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Showing results for tags 'Alabama'.
Found 13 results
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Happy 85th birthday to one of the greatest baseball players who ever lived, if not *the* greatest: Willie Mays! -
Freshman Justyn Ross, who doesn't yet even have a Wikipedia entry.
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Dabo Swinney, born 1969 in Birmingham, AL. "Watch: Sweeney Hilariously Photobombs Reporter" by Tony Crumpton on tigernet.com "Watch: Reporter Gets Annoyed after Take Gets Ruined, then She Realizes It's Dabo Swinney" by Adam Spencer on saturdaydownsouth.com
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"Willie McCovey: Giants Legend Dies at 80" by Steve Kroner and John Shea on sfchronicle.com
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A little backstory: When a post asked which MLB baseball players approached a .400 batting average since Ted Williams last accomplished that...I thought of George Brett. Brett did get close, finishing one magic season with a .390 BA. Brett of course was a great baseball player, a hall of famer and fun to watch and follow. Brett played for the Kansas City Royals during their best period from the mid 1970's to the mid 1980's when they were one of the best teams in the major leagues, played in many playoffs, and made and won a World Series. But wait...While Brett was the star of the team he had an excellent high quality teammate in a fellow named Willie Wilson. Do any of you recall him? Willie Wilson was the fastest player in MLB during those years, made some all star teams and had a long successful baseball career, primarily with the Royals. Before Willie Wilson made it to MLB he was one of the all-time storied athletes in New Jersey high school team sports. I knew of him because he competed in the little conference of teams my town played in: The Suburban Conference in Northern NJ. The members of this conference were smaller schools in Northern NJ. The high school classes probably had between 150-300 students each. These were small, suburban schools. They were not known as incubators for super star athletes. Willie Wilson was the exception. For two years running he was All-State in both football and baseball and was also a tremendous basketball player. He dominated that conference, let alone was a super star in the state from among high school athletes. Reportedly he was the most recruited high school football player in the nation that year. Wilson spurned college football, was a high draft choice with MLB and within a few years made it to the big leagues for a long career. Go back to Willie Wilson's high school career and you can find the following video of his football highlights. Catch the following video. Its precious. Do you recall Thanksgiving day football games with your town's biggest rival??? Not only is the video precious but the comments take you back to those hallowed high school days........ -
I want to congratulate the University of Alabama and its fans for winning the Sugar Bowl game against Clemson last night. Clemson was driving, down 10-6 in the 3rd quarter, and then a weird, fluky interception occurred - then, everything went to hell in a hurry, as Alabama would score 14 points in 13 seconds. I'd love to say it was a close game up until that point, but it really wasn't: Alabama, and their fine sophomore quarterback, Jalen Hurts, was absolutely the better team last night, and deserved to win the game by any criterion. I've said almost all season long that Hunter Johnson should have been the starting quarterback, and last night was the exclamation point on that statement. Congratulations to Alabama, the University of Georgia, and the SEC (also to the University of Central Florida for completing a 12-0 season - I hope they finish ranked in the Top 4). PS - What does an Italian elephant with a dental problem say to the dentist?
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Any must-visit suggestions while I'm in the Birmingham area next week? Already got my Dreamland fix in last time. Which one of Frank Stitt's places would you go to first? I'll also be doing some scenic backroad wandering during the day - and keeping an eye open for the tell-tale signs of a promising bbq pit - but specific 'que recommendations are also welcome.
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Any recco's in downtown Mobile or the Greater Gulf Breeze region? Not so much interested in decent yuppie heirloom tomato/grass-fed pork chops places as we have those here -- regional cuisine is always worth a gamble. Party includes one pescatarian and one 12-year-old of limited adventurousness, so a decent seafood shack would fit the bill. Also, should I call the vacation "Alabama Getaway" or "Going Mobile" when I write my unpublishable travel section article on it?
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One thing I don't understand is how Willie Mays, and *especially* Hank Aaron, aren't more famous than they are. Yes, race probably has something to do with it, but why? Jackie Robinson is mentioned with the same reverence as Martin Luther King, Jr., but why not Willie Mays, and *most certainly* why not Hank Aaron? Let's celebrate these two giants *now*, while they're alive. Greats like Frank Robinson, Roberto Clemente, and Ernie Banks are maybe a small step down from The Big Three (Aaron, Mays, Mantle), and I hate to think that Mickey Mantle is such a legend because he's white, and I choose (probably incorrectly) to believe it's because he played center-field for the Yankees. Hank Aaron should be as famous as Muhammad Ali. Good God, the man broke *Babe Ruth's* home run record - that's like Jesus Christ walking in your front door.
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Sad news ... "Harper Lee, 'To Kill a Mockingbird' Author, Has Died at 89" by Kendal Weaver and Hillel Italie on wtop.com -
Congratulations to Alabama for a well-deserved victory and unanimous AP #1 National Ranking after defeating Clemson last night in the CFP (College Football Playoff) National Championship Game, 45-40. It's their 4th national championship in 7 years, and their coach, Nick Saban, is now only one behind the legendary Bear Bryant. Congratulations also to Clemson for a terrific season. In the final AP poll linked to above, Clemson's only loss was to #1 Alabama, and during the season, they defeated #5 Oklahoma, #11 Notre Dame, #14 Florida State, and #15 North Carolina (these final rankings are despite having a loss to Clemson). Clemson's season also included a 58-0 win over Miami, as well as victories over Boston College, Georgia Tech, North Carolina State, South Carolina, and Syracuse with Jim Brown in the audience watching the game. Next year's National Championship Game is on Jan 9, 2017 in Tampa - we Clemson fans hope to see you there, Alabama. (In all seriousness, congratulations - you earned the victory with an unbelievably gutsy play call in the 4th quarter. No excuses: You are the champions - see you next year. )
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Longshot but if anyone knows, you all do. Will be flying into Birmingham Sunday night and am staying in Hoover for early morning meetings in Montgomery on Monday morning. Dining solo. If there are any viable options in or near Hoover (I'll have a car but don't want to venture too far), I'm game. Thanks.
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You may never go to Montgomery. But maybe, like me, you will be living in a hotel for a month while in trial. Or maybe you will go on a civil rights history tour. If you go, you should try a new restaurant that opened just a couple of weeks ago, downtown, called Central. If it stays as good as it was when I stumbled onto it last night, you will be hearing about it in your food magazines, etc., in the future. It was absolutely fantastic, sophisticated but moderately priced, southern (particularly, Alabama) food. I sat at the bar, with very friendly and knowledgeable bartender, and gorged myself on small plates. Good bread, baked right there. Incredible pimiento cheese (spicy). Locally-grown vegetables, pickled on premises. Shrimp and hominy - not shrimp and grits, which have become cliche, but hominy, with a little bit of sausage and (again removing it from the trite) avocado and radish. They source everything locally, apparently except for the duck because there's no good ducks in central Alabama. And it is absurdly inexpensive for what it is, in a beautiful room with friendly and attentive staff.
