"Burial Plots Near Coach Bear Bryant" read the bold print in the Birmingham News want ads. The fine print went on to say that nice caskets bearing the block letter "A" were also available in crimson or white. My friend and recently retired sports editor of the News, Clyde Bolton, had clipped it and mailed it to me. It was circled in ballpoint pen with the following inscription: "No Ga. Tech _ _ _'s Allowed!" Some sense of humor. Some friend.
Followers of Alabama Football have a mystical bond with their team, and a zealous fervor for Paul Bryant's legacy on the gridiron. The Alabama faithful have great difficulty believing anyone can extend that standard who has not experienced the baptism of the Bear. While I haven't thought about burial plots, I have walked that sacred soil sown with improbable football. While the path is treacherous, it is also fertile.
I believe Dennis Franchione will prosper in the crucible forged by Bryant. I trust track records. His teams have won big at five levels of football, most recently at TCU, where he repeatedly outcoached his high profile opponents.
I believe it because Alabama has top ten speed and talent. In the games we broadcast, Mike Golic, Michele Tafoya, and I watch warm-ups on the field. No team we saw was more physically imposing than Alabama last season.
I sense the faithful responding to Franchione, finally ready to support an outsider. When the Alabama alchemy of desire and belief envelopes this bunch of fans, a force is evoked that has no equal in the football world. I have seen the sheer energy of these people propel exhausted teams to last-second wins.
Most importantly, I know Alabama football players possess an intangible few human beings can grasp. Maybe it was there before Bryant. If not, he brought it with him. There is no word for it. One has to have been in the trenches and one has to have lived it to understand. They won't quit -- they will not quit.
Bryant-Denny Stadium's atmosphere on September 1 will be remembered for many years to come. The forcefield will be overpowering. The revival will begin. This Tide will roll...and roll.
ESPN college football analyst Bill Curry coached for 17 years in the college ranks, at Georgia Tech, Alabama and Kentucky.
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