The Crimson Column presented by Mercedes-Benz
4/25/2019 10:43:00 AM | General
Baseball and Softball to Host SEC Series this Weekend
Both our baseball and softball teams will be in action this weekend at home with baseball hosting LSU and softball welcoming in Kentucky. The series with the Tigers gets underway Friday at 6 p.m. with our annual Night at the Joe, and continues Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. First pitch for softball on Friday night against the Wildcats is set for 6:30 p.m., followed by an 8 p.m. start on Saturday and 2 p.m. first pitch on Sunday. Lots of giveaways and great weather in the forecast, so come on out and join us in Tuscaloosa!
NFL Draft Begins Tonight
The 2019 NFL Draft begins tonight in Nashville, and we look forward to hearing lots of familiar names being called throughout the three-day event. Last year, we had a program and SEC record 12 selections, bringing our total over the last 10 years to 77 draftees.
Hemphill and Fouts Finalists for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year
Congratulations to Bailey Hemphill and Montana Fouts for being named finalists for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year. Both have been tremendous competitors for the Crimson Tide this season and are certainly deserving of this national recognition.
Women's Golf Selected to Compete in NCAA Golf Championships
Our women's golf team will be making its 14th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Golf Championships, entering this year's field as a No.10 seed. We were selected to compete in the Auburn Regional, which takes place May 6-8 at the Saugahatchee Country Club.
Crimson Choice Awards
The Alabama Student-Athlete Advisory Committee hosted the 2019 Crimson Choice Awards last week and once again it was an amazing event focused on honoring Alabama Athletics excellence. The Bama Theatre was an elegant venue as we celebrated the students-athletes not just for their excellence in competition, but also in the classroom, as leaders and as vital members of the community at large. A huge shout out to ESPN's Laura Rutledge, who served as emcee for the night, and of course everyone in SAAC who worked so hard to make the night the success it was.
SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll
The Southeastern Conference released its Winter Academic Honor Roll this week and Alabama had 66 student-athletes earn the honor across five sports. We were second in the SEC among teams that don't sponsor equestrian and fifth overall. Also, we led the league in men's basketball honors with eight and men's swimming and diving with 21. Congratulations to all our honorees and good luck to all our student-athletes as we head into finals next week.
Bama Blitz Raises $69,714
I want to take a moment to thank the 262 donors who contributed $69,714 during the second annual Bama Blitz on April 10 and 11. The generosity of these donors exceeded our goal of fully funding an annual athletics scholarship by more than $20,000 during the one day, eight hours, and 31 minutes of the online giving event. I also want to express a special thanks to Jerry Duncan '67 and Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa, Inc., whose generous matching gifts were instrumental in our success. You can view the campus-wide Bama Blitz results at bamablitz.ua.edu.
As Bama Blitz concluded, so did We Are UA – the University's seven-week faculty and staff giving campaign. Each day, every one of our Athletics staff members invests their time, talent and energy into developing our student-athletes. Through We Are UA, 118 of our full-time staff members chose to go above and beyond by supporting UA by making a charitable gift. I am grateful for their generosity and proud of the example of philanthropy they are setting for our student-athletes.
University Spotlight
The University of Alabama ranks second among public universities and fifth among all universities nationally in enrollment of National Merit Scholars for 2018 enrollees. Alabama enrolled 185 National Merit Scholars this year, bringing our total number currently enrolled on campus to 614!
#RollTideFriday
This week, we're featuring a series of photos submitted by Pamela Roberts and friends from their travels across Italy.
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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