Playing Rough

Alabama tight end Travis McCall said has been aware of Utah ‘for the past couple of years,’ adding it has ‘a lot of talent and great speed out there.’
He also said Utah is ‘pretty physical. Most people don’t think they are, but they’re pretty physical.’
Surprisingly, McCall added that Utah ‘would be in the ranks with the SEC as far as talent. They have talent, they have speed and they have play makers — everyone has play makers.’
As for whether teams like Utah have narrowed the gap on BCS schools, McCall replied, ‘I don’t know if it’s really narrowed that much, but I think the best match-ups are in high school.’

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Alabama center Antoine Caldwell on the first time he scrimmaged against 6-foot-5, 365-pound nose guard Terrence Cody: ‘There have been so many times, it’s all like a blur. He doesn’t really change. He’s massive, he’s tough,he’s physical. For guy that big, he doesn’t have any weaknesses…the guy’s a freak. He’s not only just big, he’s athletic. He’s got a motor. I mean, the guy runs the ball down and if he can’t run it down, he’s trying to get the ball.’

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Despite the size advantage Alabama will enjoy on Friday ‘ the offensive line averages 305 pounds ‘ Utah coach Kyle Whittingham hopes to offset it with defensive speed and technique.
‘We aren’t very big up front,’ said Whittingham, ‘but technique is important. You play hard and get great effort and hopefully we’ll be able to keep those guys fresh and rotating.’

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All-SEC running back Glen Coffee was asked Monday whether he thought ‘Bama’s size would allow it to ‘roll over’ Utah’s small, fast defense.
‘I wouldn’t say roll over,’ said Coffee. ‘They know how to play with their quick size. I’m not going to say roll over, but we just need to look to hold on the football and take care of business.’