Don'ta Hightower

ATLANTA — Someone compared Saturday’s Alabama-Florida game to a Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier fight, and in many ways, the SEC championship bout offered a similar storyline to the memorable Thrilla in Manila fight. Alabama was, indeed, Frazier: Stubborn, unyielding, relentless and respected in defeat.

Alabama lost this fight, 31-20, but no one will soon forget what the Tide did here in the Georgia Dome in a college football classic. They earned the respect of a nation eager to see the No. 1 team exposed. They answered every shot until the very end, when a relieved Tim Tebow leaped into Carl Johnson’s arms and shouted, “Let’s go!” at the raucous Gators crowd. The battle was over.

After that famous bout, Ali said, “Joe Frazier, I’ll tell the world right now, brings out the best in me. I’m gonna tell ya, that’s one (heck) of a man, and God bless him.” Florida’s players and coaches made similar remarks about Alabama.

“You’ve got to give credit where credit is due,” Florida coach Urban Meyer said. “That’s one of the best college football games I know I’ve ever been a part of. Alabama and Nick Saban — that was a dog fight. That was toughness. That was about checking your will.”

Unprompted, the forlorn Alabama players made several boxing analogies after the game.

“We both took punches. We both took shots,” running back Glen Coffee said. “And we both fought back.”

Alabama, the underdog with far less depth and speed, kept getting up. There were more than a few who thought, after Alabama started the game three-and-out and Florida marched down the field and scored so easily, that this would be the blowout people expected.

But the Tide roared back, getting a long catch from Julio Jones and a run from Coffee to tie the game 7-7. They came back from their first halftime deficit of the year, Mark Ingram scoring on a 2-yard touchdown run. They led, 20-17, in the fourth quarter.

“I really thought we had them on the ropes,” center Antoine Caldwell said.

Florida is a great champion. The Gators hit Alabama with option pitches, a shovel pass to the tight end, deep passes, direct snaps to world-class sprinters and, of course, lots of Tim Tebow. It was eventually too much.

Alabama never allowed a big play on the ground — Florida’s longest run was 14 yards — but the Gators, even without Percy Harvin, wore down the Tide. The blows took their toll.

“We were on the field for awhile,” safety Rashad Johnson said. “I don’t know if we were worn down. We might have been.”

Said Saban: “I think we kind of ran out of gas.”

The Tide also let their guard down a few too many times — Javier Arenas fielding a kickoff that was headed out-of-bounds, Don’ta Hightower’s facemask on Florida’s go-ahead touchdown drive and Marquis Johnson getting beat on a couple of deep passes. There were just enough mistakes to lose the game.

So now it’s time to determine Alabama’s legacy for the 2008 season. The Tide defied all expectations this season, winning with very little depth on defense, young running backs and a freshman receiver. They were the only school from a BCS conference to finish the regular season undefeated. No, they will not play for a national championship. They appeared broken in the locker room following the game.

But Saban, in what Rashad Johnson called a very emotional speech, attempted to remind them of what they did this season. One day, they’ll look back at this season and realize the run they made was improbable.

“I want our players not to hang their head,” Saban said. “They’ve got a lot to be proud of in terms of what they accomplished.”

Frazier made a famous comment after the Ali fight, saying, “Man, I hit him with punches that’d bring down the walls of a city. Lawdy, Lawdy, he’s a great champion.” Alabama did the same, committing just two penalties, turning the ball over just once, late in the game, and watching Jones making several incredible grabs. It wasn’t enough Saturday. But you know the Tide will get up. They will be back.

“Hopefully we’re bringing Alabama back,” Hightower said. “I think we’ll win a couple of national championships in a few years.”