SHREVEPORT, La. — Never one to be bashful, Alabama wide receiver DJ Hall stopped just short Thursday of issuing a personal challenge to Colorado cornerback Terrence Wheatley. Hall said the play of Wheatley caught his attention during game-film study.
“If they’ve got one of the best cornerbacks in the nation, we’re going to see what he’s got,” a grinning Hall told reporters.
Wheatley, a 5-foot-10, 175-pounder with sprinter’s speed, earned first-team all-Big 12 Conference honors by the league’s coaches. Hall (6-2, 195) caught 63 passes for 947 yards and six touchdowns this season. He made the all-Southeastern Conference second team and holds several Alabama career receiving records.
Both are seniors who realize that winning their one-on-one battles in Sunday night’s Independence Bowl might impress NFL scouts. It couldn’t hurt, anyway.
“If I know a guy is one of the best secondary players in the country, of course I’m going to get an adrenalin rush; I want to go against the best always,” said Hall, a Floridian whose full name is Martinez D. Hall.
Wheatley has compared Hall with the best receivers he has faced. That includes first-team All-Americans Michael Crabtree of Texas Tech and Jordy Nelson of Kansas State.
“He’s good,” Wheatley said of Hall. “He’s athletic and he knows how to use his size. You can’t make a mistake against a guy like that.”
Hall said watching film of Crabtree and Nelson work against Wheatley has given him some ideas.
“I’m not going to say it (to the media), but I got a few little hints that I’m going to be watching for,” Hall said.
Top form?
Following a two- hour workout Thursday, several Alabama players said Independence Bowl practices have ranked among the best of the year. The Crimson Tide (6-6, 4-4 SEC) finished the regular season with four losses and haven’t won since a 41-17 upset of Tennessee on Oct. 20.
“I can’t explain it, but this kind of reminds me of our first three weeks (all victories),” Hall said. “Guys are buying in. You can tell guys have a different attitude.”
Thursday night date in the works.
Colorado athletic director Mike Bohn said the school is working with ESPN and West Virginia to move next season’s home game with the Mountaineers (currently scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 27) to a Thursday night sometime early in the season. That would give CU a national-televised game while providing some separation during a brutal stretch of games against Florida State, WVU, Texas and Kansas. Bohn said he hopes to have permanent lights installed at Folsom Field by next season. CU is the only member of the Big 12 without permanent lights in its football stadium, he said. The cost (approximately $400,000) would be recovered by a lighting subsidy from the Big 12 which provides $100,000 per year for four years. Colorado sold 2,000 Independence Bowl tickets, Bohn said. He expects the total count of Buffs fans to approach 3,000, including students and the official travel party. CU donated the balance of its 12,000-seat allotment to nearby Barksdale Air Force Base, schools and other organizations.
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
