West Alabama New Year’s Eve Briefing

Good New Year's Eve Day Morning! It is Tuesday, December 31, 2024! The last day of an eventful year.

Tuesday Morning Observations:

It is game day, as the Crimson Tide gets a rematch of last year's College Football Playoff Overtime Semi-final loss to Michigan in the Rose Bowl at 11:00 this morning. Though the game is in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa and not the playoffs this year, it is a match of the top two three winningest college football teams of all time.

Michigan has accumulated 1,011 wins, Ohio State 975 and Alabama 974. (The Tide would be in second place if it had not had to vacate games during its probation before Nick Saban arrived).

Tide QB Jalen Milroe is quick to point out the team does not see the game as a chance for revenge but rather a chance to get better and reach the 10-win mark for the season.

Bama Coach Kalen DeBoer agreed, “Yeah, it's something that's really important to the guys. There's no question. They want to keep the streak alive there with 10-win seasons.

“We always talk in terms of really trying to even simplify it down beyond that and just the most important game is the next one, just like the next play is the most important one. That's where we're focused."

DeBoer lost to the Maze and Blue in the CFP National Championship Game. We will see how he approaches his own rematch today.

This Bama squad had the talent to be in the playoffs instead of a non-descript bowl game. Maybe it was the coaching change and different philosophy that combined to put UA on the outside-looking-in. But a post-mortem on the season is for another time. It is game day.

Both teams have opt-outs and injuries that will impact their play. The key will be intensity, something Bama lacked at times this season. They have had a few weeks to practice and get better, as have the Wolverines so the outcome of this game will come down to two major points - pride and who wants it most?

ROLL TIDE

(Opinions expressed in Morning Briefing are those of the author and not necessarily those of the ownership, management, staff or sponsors of Townsquare Media Tuscaloosa.)

Weather:

You might say 2024 will blow out of here today. A relatively warm day in the upper 50s will be accompanied by west-northwest winds that will pick up through the day as a cold front moves through with gusts from 25-30 MPH possible at times.

That cold front will push through much colder overnight lows with temperatures dropping into the mid 30s.

Next week we could be looking at a flirtation with some type of wintry precipitation. There could be flurries Monday, but any heavier snow would be the end of next week. We will have more on that as we get closer, and models come into more accuracy.

The Forecast:

Get our free mobile app

The most violent year in Tuscaloosa’s recent history got worse last night. A shooting at a corner store and deli in the 3000 block of 20th street took the life of a male. It is the 21st homicide in city limits the year, 28^th in the county as a whole. Investigators have released no further information at this point.

California Woman Dies in Bibb County ATV Crash

31-year-old Zelina R. Rosales, of San Diego CA, was fatally injured when the 2016 Can-Am Commander ATV she was operating left the roadway and struck a ditch Sunday in Bibb County. A passenger on the ATV was transported to Bibb Medical Center.

New Year's Eve Safety

New Year's Eve celebrations of all type will be going on across West Alabama as we countdown to 2025 tonight. But authorities caution about celebrating safely.

ALEA Troopers, municipal police and county sheriff's deputies will be out in force in an attempt to keep drunk drivers off the road. ALEA will have checkpoints set up at various locations on state highways to get inebriated drivers off the road.

Law enforcement advises:

• Do not drink and drive. Have a designated driver, call a driving service, or call a cab.
• Wear your seatbelt.
• If you are driving, put your cell phone away.
• Drink water and stay hydrated throughout the night.
• Be sure to eat something beforehand if you plan to drink
• Be aware of your surroundings.
• Do NOT shoot firearms of any type in the air in celebration. Those bullets must come down somewhere. Innocent people are killed and wounded every year by celebratory fireworks.

Area fire departments caution about safe use of fireworks. Fireworks usage is illegal in Tuscaloosa, Northport and most other municipalities but they can be fired off in the county. Safety tips involving fireworks include:

• Only use fireworks outdoors.
• Detonate fireworks at least 200 feet away from any structures, vehicles, and trash.
• Never operate fireworks while impaired.
• Keep a hose or water bucket handy in case of fire.
• Use fireworks as intended. Never try to combine two different fireworks, because you could be in for more than you bargained for.
• Never relight a “dud” firework. Wait 20 minutes, then soak it in a bucket of water.
• Watch fireworks displays from a safe distance.
• Don’t allow anyone under the age of 12 to use fireworks of any type.
• Never try to substitute homemade fireworks or illegal explosives.
• Make sure pets are safe and away from fireworks.

If worse comes to worst and you get burned by a firework:

• If clothes are on fire, remember to stop, drop, and roll on the ground to smother the fire.
• Do not pick up or touch any burning debris.
• Cool the burn for up to 10 minutes with water.

Sawyerville Cleaning-up

Recovery continues today after some 17 homes in Hale County, mostly in the Sawyerville Community, received damage from last Saturday night's severe weather. The National Weather Service in Birmingham believes the widespread nature of the damage indicates the damage resulted from hurricane-force straight-line winds.

"A lot of out buildings destroyed and barns, agricultural stuff and lots of trees down," said Hale County EMA Director Russell Weeden.

Four college football bowl games and the first of four CFP Playoff games are on the sports schedule today.

ReliaQuest Bowl
No. 11 Alabama vs. Michigan
11 a.m. CST | ESPN
Raymond James Stadium
Tampa, Florida

Sun Bowl
Louisville vs. Washington
1 p.m. CST | CBS
Sun Bowl
El Paso, Texas

Citrus Bowl
No. 15 South Carolina vs. No. 20 Illinois
2 p.m. CST | ABC
Camping World Stadium
Orlando, Florida

Texas Bowl
LSU vs. Baylor
2:30 p.m. CST | ESPN
NRG Stadium
Houston, Texas

College Football Playoff Quarterfinal Game (Fiesta Bowl)
No. 4 Penn State vs. 9 Boise State
6:30 p.m. | ESPN
State Farm Stadium
Glendale, Arizona

Alabama Has Chance for 10-win Season

Alabama is a 13 ½ point favorite to knock off Michigan in this morning’s Reliaquest Bowl in Tampa. Tide Coach Kalen DeBoer calls it one more chance for the Tide to prove itself. Kickoff is 11am.

You can hear the game from the Crimson Tide Sports Network on 95.3 The Bear, Tide 100.9 and 1230AM WTBC.

Click TuscaloosaThread.com for the latest West Alabama news, sports and weather. Better yet, download the app.

Happy New Year!!! and ROLL TIDE!!