Ranking The SEC Traditions - Up First, the University of Alabama

I've been meaning to do my own version of this for a while now. Everytime I attend or watch a Tennessee game, I am pleased to take in the traditions of other schools as the pagentry surrounding the football game itself is one of the biggest draws for the SEC. Every school has unique traditions of their own, and many traditions are shared, just in different ways or formats.

So, I'm gonna take on the daunting task of ranking them as impartially as my Orange blood will allow. I won't be including Tennessee's since they would obviously be number one coming from me.

Home of the best traditions in college football. Obviously.

Here are the categories. They are worth 10 points a piece, and the rankings will be total team score with a maximum of 100. I'll rank one school at a time as my own time permits, and then do a final tally and compilation once everyone has been ranked.

Categories are:

1. Stadium - General beauty, capacity, perceived loudness, and any nicknames or traditions therein.
2. Fans - Type of fans and loyalty primarily influence this ranking.
3. Mascot - Intimidation factors heavily in this one. Live mascots get bonus points.
4. Uniforms - Are they hideous or not?
5. Tailgating - Does it exist? How much fun is it? This one may be difficult for me since I've never been to an away game.
6. Fight songs - Speaks for itself really
7. Post-game traditions after a win - What happens after the home team wins?
8. All-time greats - Who were some of the great players from the school's history?
9. Team nickname - This is based on orginality and intimidation as well as my own personal feelings.
10. All-time program success - How often do they and have they won?

So, with that out there, here the rankings, in my opinion as a Tennessee fan, and in alphabetical order:

University of Alabama

1. Bryant-Denny Stadium - Kind of a rough start for Bama. The stadium is somewhat bland, but it does gain some symmetry from the circular ramps on either side. Current capacity is in the 93,000 range with an expansion underway to bring it up to 100,000. The stadium doesn't have a rep for being all that loud, but acoustics probably play in to that. Stadium Rating - 4

2. Fans - Alabama fans generally have a reputation as being a little rednecky in a trailer park kind of way, and very, very "deep south-ish". About the best way I can put that. What they lack in common sense, non-redneckness, and teeth, they more than make up for it with their fierce loyalty. Overall knowledge of football in general and other teams is pretty limited given their crimson-colored glasses and devotion to Bama. That devotion goes a long way for their score though. Fan Rating - 8

3. Mascot - An elephant. Not bad actually. I like elephants, and their logo is actually pretty fierce:

However, they have no live mascot, which would have given them a 20 out of 10, and their gameday mascot is a rather goofy looking thing named "Big Al"

This takes away from the intimidation factor and lowers their score a bit. Mascot Rating - 7

4. Uniforms - One of the classics of college football. Crimson unis with numbers on the helmets. That's it. If it wasn't for this uniform's place among the classics, the score would be terrible given the overall plain look. Color is good though. Uniform Rating - 7

5. Tailgating - Every school has tailgating in some format. Some are known for it, some only make an attempt as an excuse to chug copious amounts of alcohol prior to gametime. Bama seems to be more of the later type. There's rumors of good barbeque at Dreamland, but that's not really a tailgate. Tailgate Rating - 3

6. Fight Songs - I'll admit, "Yea Alabama" is quite catchy and one of the more classic fight songs, but the words could use some updating as I'm not sure Bama is looking towards the Rose Bowl each year anymore. Have a look and listen:

Other than the words, the song would receive a fairly high grade. As it is, Fight Song Rating - 7

7. Post-Game Traditions - This is one I only know of one thing Bama does. They sing/chant a tune/bunch-of-non-sensical-words in the form of "Rammer Jammer". This is basically a chant consisting of a bunch of words and sounds thrown together that only serves a purpose in order to get them to the ending line of "we just beat the hell out of you". Classy and topical. Especially when they win by a last second FG or something. Post-Game Tradition Rating - 3

8. All-Time Greats - Easily a high scoring spot for Bama. Just in the College Football Hall of Fame alone you have: Paul "Bear" Bryant, Harry Gilmer, Bart Starr, Johnny Mack Brown, Johnny Cain, John Hannah, Frank Howard, Pooley Hubert, Lee Roy Jordan, Dixie Howell, Don Hutson, Vaughn Mancha, Johnny Musso, Joe Namath, Ozzie Newsome, Billy Neighbors, Fred Sington, Wallace Wade, Don Whitmire. On top of those, they have produced 96 All-Americans. All-Time Greats Rating - 10

9. Team Nickname - The Crimson Tide. Not all that intimidating and it inspires fans to wear old Tide detergent boxes and toilet paper rolls on their heads during games. It is a classic and unique, however, and was mentioned in the Steely Dan song, "Deacon Blues". Team Nickname Rating - 6

10. All-Time Success - It doesn't get much better than the success Alabama football has had down through the years. Alabama claims 12 National Championships, but the legitimate number is more likely in the area of 4-5 given the back-dating they used to count some of those. I mean, a team with 2 losses isn't National Champs when there are undefeateds out there, no matter what the Dothan Times says. Add to that 21 SEC titles and 32 bowl wins though, and you've got the most successful team in the SEC. All-Time Success Rating - 10

Overall Score for the University of Alabama - 65

Up next, the University of Arkansas.

Disclaimer - I know you think your school deserves 10's at eveything, but these are my rankings and I call them how I see them. We all think our own school is the best at everything, but, if I completely left any traditions out, by all means let me know. Also, it's likely no school will have a 90+ score, or maybe even 80+, so just chill. It's all in fun!