Nick Saban has an interesting way of speaking.
“The time is now to resurrect the identity of the Alabama football program,” said Saban, in a very serious manner, at the beginning of fall camp.
He said this, of course, after losing just two games last year and being ranked preseason No. 2 this season, which is kind of like saying “it’s time to buy a new house” after a sink gets clogged.
Up until this point, the identity of Yellowhammer has primarily been Alabama politics, business and culture. And with the launch of Yellowhammer Sports, we aren’t resurrecting the identity of YellowhammerNews.com. But we are adding another important element to the site as we strive to reach our goal of being your go-to source of news, information and analysis on all things Alabama.
There has probably never been a better time than the present to be a college football fan in the Yellowhammer State.
The state has won five of the past six national titles, four of the past five SEC championships, and Alabama and Auburn are both ranked in the preseason AP Top 10 for just the fourth time ever.
The three most popular sports in Alabama are college football, college football recruiting and Spring football. Alabamians have an unrivaled — and sometimes unhealthy — love for football in this state. We name our children Alleigh Bama and Krimson Tyde. We have more dogs named Bear per capita than any other state. We put tiger tails on our cars and throw celebratory toilet paper at unsuspecting foliage. We recite rally cries and cheers for an undulating tide and a militarized eagle, although our actual mascots are an elephant and a tiger.
These things only really make sense to Alabamians, and some of us can’t explain them either. But regardless, they are engrained in our DNA, and they are to be celebrated, if not occasionally laughed at.
So what can you expect from Yellowhammer Sports?
Box scores and tepid recaps will be largely missing. We’ll have long-form columns and features, reports from press conferences and games, and up-to-date news whenever it breaks. We’ll also cover the lighter side of Alabama and Auburn football because sometimes sports are dumb and jokes occasionally present themselves.
Using all of the digital media tools at our disposal — as well as the same level of access as any other media outlet — Yellowhammer has football covered.
We aren’t sure what Yellowhammer Sports will be in six months — or even six days — but we promise to do our best to make it worth your time to check in every day to see what’s next.
Follow Jonathan on Twitter @Jonathan_Biles
