TUSCALOOSA, Alabama -- There are many athletes on Alabama's 105-man roster for preseason camp.There is only one "athlete."That is the position listed for redshirt freshman Blake Sims. Not quarterback. Not running back. Not kick returner."I've got a kid now playing with the Kansas City Chiefs, and Blake is the best athlete I've ever coached," said Bruce Miller, who coached Sims at Gainesville (Ga.) High School."I've been in it 39 years, and he can do it all. There's nothing on a football field that he can't do."Wide receiver or defensive back? Sure. He actually spent his first days at Alabama last fall working with the defensive backs.In a typical practice these days, Sims (6-0, 212) spends time at running back and quarterback. He probably will be the third option at quarterback this fall behind AJ McCarron and/or Phillip Sims. On Sunday, during the Fan Day practice at Bryant-Denny Stadium, Blake Sims took turns with several others returning punts.Coach Nick Saban spoke highly of Blake Sims' versatility on Sunday, and Phillip Sims doesn't expect Blake Sims to hold a clipboard on the sidelines for extended periods of each game."Blake gives us a little excitement," Phillip Sims said. "He gives us the 'it' factor that can get outside the pocket and make some plays throwing the football down the field and running around making guys miss. I think that's something the coaching staff likes in Blake and is going to get him on the field this year."Fans picture Blake Sims taking snaps in the Wildcat formation, and he'd give the formation a second dimension. Imaginations run wild about passes off tailback sweeps and reverses from the slot."He has some ability with his feet, but he also throws it really well," offensive coordinator Jim McElwain said.Miller can vouch for that."I think he's pretty underrated as a thrower," Miller said. "Two years in a row, he threw for over 2,000 yards, but he's such an exceptional runner that you just kind of overlook his throwing ability."Miller raves most about that running ability."He's got an instinct running the football that you just don't teach," Miller said. "I saw him make a run one night where I thought everybody on the other team had a chance to tackle him. Nobody did. He had the unique ability to see openings on the field. I think for him, the game is moving in slow motion sometimes."Then there is Sims' third dimension: return specialist.Two years ago, while Sims was leading Gainesville toward a state championship, Miller put his quarterback back to return punts in the eighth game."The first one he touched, he went all the way for a touchdown," Miller said.Then there was the Class 3A semifinal game. Gainesville trailed before Sims returned the second-half kickoff for a touchdown."That set the whole tone," Miller said. "There was an opening, and he just hit it full force. He was in the end zone in about 10 seconds flat. I've never seen anybody run 100 yards as fast as he did that night."It was one of 48 touchdowns that Sims accounted for that season, which was reminiscent of why former Auburn quarterback Cam Newton won the 2010 Heisman Trophy."I coached against him," Miller said of Newton. "Cam is bigger, a little more powerful, breaks more tackles."So which one would Miller take?"I'll take 'em both," he said, laughing. But, he added, "At that stage of high school, Blake was probably a little bit better."Related topics: Blake Sims
Wow, the bammers hate Cam so much that they yearn to have one just like him.
Blake Sims will not be another Cam Newton, the bammer retards (Don Kausler mainly) can just hang that up.
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