Kirk McNair

3 days ago | 247sports.com | Kirk McNair

Half a century after he played, John Hannah still considered the best of all timeVIPSecond of five partsFamed ABC college football broadcaster, Keith Jackson, named them "the big uglies," the men up front, offensive linemen. There is a theory -- and I subscribe to it -- that the difference in good teams and great teams is the offensive line. Another theory is that no one watches them except their mothers and girlfriends. Over the years much has changed in college football.

3 days ago | 247sports.com | Kirk McNair

Most former Alabama players as nominees for Position U squads played for Paul Bryant or Nick SabanVIPFirst of a seriesEarlier this month, Alex Scarborough took on an impossible task: listening to a full week of sports talk to learn something. No, just kidding. No one should try that. What he took a stab at was selecting a Mount Rushmore of Alabama football players. In case you didn't know, Mount Rushmore had room for only four Presidents.

1 week ago | 247sports.com | Kirk McNair

Greg Byrne has done good job of adding non-conference opponents to Alabama schedule, but it could be betterVIPEarlier we pointed out Alabama's future non-conference opponents that included the list of appealing home-and-home opponents, including Ohio State and Notre Dame as headliners, but also reasonable opponents in the likes of West Virginia, Oklahoma State, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Arizona, Minnesota, Virginia Tech, and Boston College.

1 week ago | 247sports.com | Kirk McNair

Lists are a part of off-season college athletics, notably college football. They frequently come in convenient increments, such as a one-year, 10-year, etc., and so it is that we have this year as the first quarter of the 21st century.

1 week ago | 247sports.com | Kirk McNair

CBS sports has an interesting accounting, listing returning starters for all Power Four teams plus Notre Dame. It is strictly a numbers game, quantity. While quality could be said to be more important, it also is subjective. Generally speaking, a high number of returning starters is a good thing. As the article notes, even though college athletics is now in an era of buying talented players, experience has to be built, as does the fit for cohesiveness.