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5/3/2018 12:39:00 PM | General
Big Commencement Weekend for the Crimson Tide
It will be another big weekend in Coleman Coliseum for the Crimson Tide with more than 100 of our past and present student-athletes taking part in The University of Alabama commencement ceremonies. That total includes 24 All-Americans, four CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, two NCAA champions and Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry. In addition to 87 undergraduate and 17 master's degrees, our spring tally includes women's track and field alum Devon Romero, who earned her doctorate in counselor education. This weekend highlights the fulfillment of the primary goal we have for all our student-athletes, and that is to earn a degree that helps them go out and lead successful and productive lives in the world at large.
Baseball and Softball Host Weekend Series
Our baseball and softball teams will be in action in Tuscaloosa this weekend, hosting three-game series with Mississippi State and Texas A&M, respectively. First pitch for baseball is at 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. on Sunday, while softball gets started at 7 p.m. on Friday, 12 p.m. on Saturday and 1:30 on Sunday. Hope to see you there!
Football has Record Number of Draft Selections
Alabama had 12 former student-athletes selected in the 2018 NFL Draft, which is both a school and an SEC record for most selections in a draft. In addition, five more members of our 2017 national championship team signed free agent contracts following the conclusion of the draft. Congratulations to Minkah, Da'Ron, Rashaan, Calvin, Ronnie, Da'Shawn, Anthony, JK, Shaun Dion, Bradley, Bo, Joshua, Tony, Levi, Robert, Cam and J.C.!
NCAA Selections for Men's and Women's Golf and Men's Tennis
Congratulations to our men's and women's golf teams and our men's tennis team for earning bids to their respective NCAA championships. Our women's golf and men's tennis teams will both be traveling to Tallahassee, Florida for regional action, which gets underway for women's golf, the No. 1 seed in the region, on Monday, May 7 and runs through Wednesday, May 9, while men's tennis is scheduled to take on Tulane in the first round on Friday, May 11. Men's tennis will also be represented in the NCAA singles and doubles championships as junior Mazen Osama was chosen as a top 16 national seed, earning him All-America honors, while he and sophomore Edson Ortiz were selected to the doubles field of 32. Our men's golf team is headed to Stockton, California as the No. 2 seed in the regional that is scheduled to run Monday, May 14 through Wednesday, May 16.
Carrigan Fain Receives U.S. State Department's Fulbright Award
Senior softball student-athlete Carrigan Fain recently earned the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student Program Award from the U.S. State Department. With that, she will travel abroad and teach English during the 2018-19 academic year. Recipients of this award are selected on academic and professional achievement, record of service and leadership potential. Job well done, Carrigan!
Football Partial Plans on Sale May 15
We will have two different football ticket partial plans available for purchase beginning May 15. The six game plan will include a ticket to Arkansas State, Texas A&M, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi State and The Citadel, while the four game plan includes Arkansas State, Missouri, Mississippi State and The Citadel.
Study Breaks During Exams
As we're in the midst of exams week, I would like to highlight the job our Life Skills (@BamaLifeSkills) staff and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (@UA_SAAC) have done to help boost our student-athletes' moods with their Encouragement Initiative, providing different treats, including ice cream and the like, at Bryant Hall for study breaks. Every little bit helps this time of year!
Emerging Tide Leaders Academy Year End Event
Our DRIVE for Success (@TideDRIVE) hosted the Emerging Tide Leaders Academy year-end event last week, and we're thankful to Scott Wozniak for joining us and sharing his inspirational message with our student-athletes. A leadership consultant who spent eight years working with Chick-fil-A's management team at its headquarters, Wozniak shared learned practices of great leaders to everyone involved in our leadership academy.
Crimson Tide Scholarship Fund
As I mentioned earlier, it is an exciting weekend at the Capstone as we celebrate the success of over 100 student-athletes receiving degrees during Commencement. During this time, I also want to recognize those who contribute to the Crimson Tide Scholarship Fund (CTSF) in support of these outstanding student-athletes. When you make your gift to the CTSF, you are helping to provide these young men and women with the opportunity to earn their degrees and make a positive difference in our communities. Thank you to everyone who has supported the educational goals of our graduating seniors through your philanthropic contributions. If you would like more information about how to make a gift to the CTSF in support of scholarships for our student-athletes, please visit www.crimsontidefoundation.org. Congratulations again to our graduates!
University Spotlight
Pat Cassity enrolled at The University of Alabama during the summer of 1947 and now, seven decades later, she will walk across the stage to receive her diploma. Her story is certainly one of determination, but it also is a great example of the amazing services, in this case the Back to Bama program, UA has to offer all of its students.
#RollTideFriday
This week, we are featuring a few of the best young Tide fans we've seen on #RollTideFriday. First, we have Alexander, who even has his bear decked out in Alabama football gear, and next, Annie and Ellie in their matching crimson and white.
Remember to use the hashtag #RollTideFriday in your social posts and tweet your photos to me at @Greg_Byrne. We will select two photos to feature in each blog and add even more to our #RollTideFriday Fan Hub.
Upcoming Schedule of Events
View the list of upcoming events, broadcast information, start times and stat links on our composite calendar. (Note: All times are listed in Central Time.)
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