Alabama
Remembering Nick Saban’s puppy metaphor, as Kalen DeBoer recruits at Alabama | Toppmeyer
Seventeen years ago, Nick Saban gave us one of the first of his many metaphors we’d come to expect from the great Alabama coach and philosopher.
Saban had just finished his first Alabama signing class with a rush of 11th-hour commitments. It offered a peek at Saban’s special weapon – his recruiting chops – that sparked his dynasty in Tuscaloosa. Saban didn’t hide his pleasure in signing a class that surged into the top 10 of national recruiting rankings. But, he offered a word of caution.
“When you buy a puppy dog, you don’t know whether he’s going to grow into the world’s greatest hunting dog or not,” Saban said after national signing day in February 2007. “That’s a little bit what recruiting is like.”
Saban’s dogs could hunt. He and his staff knew not only how to recruit talent, but how to nurture and develop it.
Your turn, Kalen DeBoer.
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Saban gave his successor a head start by gift-wrapping a No. 2-ranked recruiting class that DeBoer deftly polished off Wednesday on national signing day. DeBoer added a signature from five-star wide receiver Ryan Williams, who initially committed to Saban, then recommitted to DeBoer.
This signing class restores order after Alabama endured a tough January. After Saban retired, talented Tide players stampeded for the transfer portal. That’s the uncomfortable but expected start to a tenure nowadays. Rarely, though, do coaching changes come with a recruiting class as loaded as this one.
Saban’s staff deserves credit for assembling this class, but the December signees and unsigned players like Williams could have cut and run after Saban’s retirement. National letters of intent are as weak as a restraints dunked in acid. But, only two December signees turned heel on Alabama. Other recruits, like Williams, decided to give DeBoer a shot. If they don’t like what they sample, they can always transfer.
“I believe in his offense,” Williams told the Tuscaloosa News.
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And I believe DeBoer can turn talented pups into hunting dogs. He’s proven his coaching acumen and player development skills. He inherited a Washington program in a rut and engineered a warp-speed turnaround, winning 25 games in two seasons. The man can hunt.
My lingering question is, can DeBoer attract more of the best pups in 2025? That test begins now.
Other recruiting thoughts:
∎ The NCAA is investigating Tennessee and whether the Vols ran afoul of the NCAA’s meager guidelines governing NIL, including its mandate that NIL deals can’t be used as recruiting inducements. Tennessee’s attorney general is fighting back with an antitrust lawsuit that alleges the NCAA’s NIL guidelines are out of bounds with the Sherman Antitrust Act. Seems like a solid legal strategy, but maybe the AG should throw this in: Tennessee’s latest recruiting class ranks 13th nationally. Not bad, but no better than the range where UT normally ranked before NIL. If the Vols are shelling out inducements, the recruiting rankings don’t reflect it. Think a judge would buy that argument?
∎ Steve Sarkisian continues to show he’s the full package at Texas. Alabama fans know Sarkisian can operate an offense. The Longhorns’ No. 6-ranked recruiting class is further evidence he can attract talent. This marks Sark’s third straight top-six recruiting class. Is it any wonder why I think Texas will smoothly transition to the SEC?
∎ When Kirby Smart last spoke about his recruiting haul in December, he unceremoniously described the class as the byproduct of “thorough” recruiting. Ho hum, business as usual, another best-in-nation class for the nation’s No. 1 recruiter. NIL and transfers altered the landscape, but they didn’t change that this sport, at its core, is all about acquiring and developing talent. And Smart is the industry’s standard, particularly now that Saban is hunting fairways.
∎ Auburn’s recruiting struggles started and ended with Bryan Harsin. Hugh Freeze’s second recruiting class ranks No. 10 nationally. Importantly, Freeze’s class included five-star wide receiver Cam Coleman and four-star quarterback Walker White, both of whom are national top-50 prospects by 247Sports. Wide receiver and quarterback were persistent deficiencies for Auburn the past few seasons. These pups must hunt touchdowns.
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s SEC Columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer.
If you enjoy Blake’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it. Also, check out his podcast, SEC Football Unfiltered, or access exclusive columns via the SEC Unfiltered newsletter.
Enjoy two nights of free dance at Stars on the Riverfront
Alabama Dance Theatre will present Stars on the Riverfront on June 20 and 21, at 7:30 p.m. each night at Riverwalk Amphitheater in Montgomery.
In Alabama’s coastal landscape, two Alabama bridges quietly stand among the longest in the United States.
A new World Atlas ranking of the 11 longest bridges in the United States is a reminder that not all crossings are so forgettable. These are the spans that stretch the idea of a “quick drive” into something else entirely.
As World Atlas notes, the country’s roughly 617,000 bridges are mostly routine. The ones on this list “swallow the horizon,” turning open water into a roadway that can take ten or fifteen minutes to cross.
Louisiana dominates the ranking, but Alabama also makes its presence known with two entries: the Jubilee Parkway and the General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge.
Jubilee Parkway: Alabama’s 7.5-mile bridge ranks No. 7 among longest in US
Ranked at No. 7 on World Atlas’ list, the Jubilee Parkway carries Interstate 10 across Mobile Bay as a pair of parallel viaduct bridges stretching 7.5 miles between Mobile and Spanish Fort/Daphne. Opened in 1978, the four-lane crossing is often called the “Bayway.”
