NOTEBOOK: Toppers use music to prepare for Alabama crowd noise
Published 6:50 pm Thursday, September 8, 2016
Western Kentucky players will be ready for “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Dixieland Delight” on Saturday afternoon.
That’s because the Hilltoppers have heard Lynyrd Skynyrd’s tongue-in-cheek tribute to Neil Young and Alabama (the band’s) ode to a “home-grown country girl” all week at practice.
WKU has piped in loud music over the last few days to simulate the crowd noise it’ll face at 2:30 p.m. Saturday against No. 1 Alabama (the team).
“Sweet Home Alabama” and “Dixieland Delight,” both Bryant-Denny Stadium staples, have been repeated often. Other musical selections, all blasted at high volume, have included Billy Ray Cyrus’ “Achy Breaky Heart,” Lou Bega’s “Mambo No. 5” and the Baha Men’s “Who Let the Dogs Out.”
Offensive assistant Brian Brohm said it’s all an effort to get the Hilltoppers used to communicating when they can’t hear each other on the field.
“We definitely needed to do the crowd noise,” Brohm, WKU’s co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, said Tuesday. “… Going with the silent cadence because of the crowd noise is something you’ve always got to work on because of the atmosphere like that.”
The Tops played in front of 19,286 fans Sept. 1 in their season opener against Rice. By comparison, the Crimson Tide’s Bryant-Denny Stadium has a seating capacity of 101,821.
WKU made a trip there in 2012, losing 35-0 in front of an announced capacity crowd.
More recently, the 2015 Hilltoppers played at LSU last season, with a crowd announced at 101,561. However, the actual attendance was likely half that number due to inclement weather.
WKU underwent the same preparations before the trip to Tiger Stadium last year, blaring the LSU band’s “Tiger Rag” on repeat.
“Obviously I went (to Alabama) my freshman year and then playing at LSU last year, you can’t hear a thing,” said left tackle Forrest Lamp, a redshirt senior. “We’re trying to get some of the younger guys used to the noise.”
Coach Jeff Brohm said Thursday that preparing for crowd noise is “always a chore,” but something the Toppers must do before facing the biggest crowd they’ll see all season.
“It’s going to be loud,” Brohm said. “We’ve prepared for it. I think we’re ready for it.
“At the same time we’ve got to be really locked in, really concentrate and know that a lot of things are on the silent count. People have to really pay attention and not allow the defense to get them to jump offsides and create some penalties that are unnecessary. It’ll be a chore, but hopefully we do well with it.”
Young Topper RBs ‘as prepared as they can be’ for ‘Bama
Quinton Baker was a senior this time last year at Ashland Blazer High School. Glasgow native Marquez Trigg was a scout team player.
Now the running backs Baker and Trigg might be forced into action Saturday against the defending national champions.
Redshirt sophomore D’Andre Ferby injured his shoulder in the opener against Rice. Jeff Brohm said Monday he’s “not optimistic” that Ferby – the main complement to starting running back Anthony “Ace” Wales – will be able to play against Alabama.
If Ferby can’t go, then the freshman Baker (nine carries, 42 yards against Rice) and redshirt freshman Trigg (one carry, one yard) will be called upon to lessen the rushing load on Wales.
“Sometimes they’ve got to learn by being in the fire and that can happen this game,” Brohm said. “But I think it’ll be a good experience for them.
“They’re as prepared as they can be. They’ve worked hard. We’ve got to help them out as much as we can to mentally know what to do and they’ve got to go out there and play hard.”
Tide CB Humphrey: Alabama can’t take Toppers lightly
Alabama coach Nick Saban has spent his week praising WKU. He said Wednesday his team had to avoid “arrogance” in thinking it could beat the Hilltoppers on Saturday without taking practice seriously throughout the week.
Crimson Tide cornerback Marlon Humphrey echoed his coach’s statements, saying Alabama players aren’t looking past WKU.
Humphrey told AL.com that the Topper offense does “a lot of things we are going to really watch a lot of extra film for.”
WKU leads the nation in yards per play (9.98) after the first week of the college football season. Humphrey and his fellow defenders will be tasked with slowing down a Hilltopper passing attack that gashed Rice for 552 yards.
“They’re not your typical Western Kentucky team,” the sophomore Humphrey said. “I definitely think they are pretty much a top team, so we can’t take them lightly.”
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