Saban Sighting

Nick Saban visits North Forest’s football program

Nick Saban visits North Forest’s football program
Nick Saban and Clifton Terrell Vype

Originally appeared on Vype.com

As a high school football player if there’s any college coach you want looking at you it’s Nick Saban.

After winning his sixth national championship a few weeks ago, he’s now considered arguably the greatest college football coach of all-time.

Saban came down to North Forest High School recently with his eyes set on junior offensive tackle Javonne Shepherd and sophomore receiver Demond Demas.

“Saban didn’t get to meet with them,” Clifton Terrell, North Forest’s head coach said. “But he told me that Alabama wanted to offer both of them scholarships.”

Saban’s time on North Forest campus was spent by watching film on Shepherd and Demas plus talking with coaches and the school principal.

The back story of Shepherd and Demas getting recruited by Alabama is that the two were brought to Saban’s attention from a new assistant coach that was once recruiting Shepherd and Demas from a different school.

The assistant coach saw Shepherd and Demas' talent at a football camp and has been trying to recruit them ever since.

Once the assistant coach made the switch over to Alabama, he kept urging Saban to take a look at the two players.

Other programs that have passed through North Forest recently have been Texas A&M and the University of Houston. Ole Miss and Tennessee are scheduled to come to the school in weeks ahead.

Though Saban was only offering Shepherd and Demas a scholarship it was definitely inspiring for the other players to see him on campus.

“I hope this encourages all the players to keep working hard,” Terrell said. “As coaches we’re just trying to keep them focus and make sure we don’t let them fail and do anything to lose the opportunities they’re being blessed with.”

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The Mariners host the Astros Friday night. Composite Getty Image.

The Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners return from the All-Star break with no time to ease in. Instead, the two top teams in the American League West jump straight into a three-game clash at T-Mobile Park that could shape the tone of the division race as the second half gets underway.

Houston enters the weekend at 56-40, holding a five-game edge over Seattle and holding off a division that refuses to go quietly. The Astros stumbled into the break with a 1-5 homestand, but their body of work across the first half, especially offensively, still makes them the standard in the West. Friday marks the eighth meeting between the clubs this year, with Houston currently holding a slight 4-3 edge in the season series.

The Astros hand the ball to lefty Brandon Walter (1-2, 3.98 ERA), a name that’s quietly become more relevant in a rotation still trying to stabilize. Walter has walked just two batters across his first 40 2/3 innings and carries a tidy 1.008 WHIP into Friday’s matchup. With the Astros still without Yordan Alvarez, Jeremy Peña, and Jake Meyers, they’ll need pitching to hold serve until reinforcements arrive, or deals are made.

The Mariners will counter with their ace, right-hander Luis Castillo (6-5, 3.41 ERA), who has been Seattle’s most consistent arm. Castillo has 93 strikeouts and has historically pitched well at home, where the Mariners are 25-21 this season. He’ll look to neutralize a Houston offense that, while banged up, is still dangerous, particularly when the ball leaves the yard. The Astros are 21-6 in games when they hit two or more home runs.

Jose Altuve has been on a tear, going 16-for-37 over his last 10 games with four homers and 14 RBIs. He’s part of an Astros lineup that ranks ninth in OPS and first in batting average on the year. Isaac Paredes continues to provide pop with a team-best 19 home runs, and the team as a whole is hitting .269 over its last 10 games. But pitching has wobbled a bit lately, posting a 4.60 ERA in that same span.

Seattle, meanwhile, comes in having won six of 10, outscoring opponents by 17 runs across that stretch. Cal Raleigh continues to be a force in the middle of the order with 38 home runs and 82 RBIs, while J.P. Crawford has quietly sparked the lineup with a .341 average and six RBIs in his last 10 contests. The Mariners are also getting healthier on the mound, and their rotation,once thin, is now a looming threat.

It’s only July, and the cliché says it’s just another series. But with the trade deadline two weeks away and the division gap sitting at five games, both teams understand what this weekend could mean. A Seattle sweep tightens the race dramatically. A Houston series win could widen the gap enough to change the calculus in the front office war rooms.

The stakes are high, the rosters aren’t at full strength, and the calendar is only getting shorter. That’s the recipe for a classic Astros-Mariners showdown.

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Mariners -134, Astros +113; over/under is 7 1/2 runs

Here's an early look at the Astros lineup for Game 1!

 

What stands out? Cam Smith is back in the two-spot with Christian Walker hitting cleanup. He's followed by DH Victor Caratini, Yainer Diaz (C), Taylor Trammell (CF), Mauricio Dubon (SS), and Brice Matthews at second base.

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