Alabama News

EDITOR’S NOTE: Every day until Aug. 29, Creg Stephenson is counting down significant numbers in Alabama football history, both in the lead-up to the 2025 football season and in commemoration of the Crimson Tide’s first national championship 100 years ago. The number could be attached to a year, a uniform number or even a football-specific statistic. We hope you enjoy.

“Dual-threat” quarterbacks have been all the rage in recent college football, but one of the greatest in Alabama history played nearly 80 years ago.

Harry Gilmer, who wore No. 52, ran and passed his way into Crimson Tide immortality during the years immediately following World War II. Prior to the Nick Saban era, he was the only Alabama player who twice finished in the Top 5 in the Heisman Trophy balloting and the only one who was selected No. 1 overall in the NFL draft. (He remains the only player in Crimson Tide history to earn first-team All-SEC honors four times and to lead the team in passing yards four straight years.)

Gilmer was responsible for 52 touchdowns in his career — 29 passing, 19 rushing, two on punt returns and one each on a kickoff return and an interception return. That mark is now eighth in Crimson Tide history, but was first until first being surpassed by John Parker Wilson in 2008.

A Birmingham native who led Woodlawn High School to an undefeated record in 1943, Gilmer took advantage of temporarily relaxed NCAA rules during the war that allowed him to play on the varsity as a freshman at Alabama. Though technically the starting left halfback in the Crimson Tide’s Notre Dame box offense, he was the team’s primary passer and thus the equivalent of a modern quarterback.

At Alabama, Gilmer became famous for his “jump pass,” a skill he had developed in high school. His arm was purportedly so strong he could throw the ball 70 yards in the air.

“I never tried a pass in a regular game until my senior year at Woodlawn,” Gilmer told The Tuscaloosa News in 1978. “Of course, I used to pass the ball around in practice and in sandlot games, but until I shifted to left halfback, I never practiced seriously. I don’t know why I started to jump or leap nearly every time I passed. We had some halfbacks at Woodlawn who did it on a play designed by our coach, Malcolm Laney, so I guess I started jumping without realizing it.”

Alabama did not field a football team in 1943 due to war-time manpower shortages, but returned to the gridiron the following year. The 6-foot, 155-pound Gilmer was one of coach Frank Thomas’ “War Babies,” a group that also included fullback Lowell Tew and center Vaughan Mancha, a 23-year-old Merchant Marine veteran who had lost vision in one eye during a childhood accident.

Alabama went 5-2-2 in an abbreviated schedule in 1944, losing to Duke 29-26 in the Sugar Bowl. Gilmer went 8-for-8 for 142 yards with a touchdown pass in that game, causing famed sportswriter Grantland Rice to exclaim he was “the greatest college passer I ever saw.”

The 1945 season was a glorious one for Alabama, which finished 10-0 and outscored its opponents 430-80. The Crimson Tide rang up scores such as 55-0 over South Carolina, 60-19 over Kentucky and 71-0 over Vanderbilt, then finished things off with a 34-14 rout of Southern Cal in the Rose Bowl (a game in which Gilmer was named Most Valuable Player).

Alabama finished No. 3 in the polls that year, with fellow unbeaten Army — who, it must be said, had its pick of the best draft-eligible football players in the country in those days — claiming the national championship (Navy, whose only loss was to Army, ended up No. 2). Gilmer accounted for 21 touchdowns and nearly 1,500 yards combined rushing and passing, winning SEC Player of the Year and first-team All-America honors and finishing fifth in the Heisman Trophy balloting.

It was during the Nov. 3, 1945, blowout of Kentucky that Gilmer enjoyed arguably his greatest individual day — and one of the greatest in Alabama football history. He carried the ball for a whopping 215 yards on just six carries, including touchdown runs of 95 and 59 yards, plus an 8-yard touchdown pass to Rebel Steiner.

Alabama slipped back to 7-4 in 1946, as Thomas began to suffer from the heart and lung ailments that would cause him to step down following the season (and led to his eventual death in 1954 at age 55). Gilmer was still productive as a junior, leading the country in both interceptions (8) and punt return average (11.8 yards).

Coached by Harold “Red” Drew in 1947, the Crimson Tide shook off early-season losses to SEC rivals Tulane and Vanderbilt to win seven straight games before falling to Texas in the Sugar Bowl. Gilmer accounted for just seven touchdowns rushing and passing that season (though he did add a school-record 92-yard punt return for a touchdown vs. LSU), and was a second-team All-American and again finished fifth in the Heisman voting.

The No. 1 overall pick by the NFL’s Washington Redskins in 1946 (Alabama’s only one until Bryce Young in 2023), Gilmer played nine seasons in the league with Washington and Detroit and was a two-time Pro Bowler. He later served as Lions head coach for two seasons in the mid-1960s.

Gilmer was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1973 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1993. A frequent visitor to Tuscaloosa during his later years (he’d settled in St. Louis during a lengthy stint as quarterback coach for the NFL’s Cardinals), he died in 2016 at age 90.

Coming Friday: Our countdown to kickoff continues with No. 51, a special teams stalwart who survived tragedy during his Alabama career.

Dear Eric: At a recent family gathering pictures were made and then posted on social media. I had not seen them, but I did participate at the time. I don’t want my pictures posted for personal reasons and it causes mental distress seeing them. I don’t feel that I can ask for them to be removed without causing a rift in the family. I did post a brief comment that people should ask before posting and I would do the same. It was seen by the person, so I hope they removed them. I feel it may have been done for the wrong reasons as this person posted only flattering ones of themselves. Now a wonderful memory of the occasion will be ruined in my memories. Should people think before using others’ photos on social media?

– Social Dilemma

Dear Social: Short answer – yes. There are plenty of reasons that people may not want their photos posted – maybe it’s not an angle you like, maybe you want to preserve your privacy, maybe you don’t want just anybody knowing what you get up to in your spare time. It is always a good practice to ask before posting.

And it’s not rude or unseemly to ask that a photo be removed or to be edited out of a photo. Many social media platforms make it quite easy to crop a photo or even add a little emoji over the face of someone who’d rather not be in the photo. Plenty of people do that when posting family photos with kids in them, for instance.

It’s easy to think of social media as akin to a personal photo album – indeed, many social media companies want you to feel that way. But a photo album generally sits on the shelf and is only shown to a limited audience. Social media, even with privacy settings in place, is much more public. You can and should ask for what you need in this case.

Read more Asking Eric and other advice columns.

Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at [email protected] or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.

Dear Eric: My sister and brother-in-law live a couple of hours away. My wife and I get along with them but are not close, and we try to make an effort to see them when we are nearby (a couple times a year). We have a pre-school-age child, while they do not have kids. They are kind and generous to our child when they see him and bring him gifts from their travels when they do see him.

Our son has no cousins or family members that are close in age to him, so we try to encourage strong relationships with the adults around him. Recently, we didn’t answer our door when our family members dropped by, unannounced. We were in the backyard. They deposited some nice gifts by the front door and left, sending a text message of regret.

On its face, this gesture is considerate and appropriate. But we were truly disappointed. We don’t want our son to receive random gifts and material objects, we want him to know his aunt and uncle, have a bond with them, and associate any material gifts with them and their love. Our relatives have done this more than twice, so it’s a pattern.

It’s hard to know how to tell them that their kind gesture fell very short with us. Had they given us 15 minutes advance notice (or even called while on the doorstep), we could have seen them. Every response I imagine sounds ungrateful for their gifts. Is it too much to ask them to spend a little time with their nephew?

– Time Is Better Than Gifts

Dear Time: You’ve got a situation that’s almost worthy of an O. Henry story. But all is not lost. They have good intentions, as do you. And everyone is trying to be generous. That’s a great place from which to start.

Thinking generously about their actions, maybe they don’t want to bother you or presume that parents of young kids don’t have time to entertain. Working from that premise, you can start to proactively encourage them to behave differently when they visit.

Try saying something like, “we really hate to miss you; next time you’re coming by, just give us a call when you’re on your way. We’ll be happy to make a visit work. Seriously.” You can make it plain that you want them to build a relationship with your son and invite them to spend quality time with him. “It’s so important that our son knows you; can we set a date for a proper visit?”

Keep the focus on the future, as much as you can, rather than talking about the last fly-by visit. Sometimes people need explicit invitations. But it seems their hearts are in the right place so, with a little guidance, their actions will follow.

Read more Asking Eric and other advice columns.

Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at [email protected] or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.

Will Robertson, Jr. needs a little help writing a song.

Who better to turn to than Luke Bryan?

In the latest episode of “Duck Dynasty: The Revival,” Willie Robertson tasks his son, Will Robertson, Jr., with writing a song for a live recording at the family’s LO Worship Night.

Bryan, who is Robertson’s partner in his deer hunting brand, Buck Commander, makes a cameo on the popular reality show with some advice.

“So Will, you gonna start messing with songwriting?” Bryan asks the younger Robertson. “My advice for songwriting is just, you know, I’ve always said just get out there and live.”

He also encouraged Robertson Jr. to find a specific place to write his music.

“Hey, feel lucky that you’re a good enough person where your parents want you back,” Bryan jokes. “We’re at a phase where we don’t know where we want our children right now.”

Bryan wasn’t the only one to chime in.

The Robertsons also got a visit from Tyler Farr, who sat down with the younger Robertson and started working on a song.

“There’s a big draw of family back home,” Robertson Jr. told Farr. “Abby and I both have family in West Monroe. Everybody is kinda wanting to pull us back. So I’m having a hard time in navigating that.”

“I mean, that sounds like a country song,” Farr encourages him.

Before meeting with the country music stars, the younger Robertson made it clear he had no idea what he was doing.

“I’ve never written a song in my life, ever,” he said. “… Do you know how hard it is to write a song? Sometimes it takes years to write a song.”

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I often hear someone say something along the lines of, “We politely ask that you refrain from …” or “We politely decline to accept …” Silly question, but this doesn’t make sense to me: If you’re asking or doing something politely, should you actually SAY you are doing that thing politely?

GENTLE READER: The correct form is, “We respectfully ask (or decline),” which Miss Manners would normally agree is silly, except that it is not easy to convey respect in very few words.

Please send your questions to Miss Manners at missmanners.com, by email to [email protected], or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

Up, up and Away

It won’t be long until commercial space launches become more frequent than some people leaving the house.

The Federal Aviation Administration released a new report with launch statistics, and AL.com’s John R. Roby reports that, in 2024, space launches hit an all-time high. Which you may have expected. But you might not be aware of these numbers: There were 142 operations throughout the year by seven companies. Most launches are for satellite deployments.

The agency believes that the U.S. could be sending up more than a launch a day by the year 2034.

As goes the space industry, so goes North Alabama, the home of manufacturing and integration operations for United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin, which both sent payloads into orbit just last month.

Of those 142 launches in 2024, 118 were performed by SpaceX. Blue Origin had three launches and ULA had two.

Restarting repair work

Birmingham’s water board voted to restart work on the leaky Lake Purdy Dam, just a few days after stopping it, reports AL.com’s Joseph D. Bryant.

The decision to forge ahead came in response to some pretty blunt risk assessment. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers classified it as high hazard based on the danger of a breach.

Last week, Arcadia engineer Patrick Flannelly told the board that a dam failure would affect thousands of home and possibly kill people.

The first phase of the project will cost $28 million. Indeed, the cost issue is what led to pausing the project.

Alabama’s got talent

The Birmingham Youth & Young Adult Fellowship Choir became one of 10 acts to receive a Golden Buzzer on “America’s Got Talent,” reports AL.com’s Patrick Darrington.

That means the act impressed one judge so much that it passes right into the live round without being facing all the judges.

The choir received the Golden Buzzer from judge Simon Cowell.

The group formed in 2015. It knocked out Cowell with a rendition of “Joyful, Joyful Lord We Adore Thee” infused with some hip hop.

A lot of toilet paper

Former NFL quarterback Eli Manning was in Auburn on Tuesday for an event billed as the setting of a new Guinness World Record, according to the Auburn Plainsman and other news outlets.

Whether or not it passes the Guinness folks to be a legitimate record, reports indicate that a crowd of hundreds tossed thousands of rolls of toilet paper into the tree limbs.

The Montgomery Advertiser reports that professor Keith S. Hébert presented Manning with a plaque from Gov. Kay Ivey. He announced that a record number of 7,125 rolls of TP were chucked into two trees and that it was a world record.

The reason behind staging such a rolling of Toomer’s Corner? Manning was featuring the Auburn tradition for his ESPN show, “Eli’s Places.”

Quoting

“The Texas floods were caused by natural weather dynamics—not human interference or weather modification efforts. It was not caused by Democrats or Republicans.”

More Alabama News

Born on This Date

In 1955, former Major League Baseball player Willie Wilson of Montgomery.

The podcast

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My parents decided to throw us a housewarming party — the day after we moved our family of five into a new home. They invited some people around town who’d known me as a kid. They also invited my friends, and then asked them to invite more people. And they brought their own snacks.

We had been cleaning the apartment we had moved out of, and still needed to put up curtains and assemble beds in the new place. The guests were polite, but did not help us unpack, except for my brother, who helped me with my daughter’s bed. Was there a polite way I could have asked these unexpected guests to leave so we could continue working?

GENTLE READER: Trying to explain to guests that, while it is true they were invited to your new home, you are not responsible for making them feel welcome because you were unaware an invitation had been sent is a bit like trying to explain to the police that, although you admit to driving the getaway car, you had no idea your friend intended to rob the bank.

Your audience will be skeptical — if not outright hostile — and you cannot rely on the people who know the truth to back up your story.

Miss Manners says this to encourage you to pay greater attention to your parents’ plans in the future, in case you missed an earlier opportunity to squelch this one. By the time everyone had arrived, the most you could do politely was look so tired and overwhelmed that the guests decamped voluntarily — or pitched in.

Please send your questions to Miss Manners at missmanners.com, by email to [email protected], or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

Dear Annie: My husband has been coaching our 8-year-old son’s soccer team this season. At first, I thought it would be a great bonding experience for them. Our son is an active, sweet kid who used to spend hours in the yard practicing his kicks and counting down the days until the next game. But now, that excitement is gone — and I think I know why.

My husband is a very intense coach. He shouts directions from the sidelines and gets visibly frustrated when the boys mess up, and after every game, he breaks down what went wrong play by play. He even critiques our son in the car ride home. He says he’s “just being honest” and that kids need to learn discipline. But I’ve seen our son’s confidence drop. He’s gone from loving soccer to asking if he can skip practice.

He told me last week, “I don’t think I’m good at soccer anymore. Dad gets mad when I mess up.” My heart broke hearing that. This is supposed to be a recreational league — a place for kids to have fun, learn and grow — but it’s become high-stress under my husband’s watch.

I’ve tried to talk to him about backing off a little, but he gets defensive. He says the boys need structure and that he’s trying to prepare them to succeed in life. I understand his intentions, but I’m worried his style is doing more harm than good.

How do I help him see that his approach may be crushing our son’s spirit — without turning this into a bigger conflict between us? — Sideline Mom With a Heavy Heart

Dear Heavy Heart: Your concerns are valid, and your instincts as a mother are spot-on. At 8 years old, kids should be playing sports because they enjoy them — not because they’re afraid of disappointing their coach, especially when that coach is also their dad.

Your husband may believe he’s helping by pushing the team to be better, but what he may not realize is that his approach could be discouraging the very child he wants to inspire. When a child who once loved soccer starts wanting to quit, that’s a sign something is off.

I encourage you to talk to your husband again, but this time from a place of shared love for your son. Show him this letter. Let him know you admire his dedication, but remind him that building confidence and joy in the game is more important than winning. Sometimes the most valuable lessons in sports aren’t about performance; they’re about resilience, teamwork and simply having fun.

Keep standing up for your son’s emotional well-being. He’s lucky to have a mom who sees the big picture.

Read more Dear Annie and other advice columns.

“How Can I Forgive My Cheating Partner?” is out now! Annie Lane’s second anthology — featuring favorite columns on marriage, infidelity, communication and reconciliation — is available as a paperback and e-book. Visit Creators Publishing for more information. Send your questions for Annie Lane to [email protected].

We’re in the beginning of a Uranus transit, the middle of a solar journey and on the cusp of the full moon. Like the deer growing new antlers — velvety, tender and quickly branching — life has a potent, rising energy. Something is taking shape, even if it’s still soft and unfinished. What’s your Buck Moon premonition? Maybe it’s not a full vision, but a feeling you can almost name — sharp at the edges, still warm in the center.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). You’ve learned when to push and when to pause, and you have your finger on the button today. Guided by excellent inner timing, one tap starts a chain reaction. Trust yourself and let momentum carry you.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). You’ll notice what’s not being said — and it matters more than what is. There’s an opening here to ask a question no one else is asking. Your curiosity makes others feel seen and shifts the whole mood.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). There are those who give you just enough to keep your antennae up, tuned to the station of them. They send a familiar signal, faint but undeniably present. The chances of connection are real enough for you to wonder and slim enough to keep you spinning.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). There’s a scene you don’t want to play out again. Start there. Eliminate the unwanted and let what remains inspire a new kind of moment — honest, strange, beautiful or maybe all three. You deserve this loveliness.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You’ll get further by letting your instincts lead. Instead of weighing every decision, simply move where you’re needed. Focused generosity brings out your signature flair without forcing a single style choice.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). What looks like simplicity is actually an intricate feat of alignment. Pause to marvel at how many unseen elements had to cooperate for things to go smoothly. That awareness changes how you walk through the day.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Telling your story to a new audience unlocks a surprising twist. You’ll see your own life differently through their eyes, and the themes that rise up will point you to your next project, your next truth.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). You’re on a roll. Ideas keep bubbling. Don’t worry about the duds — they’ll fall away as you tend to the obvious winners. You don’t settle, and that’s what elevates you. Keep refining until it shines.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). It starts with one clear sentence, maybe two. You say what needs saying, and it unlocks the next development. Others have been thinking the same but weren’t brave enough to voice it. You’re transforming the atmosphere with your talk.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Your time is sacred. You knew this when you signed up to help, but this thing snowballed into more than expected. Still, you’ve learned something vital: you get to renegotiate. In drawing a boundary, there’s no shame — only wisdom.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). That wild spark inside doesn’t need a reason. Sometimes, rebellion is its own reward. Change the vibe, break a rule, wear something that screams. You’re rewriting your aesthetic — and it’s working. Your world takes on new heat.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). A feeling you couldn’t quite name is starting to take shape. Now that it has edges, you can do something with it — turn it into art, a conversation or your new rules. The moment you act, clarity flows in — after, not before.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (July 9). You’re tapped into the magic of timing this year. You’ll walk into the right place at the right moment on a regular basis, at least once a week. More highlights: Relationships deepen, even those you thought had reached their limit. You’ll be trusted with something sacred, and your care will be remembered. Your unusual work that’s been hard to place now gets the spotlight and the payment it deserves. Sagittarius and Scorpio adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 7, 11, 20, 38 and 44.

CELEBRITY PROFILES: Beloved everyman and two-time Oscar winner Tom Hanks is a Cancer through and through, radiating the compassion, emotional authenticity and enduring warmth the moonchildren are known for. His ability to anchor a story with heart and humanity has made him one of Hollywood’s most trusted leads for decades. Though a fixture in film, Hanks has also turned his talents toward producing and publishing, continuing to shape culture from behind the scenes.

Holiday Mathis’ debut novel, “How To Fail Epically in Hollywood,” is out now! This fast-paced romp about achieving Hollywood stardom is available as a paperback and e-book. Visit creatorspublishing.com for more information. Write Holiday Mathis at HolidayMathis.com.

In a truly joyful performance, the Birmingham Youth & Young Adult Fellowship Choir won a Golden Buzzer during Tuesday’s episode of ‘America’s Got Talent.’

Terry Crews, host of America’s Got Talent, posted the choir’s performance on X and congratulated the group.

The Birmingham group performed a rendition of ‘Joyful, Joyful Lord We Adore Thee’ infused with elements of hip hop.

The performance received tremendous applause from the audience and all of the judges gave a standing ovation.

Simon Cowell gave the Birmingham Youth Fellowship Choir the Golden Buzzer after thanking them for performing on the show.

”I can see and hear how much work went into this,” Cowell said.

“Every single one of you played the perfect part we had lead vocals, we had emotion. I’m so honored that you would come here on our 20th anniversary and in return I want to give you something.”

The choir’s director, Akheem Lee, said the group was started in 2015 as a way to give back to the community but it continued to grow after youth kept requesting to join the.

Lee told Cowell that the youth choir decided to audition for the show this year to demonstrate that Birmingham has talented individuals despite often being “last on the list when you think about cities in America.“

Lee said that the city has a tragic yet rich history and said that he grew up at the 16th Street Baptist Church, the church that was bombed in a 1963 white supremacy attack resulting in the death of four Black children.

“While that bombing was such a tragic situation it played such an instrumental role in bringing international attention to the civil rights struggle in America and Birmingham particularly,” Lee said.

“Sixty something years later the choir exists. So, we wanted the opportunity to show that Birmingham, Alabama has some talented young people and we want to do something great for the community.”

The choir is one of 10 acts that will be able to receive a Golden Buzzer during this season of ‘America’s Got Talent.’