is like the Ole Miss fascination with the rebel flag, the Colonel Rebel mascot and the rest of the Old South symbols. Alabama had better let the Bear worship go or else they will be perceived by recruits and younger fans as hopelessly living in the past. I saw the last game Bear Bryant coached. I think it was 23 years ago. He died within about two months after the game. There is a difference between living in the past and perpetuating tradition. The only school more stuck in the past than Alabama is Ole Miss. I am glad LSU lives in the present and perpetuates its proud tradition.
But they forgot Old bear's statue outside Legion field in B'ham. In one of the worst areas of town, it still sits there in the rain, sleet and snow.:grin:
If you really pay attention, opposing fans bring up the Bear about 10 times more than we do....and I am being generous.
I must admit I laughed with my hand over my mouth when I saw the pregame video with Bear talking on the video screen. That, along with countless men and women wearing houndstooth hats all day, sums up why everyone sees Bama as living in the past.
"I ain't never been nothin' but a winner...........except when it came to those damn triple negative sentences...I failed english class...but yeah, minus that, nothin' but a winner." -Paul "Bear" Bryant
Do you think you'll hear the Billy Cannon punt return sometime this week? If a coach had done at LSU! what Bryant did at Bama we would be behaving the same way.
Who really gets annoyed about Bama's traditions? Hey, Bama has a legendary coach and they have every right to be proud of him. It doesn't hurt me any. LSU has a legendary stadium and we are damn proud of it. It doesn't hurt other teams any, but many of our opponents get annoyed and put down Tiger Stadium as overrated. Ole Miss is legendary for babe watching. Auburn is legendary for vandalizing their own trees. They also take pride in their traditions. Bama is part of what makes SEC football such a big deal. I would be disappointed if Bammers didn't strut. I like opponents with some swagger. I won't go that far. I read the Bama boards a lot and not a week goes by that there isn't a post about Bear Bryant. "What would Coach Bryant do with Brody?" . . . "A good Coach Bryant Story" . . . "Coach Bryant in the Movies". . . "If Coach Bryant was coaching, we would be scoring". I defend your right to have pride in the man, but there is no doubt that you guys carry hero worship to great lengths. That is fine. All heroes should have worshippers. We remember Coach McClendon with great fondness and respect, but Coach Bryant is never out of your minds. And that is a little creepy. But you wouldn't be Bammers otherwise. :grin:
