BeltwayVol
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2005
- Messages
- 1,441
- Likes
- 4
Alabama quarterback Brodie Croyle laughed Thursday when jokingly asked to address recent Internet rumors that he was injured during a summer hunting trip.
"I'm back safe and sound. I wasn't run over, shot at or kidnapped," Croyle said. "So I'm good to go."
Given Croyle's importance to the team and the upcoming season, Crimson Tide fans will take every assurance they can get about their senior quarterback's health.
Croyle, one of several Alabama players to address the media on Thursday afternoon, said he is fully healthy after suffering a season-ending knee injury three games into the 2004 season.
Croyle had passed for 534 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions before the injury and has been going through summer work without a knee brace.
"I hadn't thought about it," Croyle said. "I've been running wide open, taking my drops and doing everything. It's been the least of my worries. I plan on playing the season without (the brace) and hopefully it's just a past memory."
Croyle said Alabama's young receiving corps -- one that includes gifted sophomores Ezekial Knight, Keith Brown, Matt Caddell and D.J. Hall as well as junior leader Tyrone Prothro -- has matured in the offseason and should thrive in the fall.
"They've really stepped up and worked harder than any group I've seen since I've been here," Croyle said. "They definitely have the talent. We're looking for a big year from them. We're counting on them and if summer workouts mean anything, they've really stepped up to the plate."
Just as encouraging for Alabama's Southeastern Conference championship hopes, Croyle said running back Ken Darby has looked like his old self during voluntary, non-contact drills.
"He's been out there working on play fakes and handoffs and all that," Croyle said. "He looks as good if not better than he ever has. We'll all probably see the same Ken Darby if not a better one this year."
Darby, who replaced Ray Hudson midway through last season after Hudson suffered a season-ending knee injury, rushed for 1,062 yards on 219 carries before suffering an injury in a November loss at LSU. Darby played sparingly one week later in the loss to Auburn and in the Tide's Music City Bowl loss to Minnesota on New Year's Eve.
Darby's injuries, which included a hairline fracture of his pelvis, eventually required offseason hernia surgery.
On Thursday, Darby bragged about his improved physique -- he's up to 212 pounds of "positive weight, not fat-boy weight" -- and said he expects to be full-speed when Alabama opens fall camp next month and on the field when Middle Tennessee and the Crimson Tide open the season on Sept. 3 at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
"There really is no doubt in my mind," Darby said. "I've been running hard, doing certain things that I'll probably do on the field with the pads on. The only thing that's missing is I'm not dragging anybody or breaking tackles. I'm thinking that my base and my lower abs have gotten pretty strong. I'm kind of anxious to get out there myself and see how I really feel when I break out of a tackle or do a certain move in the hole.
"(Alabama's medical staff) think I'm doing pretty well. I've been doing good throughout the offseason rehab. They cleared me to work out with the team. I guess they gave me the 100 percent full-go. I have to check in with them every day after I get through working out or running and let them know how I'm feeling. There's no pain, just a little soreness. But that's part of it. I don't think I'm 100 percent, but I'm almost there."
Like Croyle, Darby said he can't wait for an opportunity to get back onto the field and pick up where he left off a year ago.
"That saddened me," Darby said, referring to missing most of the Tide's final two games. "That really motivated me. My goal is and it's my plan to come in and do everything I did last year, but better."
Darby said fellow running back Tim Castille, who underwent knee reconstruction after an October loss at Tennessee, also appears to be on schedule to play this fall.
"Tim looks pretty good," Darby said. "I think he'll be all right for this upcoming season. From just watching him run, I think he'll be all right. I don't really have any doubts about him."
Junior defensive tackle Jeremy Clark, a Daphne native, had minor knee surgery in February and said Thursday he's set for the upcoming season.
"My knee is practically 100 percent," Clark said. "I had a little procedure done in February, but I don't have any problems with my knee. I'm perfectly fine."
With Alabama seemingly healthy, expectations in and around the program are as high as they've been during the Mike Shula era. Most publications are picking LSU to win the SEC West, but many tab Alabama as a sleeper if the Tide can avoid injuries. The increased respect, however, isn't changing the way Alabama players are going through the summer or approaching the fall.
"We always tell the guys to stay out of the newspapers and magazines because that's not going to get us where we need to go," linebacker Demeco Ryans said. "Hard work is going to get us there."
"It doesn't change anything," said former Baldwin County standout Wallace Gilberry, a defensive end who has gained 15 pounds since last season to bulk up to 265. "We have the same mindset we had last year -- being the best in the nation. The accolades are great, and something to strive for, but as a defensive unit we want to be the best."
Croyle isn't worried about media expectations. He wants a championship to cement his Alabama legacy. He's suffered shoulder and knee injuries and has endured some embarrassing coaching changes and on-field losses. A ring would give him something to point to when his career ends after this season.
"Our senior class, we haven't won a ring and we don't want to be that class that came through here and doesn't have a ring to show for it," Croyle said. "Our group of seniors, we have something extra to play for."
"I'm back safe and sound. I wasn't run over, shot at or kidnapped," Croyle said. "So I'm good to go."
Given Croyle's importance to the team and the upcoming season, Crimson Tide fans will take every assurance they can get about their senior quarterback's health.
Croyle, one of several Alabama players to address the media on Thursday afternoon, said he is fully healthy after suffering a season-ending knee injury three games into the 2004 season.
Croyle had passed for 534 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions before the injury and has been going through summer work without a knee brace.
"I hadn't thought about it," Croyle said. "I've been running wide open, taking my drops and doing everything. It's been the least of my worries. I plan on playing the season without (the brace) and hopefully it's just a past memory."
Croyle said Alabama's young receiving corps -- one that includes gifted sophomores Ezekial Knight, Keith Brown, Matt Caddell and D.J. Hall as well as junior leader Tyrone Prothro -- has matured in the offseason and should thrive in the fall.
"They've really stepped up and worked harder than any group I've seen since I've been here," Croyle said. "They definitely have the talent. We're looking for a big year from them. We're counting on them and if summer workouts mean anything, they've really stepped up to the plate."
Just as encouraging for Alabama's Southeastern Conference championship hopes, Croyle said running back Ken Darby has looked like his old self during voluntary, non-contact drills.
"He's been out there working on play fakes and handoffs and all that," Croyle said. "He looks as good if not better than he ever has. We'll all probably see the same Ken Darby if not a better one this year."
Darby, who replaced Ray Hudson midway through last season after Hudson suffered a season-ending knee injury, rushed for 1,062 yards on 219 carries before suffering an injury in a November loss at LSU. Darby played sparingly one week later in the loss to Auburn and in the Tide's Music City Bowl loss to Minnesota on New Year's Eve.
Darby's injuries, which included a hairline fracture of his pelvis, eventually required offseason hernia surgery.
On Thursday, Darby bragged about his improved physique -- he's up to 212 pounds of "positive weight, not fat-boy weight" -- and said he expects to be full-speed when Alabama opens fall camp next month and on the field when Middle Tennessee and the Crimson Tide open the season on Sept. 3 at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
"There really is no doubt in my mind," Darby said. "I've been running hard, doing certain things that I'll probably do on the field with the pads on. The only thing that's missing is I'm not dragging anybody or breaking tackles. I'm thinking that my base and my lower abs have gotten pretty strong. I'm kind of anxious to get out there myself and see how I really feel when I break out of a tackle or do a certain move in the hole.
"(Alabama's medical staff) think I'm doing pretty well. I've been doing good throughout the offseason rehab. They cleared me to work out with the team. I guess they gave me the 100 percent full-go. I have to check in with them every day after I get through working out or running and let them know how I'm feeling. There's no pain, just a little soreness. But that's part of it. I don't think I'm 100 percent, but I'm almost there."
Like Croyle, Darby said he can't wait for an opportunity to get back onto the field and pick up where he left off a year ago.
"That saddened me," Darby said, referring to missing most of the Tide's final two games. "That really motivated me. My goal is and it's my plan to come in and do everything I did last year, but better."
Darby said fellow running back Tim Castille, who underwent knee reconstruction after an October loss at Tennessee, also appears to be on schedule to play this fall.
"Tim looks pretty good," Darby said. "I think he'll be all right for this upcoming season. From just watching him run, I think he'll be all right. I don't really have any doubts about him."
Junior defensive tackle Jeremy Clark, a Daphne native, had minor knee surgery in February and said Thursday he's set for the upcoming season.
"My knee is practically 100 percent," Clark said. "I had a little procedure done in February, but I don't have any problems with my knee. I'm perfectly fine."
With Alabama seemingly healthy, expectations in and around the program are as high as they've been during the Mike Shula era. Most publications are picking LSU to win the SEC West, but many tab Alabama as a sleeper if the Tide can avoid injuries. The increased respect, however, isn't changing the way Alabama players are going through the summer or approaching the fall.
"We always tell the guys to stay out of the newspapers and magazines because that's not going to get us where we need to go," linebacker Demeco Ryans said. "Hard work is going to get us there."
"It doesn't change anything," said former Baldwin County standout Wallace Gilberry, a defensive end who has gained 15 pounds since last season to bulk up to 265. "We have the same mindset we had last year -- being the best in the nation. The accolades are great, and something to strive for, but as a defensive unit we want to be the best."
Croyle isn't worried about media expectations. He wants a championship to cement his Alabama legacy. He's suffered shoulder and knee injuries and has endured some embarrassing coaching changes and on-field losses. A ring would give him something to point to when his career ends after this season.
"Our senior class, we haven't won a ring and we don't want to be that class that came through here and doesn't have a ring to show for it," Croyle said. "Our group of seniors, we have something extra to play for."
eace:
