters were plunked.
The game was never competitive from an on-field standpoint. After barely escaping with a 2-1 win in the first matchup with the Hornets two weeks ago, this was a far more accurate representation of what these games typically look like, as Alabama now leads the all-time series 15-0.
Freshman Joe Chiarodo made his first career start, allowing two hits and one walk over two scoreless innings. He was named the winning pitcher. Luke Smyers, Connor Lehman, Anthony Pesci and Tate Robertson were the other pitchers to take the mound. Lehman allowed a three-run blast in the sixth inning, and those were the only runs until the incredibly-named Skywalker Mann drove in a run off Robertson in the ninth.
Perhaps the most shocking figure from the game was that Alabama had 19 runners left on base. The Crimson Tide left the bases loaded in four different innings. As stated, this was just a bizarre baseball game across the board. With the midweeks out of the way, the Crimson Tide gets to prepare for its final weekend tune-up before SEC play as North Florida heads into Tuscaloosa on Friday.
Alabama
New Alabama law to set screen time limits for kids in day care, pre-K and kindergarten
The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act was signed on Wednesday, March 4, by Governor Kay Ivey to introduce limits on children’s screen time access in Alabama.
The Act is one of Ivey’s 2026 legislative priorities.
“Video screen access in classrooms can boost learning skills among our young children, but too much screen exposure can also be detrimental, harming critical social and cognitive development,” Ivey said. “The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act ensures our youngest students are provided a healthy balance of screen time and traditional learning in order to protect social and emotional development.”
Under the Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act, the Alabama Department of Early Childhood Education will be required to work with the Department of Human Resources and the State Department of Education to develop guidelines for screen-based media.
Guidelines will be implemented in early childhood education programs like day care centers, day care homes, night care facilities, pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and group day care homes. The Act was sponsored by Representative Jeana Ross and Senator Donnie Chesteen.
“House Bill 78 establishes clear, research-based expectations for how technology is used in early childhood settings,” said Ross. “The goal is not to eliminate technology, but to ensure its use is developmentally appropriate and never replaces the hands-on learning and human interaction young children need most. By setting thoughtful guardrails and aligning classroom practices with the best available research on early brain development, this legislation supports educators, protects the quality of early learning and reinforces our commitment to giving Alabama’s youngest students the strongest possible start.”
A training program will also be created by the Department of Early Childhood Education to create a baseline for the appropriate use of child screentime for teachers and staff members supervising children.
“The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act represents another important step in ensuring Alabama’s youngest children grow and learn in environments that prioritize human interaction, exploration and healthy development,” said Chesteen. “Building on the progress made with last year’s FOCUS Act, this legislation continues our commitment to protecting the most formative years of childhood. I am grateful to Governor Kay Ivey and my colleagues in the Legislature for recognizing the importance of this issue and working together to support Alabama families.”
The Healthy Early Development and Screen Time Act will become effective on January 1, 2027.
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