The World Atlas says the bridge takes its name from Mobile Bay’s “jubilee” phenomenon, when marine life is pushed into shallow water, making it unusually easy to catch.
General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge: 6.08-mile span ranks No. 10 in U.S.
The General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge ranks No. 10 on the World Atlas list, stretching 6.08 miles across the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta northeast of Mobile as part of Interstate 65.
World Atlas says the bridge is better known locally as the “Dolly Parton Bridge,” a nickname inspired by the paired arch design that, locals say, resembles a distinctive silhouette when viewed from certain angles.
Completed in 1980, it features twin parallel weathering-steel arches and concrete viaducts carrying four lanes over the wide, marshy delta.
Longest bridges in the U.S. Full World Atlas ranking
World Atlas ranks these as the longest bridges in the U.S.:
- Lake Pontchartrain Causeway: 23.83 miles
- Manchac Swamp Bridge: 22.8 miles
- Louisiana Airborne Memorial Bridge: 18.2 miles
- Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel: 17.6 miles
- Bonnet Carré Spillway Bridge: 11 miles
- Louisiana Highway 1 Bridge: 8.26 miles
- Jubilee Parkway: 7.5 miles
- San Mateo-Hayward Bridge: 7 miles
- Seven Mile Bridge: 6.79 miles
- General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge: 6.08 miles
- Norfolk Southern Lake Pontchartrain Bridge: 5.8 miles
Jennifer Lindahl is a Breaking and Trending Reporter in Alabama for USA TODAY’s Deep South Connect Team. Connect with her on X @jenn_lindahl and email at jlindahl@usatodayco.com.
The iconic wooden roller coaster at Alabama Adventure & Splash Adventure is officially back in action, along with some seasonal deals. This Father’s Day, dads can get into the park for free to ride the restored coaster, Rampage.
It’s not the only attraction returning; this Halloween, Alabama Adventure is bringing back not one but two haunted houses for the first time since the late 2000s.
If you can’t wait until then, the Bessemer park will be open late on Saturdays and end with a pop of color. Adventure Summer Nights will have the park open until 9:30 p.m. once a week with a fireworks show to round off the night.
And as an apology to their loyal visitors, people who bought a daily ticket before June 10 are welcome to come back and try their new and improved attractions for free. If you’re a season pass holder, don’t feel left out—pass holder discounts are doubled for the month of July.
Governor Kay Ivey on Thursday set an execution date for death row inmate Jeremy Williams, who was convicted in the 2021 kidnapping, rape and murder of 5-year-old Kamarie Holland in Phenix City.
Williams is scheduled to be executed by the state’s three-drug lethal injection during a 30-hour window beginning at 12 a.m. August 13 and ending at 6 a.m. August 14. The execution date comes after the Alabama Supreme Court granted a request from Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office on June 16, authorizing the state to carry out the sentence.
In a letter to Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner Greg Lovelace, Ivey said the Supreme Court’s June 16 order serves as the official death warrant for Williams.
“By law, I am required to specify the time frame for carrying out the sentence of death,” Ivey said. “Accordingly, I hereby order that Jeremy Lee Williams’s sentence of death be carried out within a time frame beginning on August 13, 2026, at 12:00 a.m. and ending on August 14, 2026, at 6:00 a.m.”
Ivey noted that she retains the authority to commute the sentence before the execution takes place.
Williams, 34, was convicted in April 2024 on four counts of capital murder stemming from Holland’s death. Prosecutors charged him with capital murder during a kidnapping, capital murder during a rape, capital murder during first-degree sodomy and capital murder of a child younger than 14.
Authorities said Holland disappeared from her family’s home in Phenix City on December 13, 2021. Her body was discovered two days later inside an abandoned house less than a mile away. An autopsy determined that she had been sexually assaulted and strangled.
In addition to the death sentence, Williams received several other prison terms. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for human trafficking and for knowingly producing recordings depicting the sexual abuse of a child. He also received another life sentence for a separate sexual abuse conviction, along with a 20-year sentence for conspiracy to commit human trafficking and a 10-year sentence for abuse of a corpse.
Unlike most death row inmates, Williams sought to speed up the execution process. During a hearing, he told the court that he accepted responsibility for his actions and wanted the sentence carried out.
In 2025, Williams dismissed his attorneys and informed the court that he wished to waive any remaining appeals and proceed with his execution. Russell County Circuit Court Judge David Johnson determined that Williams was competent to make that decision and allowed him to forgo further legal challenges.
Under Alabama law, capital convictions automatically receive appellate review. The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals subsequently affirmed Williams’ conviction and death sentence in March.
After that review concluded, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office petitioned the Alabama Supreme Court in May to authorize an execution date. The court granted the request earlier this week, clearing the way for Ivey to schedule the execution.
If carried out as scheduled, Williams’ execution would occur nearly five years after Holland’s death and a little more than two years after he was sentenced to death.
Williams’ execution would be Alabama’s first by lethal injection since April 2025. The state’s three most recent executions were carried out using nitrogen hypoxia, which Alabama began using in 2024.
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