73 Days Away from Bama Kickoff: John Hannah
Each day counting down to Alabama's Week 1 matchup with Utah State, I will highlight one former player whose jersey number coincides with the amount of days until the game. In honor of the Tide taking the field just 73 days from now, let's look at the top lineman in program history and potentially of all-time, John Hannah.
John "Hog" Hannah is an absolutely legendary figure in both Alabama and NFL history.
Born in Canton, GA and raised in Albertville, AL, Hannah joined the Crimson Tide in 1970. His father, Herb, also suited up for the Tide, playing offensive line from 1947-50.
Throughout his three years with the program, Hannah played both guard and tackle for Bear Bryant's squads. In his first two seasons, the team ran a pro-set offense, but ahead of his junior year, the fabled wishbone was installed and the rest is history.
Hannah's junior season, 1971, saw the Tide dominate nearly every opponent it came across until the final game of the year when Alabama suffered a loss in the Orange Bowl at the hands of Nebraska. The '71 team finished 11-1 and won its games by a combined margin of over 25 points, running behind the big-bodied lineman.
After leaving the Crimson Tide, Hannah was selected fourth overall in the 1973 NFL Draft by the Patriots and put together possibly the best career of any offensive lineman in league history.
Hannah played for 13 seasons, all in New England, and was a seven-time First Team All-Pro, nine-time Pro Bowler and was named to the NFL's All-Decade team for the 70s and 80s as well as the 75th and 100th year anniversary teams.
In 1991, the Albertville native was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, becoming the first Patriot to ever do so.
Now, Hannah resides in Blountsville, AL and owns a small cattle farm.
Stay locked in to Tide1009.com for the countdown to Alabama football.