The Gottfried Era At A Crossroads

Fans have been rather unhappy with Alabama’s performance during SEC, and rightfully so. After that pathetic performance in a 62-52 loss, Alabama now falls to 2-7 in SEC play. One more loss and Gottfried will still be stuck with only 3 winning records in SEC play. If you were wondering, Coach Mark Gottfried has been at Alabama since 1998-99. Currently, Gottfried’s SEC record stands at 84-84.

I have to admit, I found the idea for this on a BamaMag.com message board. You can also find this information at StatSheet.com. Let’s look at the team-by-team breakdown (make of it what you will):

SEC Teams	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	Full Record
	2-0	1-1	0-2	1-1	1-1	2-0	2-0	1-1	0-2	0-1	10-9
	0-3	1-1	1-1	1-1	1-1	2-0	2-0	2-0	0-2	1-0	11-9
	1-1	0-2	2-0	2-0	1-1	0-2	1-1	1-1	2-0	1-0	11-8
	1-1	1-1	1-1	1-1	1-1	1-1	3-0	1-1	1-1	0-0	11-8
	0-2	1-1	1-1	1-2	1-1	1-1	1-1	2-0	1-1	0-2	9-12
	0-1	0-1	0-2	1-0	0-1	0-2	0-2	1-0	0-1	0-1	2-11
	1-1	0-1	1-0	1-0	0-1	1-0	1-0	0-1	1-0	0-1	6-5
	1-0	0-1	1-0	1-0	0-1	0-1	0-1	1-1	1-1	0-1	5-7
	1-0	0-2	1-0	2-0	1-0	0-1	1-0	0-1	1-0	0-0	7-4
	0-1	1-0	0-1	2-0	1-0	2-0	1-0	1-0	0-1	0-1	8-4
	0-1	1-0	1-1	1-0	0-2	0-1	0-1	1-0	0-1	0-0	4-7

Don’t Expect A Lexington Victory

I try not to be a downer before the game even tips off, but it looks like our chances just got cut in half. Richard Hendrix is sick with the flu, which means he probably won’t be playing today. From Cecil Hurt of the Tuscaloosa News:

University of Alabama junior forward Richard Hendrix will not play against the Kentucky Wildcats at noon today, as he is suffering from the flu.

Hendrix, a 6-foot-9 forward from Athens, did make the trip with the team to Lexington, but did not travel on the team bus to Rupp Arena on Saturday morning.

Without his 19 points and 10.3 rebounds per game (both UA highs), Crimson Tide coach Mark Gottfried will likely start Yamene Coleman in Hendrix’s place. Freshman Justin Knox could also see significant time in Hendrix’s absence.

Alabama enters the game with a 13-10 overall record and a 2-6 mark in the SEC. Kentucky is 11-9 overall and 5-2 in the league. Tip-off is set for noon.