Darby, ’Bama hoping to change perceptions
Posted on Thursday, July 27, 2006
First in a series previewing SEC football teams.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Alabama senior tailback Kenneth Darby was the SEC’s second-leading rusher last season, but he didn’t make the cut for the preseason all-conference firstteam offense selected by the coaches and announced last week.
“I was definitely very surprised, but it’s not something that’s going to make me mad,” Darby said Wednesday at SEC Media Days when asked about his absence from the first-team offense. “It’s something that’s going to motivate me.”
The two running backs picked by the coaches on the first-team offense were Auburn senior Kenny Irons and Arkansas sophomore Darren McFadden.
Irons led the SEC in rushing last season, averaging 107. 8 yards per game, and scored 13 touchdowns. McFadden was fourth in the SEC in rushing, averaging 101. 2 yards per game, but his average of 6. 3 yards per carry was matched only by teammate Felix Jones among SEC runners. McFadden also rushed for 11 touchdowns.
Darby averaged 103. 5 yards per game and 5. 2 yards per carry with 3 touchdowns.
“The guys they had on the first team are great players,” Darby said. “I’m not going to knock any of the guys they put above me.”
Maybe Darby would like to have been in a three-way tie for first-team honors with Irons and McFadden, considering he was one of four running backs on the second-team offense.
Senior cornerback Ramzee Robinson was the only Alabama player voted first-team honors by the SEC coaches. The Crimson Tide’s total of five players on the three-deep teams on offense, defense and special teams ranked seventh in the conference.
Darby and Robinson said they couldn’t understand how Alabama could be so slighted after finishing 10-2 last season.
“Everybody on our team feels like we’re underrated,” Darby said. “We all feel like we’re not getting the respect we deserve.
“ We’re the kind of team that likes to change people’s minds.”
Robinson believes more Alabama players should have been voted to the first-team along with him.
“With the season we had last year, we felt we deserved more credit,” Robinson said. “We’ll have a chip on our shoulders going into training camp.”
The Tide are going into preseason practice missing nine starters from last season, including linebacker DeMeco Ryans, a second-round NFL Draft pick by the Houston Texans; safety Roman Harper, a second-round pick by the New Orleans Saints; and quarterback Brodie Croyle, a third-round pick by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Losses like that are why Alabama generally is picked behind Auburn and LSU in the SEC West in preseason polls and why so few Tide players were voted onto the all-conference teams by the coaches.
But Darby said Alabama has the talent to have another good season and should be improved on offense.
The Tide finished 67 th nationally last season in total offense (358. 9 yards per game ) and 85 th in scoring offense (21. 9 points ) last season, but won because it ranked first nationally in scoring defense (10. 7 points ) and second in total offense (255. 1 yards ).
Robinson is one of only four returning starters on defense. Darby is among nine returning starters on offense.
“I feel like we’re going to score a lot of points this year,” Darby said. “I feel like we’ve got the capability to put a lot of points on the board.”
Sophomore John Parker Wilson, who played in five games last season and completed 7 of 11 passes for 98 yards and 2 touchdowns, is expected to start in Croyle’s place.
“He’s a sophomore. He hasn’t had a lot of experience. We know that,” said Alabama Coach Mike Shula, a three-year starting quarterback for the Tide in 1984-1986. “Is he going to make some mistakes ? Probably. Any time you do something for the first time and you’re out there, you’re probably going to make some mistakes. But he’s going to make a lot of plays.”
Shula said Wilson has a strong arm and a good touch with accuracy and can do some running.
“We think he’s a mobile quarterback,” Shula said. “He’s not a Vince Young or anything like that, but we think he can make and create plays when he needs to. We can do some things and get him in and out of the pocket where he’s not just sitting back there at the same spot every play.”
Darby said the team has confidence in Wilson.
“We love the guy,” Darby said. “We know he’s going to help us win a lot of games.”
But Darby may be the main guy on Alabama’s offense if the Tide are to win a lot of games this season.
Darby is attempting to become the first Alabama player to rush for 1, 000 or more yards in three consecutive seasons. He rushed for 1, 062 yards in 2004 and 1, 242 in 2005.
This season, Darby needs 1, 078 rushing yards to break the Alabama career record of 3, 565 held by Shaun Alexander, the NFL’s MVP last season with the Seattle Seahawks.
If Darby stays healthy, he figures to get another 1, 000-yard rushing season considering how much the offense will need to lean on him with a new starting quarterback.
But Darby said he won’t carry too heavy of a work load.
“It’s going to shift over to my direction a little bit, but not all the way,” Darby said. “ They’re going to put a lot on John Parker, too. Next: Arkansas
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
