Alabama Crimson Tide
The Crimson Tide of Alabama has been one of several premiere teams in all of college football from the beginning from the sport. The team has garnered an incredible thirteen recognized national championships, as well as eight from the so-called “consensus” titles, too as numerous conference championship and bowl game victories. Its winning tradition has made it on the list of most recognizable teams in America, and makes it one of the most lucrative recruiting centers for elite college players. For a quarter of a century, 1 man coached the Crimson Tide to nearly half of its total national titles. That man, whose tenure at Alabama stretched from 1957 via the end of 1982, was genially known as Bear Bryant.The Bear turns it aroundBryant’s entrance into the Alabama program after leaving his old job at Texas A&M came on the heels of 1 of Alabama’s rare losing streaks. Though the team had suffered through a series of season with losing records, the Bear was determined to turn it around quickly, and did. His first season culminated in a five win record, with four games lost and one particular that resulted in a tie. The new coach brought with him a disciplined coaching style that inspired his players to elevate their game to meet the challenges provided by every opponent. It didn’t take long for the Bear to once again have the Crimson Tide knocking on the door of another national championship. The fourth season of Bryant’s leadership resulted in a major bowl game victory ad the first of what would be Bryant’s six national championships with the team. From that point onward, the Alabama teams that Bear coached were consistently dominant; during a six year period from 1961 via 1966 the Alabama program compiled sixty wins. During that same time frame they lost only five contests. That stretch included 4 conference championships, 3 recognized national titles, and two undefeated seasons. Alabama was in bowl games at the end of each of those six campaigns.The next decadeDuring the following decade, the Alabama Crimson Tide would win all but two of that decades SEC titles, while garnering three more national championships. During a 1971 game between the Crimson Tide and the USC Trojans, Bear made what would later turn out to have been one of several more historic decisions in Alabama football history. Bryant decided to start the very first black player, John Mitchell. Not only did Bryant’s team win that game, his decision to allow the first African American Alabama player to serve in a starting role on the team changed ‘Bama football forever.The end of Bryant’s coaching career personified his team’s success as he left with a victory in the 1982 Liberty Bowl. At the time of his departure, the Bear had probably the most victories of any coach in history, at 323. Sadly, his retirement from coaching preceded his death by mere weeks. To this day, his quarter of a century with the Crimson Tide program is still viewed by most coaches at all levels as one of several most inspiring periods of football success in history.
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