#1: Defensive Line Domination of The Line of Scrimmage - Alabama's defensive line needs to physically control the line of scrimmage against Penn State's huge offensive line. This will free up Alabama's linebackers to fly to the ball, plug the holes, and run laterally with ease.

Losing impact players from last year's domanant defensive line, such as Terrence Cody, Lorenzo Washington, and Brandon Deaderick, would impact most any other college team negatively. However, even with Marcel Dareus out of the game, players Like Damion Square, Josh Chapman, Kerry Murphy, and the rest of the big bruisers on defensive line will need to step up.

Alabama's defensive line coach, Bo Davis, had words of warning to people who consider this year's defensive linemen at Alabama any less effective than last year's, saying "Those guys, to me, I feel are just as good as the guys" from last year's defensive line.

With our young secondary, it is important to get a pass rush on Penn State's true freshman quarterback. If he gets rattled early, look for Bama to roll big time.

#2 Secondary Locking Down Coverage on PSU Receivers - Alabama has a brand-new secondary, for the most part, beyond Mark Barron. Even though Penn State has a freshman quarterback, Rob Bolden, look for them to attempt to exploit the perceived weakest area of Alabama's team.

Alabama has three brand-new starters in Robert Lester, junior college transfer DeQuan Menzie, and sophomore Dre Kirkpatrick. You will also see true freshman DeMarcus Milliner, come into the game often in nickel situations. Even though Penn State quarterback is a true freshman, there obviously has to be good reasons for his being the first starting true freshman quarterback in 50 years for Penn State.

Don't take it for granted that Rob Bolden is your typical freshman. Coach Nick Saban said of Penn State's starting true freshman QB Rob Bolden,
“You’d never know he was a freshman, that’s for sure. He’s got a very good arm, he’s very accurate, he has a lot of poise,” Saban said of Bolden. “They didn’t have any game management issues, fumbled snaps, delay of games, the guy hard counts like a veteran and draws the other team off sides. He didn’t make really any bad decisions, stood in the pocket, took a couple of licks and completed balls.”

#3. Greg McElroy Plays Smart - Greg is applying to be a Rhodes scholar, so would you expect anything less from the cerebrial QB? However, being without the services of Mark Ingram, it might mean a little more pressure on the 5th year senior to perform at a higher level in front of the home crowd at Bryant-Denny Stadium. He just needs to play his normal ball control game and not make any fool hardy mistakes.

He doesn't need to try too hard. McElroy needs to make smart decisions by distributing the football without taking too many risks. When he does air it out to the likes of Julio Jones and Marquis Maze on post-routes, it needs to be so far down field that it stretches the defense and is only catchable by Alabama's wide outs.

If he can hit the running backs & tight ends early and often, it will help open running lanes for Trent Richardson & Eddie Lacy, in addition to making it easier to throw long.

OVERALL

Of course, there are other keys to winning, as it is a team sport. There are other aspects of Alabama's game that will be vital to victory over Penn State, such as the special teams unit & offensive line play, but if we play well in these top three areas of interest, Bama will win handedly.

Roll Tide!

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The obvious hole in the defesive line that needs to be plugged this fall is the one by big All-American Mount Cody. A massive specimen of a player at 355 pounds, the big guy made it nearly impossible for teams to run up the middle of the Alabama defense. He was a force of nature (hence the nickname "Mount"), but another player who is coming along who is shaped like a bowling ball. His name is Josh Chapman, and he is poised to take his place at noseguard and make his mark on the 2010 Crimson Tide.

Josh Chapman, junior nosetackle, played a good bit in 2009 in third-down situations in order to rest Mount Cody. He has a a lot of game day experience and at 6'1" tall and 305 pounds, you can see why I say he is shaped to be like a bowling ball. Of course, he is not nearly as big as Cody, but what he lacks in size will be made up in strength and speed. He is widely considered on the team to be the strongest player in the weight room lifting close to 700 lbs. He also provides a lot pass rushing ability in the middle with more speed than Cody. I think Chapman will be a key cog in solidifying the defense for next year. .

One of the players that you might see battling with Chapman is Kerry Murphy. Kerry Murphy is the player that many wondered if he would ever get to Alabama. Murphy, like Chapman, came from the Alabama football powerhouse in Hoover (known nationally for its MTV reality show). both of these two players rotating in and out of the middle. A little taller player at 6'5" tall and a little heavier at 327 pounds, Kerry Murphy is no small fry. Both him and Chapman will be in the mix for nose guard in the 2010 football season. Nick Saban is working on Murphy now to improve his conditioning. Players on the team said that Murphy is a "crazy athlete." In fact, he can do back flips! Not just one either... but two in a row!

Chapman & Murphy are so highly regarded by their teammates, they are called "human earth movers." Think of bulldoziers... That is a really good sign that we are going to be strong in the middle of our D.

One of the top defensive lineman to be on lookout for this fall is junior Marcell Darius. Darius came out the gate this season with two tackles & 1.5 sacks against Virginia Tech in the season opener. Many around the Alabama Crimson Tide program think that Marcell Darius will ABSOLUTELY be the next great defensive lineman for the Crimson Tide. We got a little taste of this in the national championship game when he intercepted a pass for a touchdown and also knocked Colt McCoy out of the game. On top of that, he was in the face of the Texas quarterbacks all night long. He will be a force in his junior and senior years if he stays healthy.

Another player to watch is Damion Square. He actually did a great job on pass rushing duties last year until he hurt his knee. Most likely he's going to be limited in the spring, but you should see him full speed by fall.

Other backups who may be fighting for a job include Darrington Sentimore, William Ming,and Brandon Moore. Brandon Lewis a junior college signee from this years class could be an early force.

Folks we have the numbers, some even have some good playing experience, but I don't think we will see much of a drop-off in defensive line performance next fall. Saban has the talent deep at Alabama. Look for new players this year like Kerry Murphy or even one of the young redshirt freshman players like Brandon Lewis or William Ming to step and contribute.

On the defensive line, Alabama is simply reloading. Sure I hate to lose Mount Cody, but the future is bright! I can't wait to see 2010 and the new defensive front!

ROLL TIDE!

In an interview this morning, Nick Saban indicated that it is not an open and shut case of Brandon not playing.  Alabama's medical staff will evaluate him medically in the warm-ups and make a decision on whether to let him particicate in this high profile game with national significance.  

It was a flesh wound so it is very possible we see the Man of Steel himself, Brandon, flying around the backfield of the Hokies tonight.  All I can say is that this is amazing... lets just hope the Hokies don't have any kryptonite!  LOL 

ROLL TIDE!

At the moment, up and coming sophomore, Marcell Dareus, looks to be slated in Deaderick's first-string right defensive end spot on Alabama's stingy defense. Dareus was expected to get plenty of playing time anyway, as he has been getting to the quarterback in scrimmages for sacks and players have been raving about his performance.

Dareus has the speed and size to create real problems for the Hokies as they will try and get around the edge and get into open space. I believe Dareus will do a great job of protecting from this and reverses, as you never know what Beamer might pull out of the bag.

I look forward to seeing Dareus playing for sure. I hope he sacks up some Hokies and helps us humiliate them like we did Clemson. But most of all, we wish Deaderick a speedy recovery and glad this story wasn't a tragedy.

http://blog.al.com/bamabeat/2009/08/breaking_news_tides_brandon_de.html