Alabama's Landon Collins looks to impress in the city that forged him

Alabama safety Landon Collins will look to make a statement in New Orleans, the city that forged him, in the Sugar Bowl against Ohio State.

NEW ORLEANS -- It’s never ancient history, Landon Collins says, issuing a polite correction when asked if he remembers much about the worst thing he has ever seen. Ancient history wouldn’t have such sharp contours of sadness: He had escaped to his grandfather’s house in northern Mississippi with maybe 20 family members by the time the winds came. If the hurricane was this strong up there, he could only imagine what was happening at home six hours away. Then Collins turned on the television and saw the floods. He no longer had to imagine anything. Even a 12-year-old knows when a city is breaking apart.

Then Collins heard about the levees. Did they fail on the West Bank, where he stayed with his mother? Did they fail on the East Bank? Was his cousin’s house destroyed? No, his cousin’s house mercifully was up on bricks, and the water didn’t rise above the stacks. That much he found out swiftly. The rest was unknowable for a time. He was a frightened grade-school kid in a strange place left to wonder what the storm would leave behind.

“All I could think about,” Collins says, “was, Will I have a home to go to?”

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It took another two or three months after Hurricane Katrina’s devastation, but he did. And while Collins left New Orleans again relatively soon after that, this time for years, he would return when he could. Sometimes football calls him back, too, his way out of the city demanding that he visit once more.

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This week brings one such visit and the most consequential moment in a career that began at Hunter’s Field under the Interstate 10 bridge. Alabama is set for a College Football Playoff semifinal against Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl, with Collins now the intuitive and bloodless All-America safety attempting to drive the Crimson Tide to their fourth national title in six years.

The 6-foot, 222-pound junior may have become a coveted prospect at a high school south of Baton Rouge, and he may have crafted an NFL future in Tuscaloosa, but New Orleans is home. And his relationship with the city is remarkably emblematic of why Collins is the Crimson Tide’s defensive leader not only in attempted ticket moochings, but also in tackles (91) and interceptions (3).

It was what Collins calls his mother’s “gut” feeling that prompted their evacuation to Mississippi before Katrina hit, after the family rode out multiple hurricanes before it. While corollaries between football and fleeing the most costly natural disaster in U.S. history are strained at best, there is something to be said about Collins usually winding up precisely where he should be, via information and instinct. “Sometimes, it might not be in the call, but his instincts will take over, and it leads him right to the play,” fellow Alabama safety Nick Perry says. “It hasn’t led him wrong yet.”

Or as one opposing coach put it: “He’s in the right spot every single time.”

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That will be the imperative against an Ohio State offense run by inexperienced but howitzer-armed quarterback Cardale Jones. Much of the Sunday chatter revolved around how much Alabama even knew about Jones, and how many new looks the Tide defense could throw at him. “He hasn’t seen a lot, by the way,” Buckeyes offensive coordinator Tom Herman cracked. Still, the sophomore led his offense to 59 points in his starting debut at the Big Ten championship game. Jones poses a field-stretching threat against an Alabama secondary that has surrendered its share of big plays, or at least far more than a top-ranked run defense that has allowed three rushing scores all season.

If the first order of business is executing complex defensive calls while ensuring that everyone is in place at the snap, minimizing the threat of busts, it is on Collins to choreograph it and take care of that business. “I know against us, [Jones] is going to have to do a lot of processing, a lot of thinking,” Collins says, “because we’re definitely going to confuse him as best as possible.”

The next bit for the Tide is finishing a play when in position to do so. On that count, arguably no Alabama player is more trusted than Collins. “He’s very confident and the players are confident in him,” defensive coordinator Kirby Smart says. “They know if they have Landon behind them, he’s going to make a big play, he’s going to make a big hit.” Indeed, the defense considers a 14-13 win at Arkansas on Oct. 11 to be its defining effort of the season, and Collins’ game-sealing interception was the defining moment of the game. It came after a snap on which he followed his assignment on the opposite side of the play and was in perfect position for the pick. “Everybody knew he was going to be there,” Perry says. “And everybody knew he was going to make the play.”

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Then there are the subtle ad-libs with not-so-subtle results; in one instance, Perry recalls Collins flashing into a gap on a run play against LSU on Nov. 8 and stoning tailback Leonard Fournette. Because Perry couldn’t quite believe what he saw, he asked Collins where in the world he came from. Collins replied that he knew the Tigers were going to run that play, so he just decided to run through that gap. Or maybe there’s a zone defense call and Collins suddenly appears in the flat, sniffing out a play in that direction. His knack for being correct can depend as much on bending the rules as following them.

“As a football player, you don’t have time to think on the field,” Alabama defensive end Jonathan Allen says. “It’s all about reaction. We feel like that’s a positive.”

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The reactions are impeccable, and mostly always have been. Katrina spared his mother’s house, but half of his father’s home in Plaquemines Parish landed up the road. The other half landed on a football field. Had his mother not moved to Algiers, theirs might have been one of the ravaged homes in the storm-wracked Seventh Ward. And Collins certainly could have done without the few months of school in Mississippi. “I ain’t going to lie to you,” he says. “It was just miserable to me.” It was all so horrible and fortunate and it could have tore down a 12-year-old with ease. That did not occur with this 12-year-old.

“I don’t look back on it like a nightmare,” Collins says. “I look back on it as something I had to overcome.”

He shut down the NFL talk on Sunday, flatly saying he hadn’t thought about declaring for the 2015 draft. A few minutes later, Allen noted that Collins’ value to the unit “will be hard to replace.” In any case, should it all line up just right on Thursday, it could be one last booming statement for Collins in the city that nurtured him as a noisemaker. At Hunter’s Field, that Seventh Ward park where Collins first played before he moved to a different part of the city, they called the drill The Tunnel. It was simple enough for Pee Wee players to comprehend: Two kids on their backs, one carrying a ball. At the sound of a whistle, both popped up. The one without the ball had to stop the one with the ball. Collision was inevitable.

For at least one of the participants, it was also preferable.

“Man, I’ve been laying people out since I was five years old,” Collins says. “That was very common. I always did it, and it stayed with me.”

All the way to this week and to New Year’s Day in 2015. He is back in his city once again, hoping to leave it happier than he ever has before.

Alabama's Road to the College Football Playoff

Alabama 33, West Virginia 23 (Aug. 30)

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The Crimson Tide won a closer-than-expected opener thanks to a big performance from running back T.J. Yeldon, who rushed for 126 yards with two touchdowns.

Alabama 41, Florida Atlantic 0 (Sept. 6)

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Bama blanked the Owls in a game called early because of lightning. That didn’t stop Amari Cooper from going off: He had 13 catches for 189 yards and a touchdown.

Alabama 52, Southern Miss 12 (Sept. 13)

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Alabama woke up from a slow start behind a breakout effort from quarterback Blake Sims, who went 12-of-17 passing for 168 yards with two touchdowns.

Alabama 42, Florida 21 (Sept. 20)

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Despite being tied at 21 in the third quarter, Alabama rolled to an easy victory. The Tide rattled off 21 unanswered points behind Sims and Cooper, who connected 10 times for 201 yards and three touchdowns.

Ole Miss 23, Alabama 17 (Oct. 4)

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The Tide took their lone loss in the season in Oxford, Miss., where the Rebels rallied from an 11-point deficit to win. Alabama’s last-gasp effort fell short when Ole Miss cornerback Senquez Golson intercepted Sims’ fourth-quarter pass.

Alabama 14, Arkansas 13 (Oct. 11)

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It wasn’t pretty, but Bama held off Arkansas to avoid consecutive losses. Trey DePriest forced a key fumble in the first quarter, and Landon Collins made a crucial interception in the fourth.

Alabama 59, Texas A&M 0 (Oct. 18)

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This one was over in a hurry. Alabama obliterated Texas A&M behind a second-quarter onslaught in which the Tide scored 35 points. It was the first time the Aggies were shut out since 2003.

Alabama 34, Tennessee 20 (Oct. 25)

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Cooper continued his stellar 2014 season in Knoxville, Tenn. Alabama’s star receiver opened the scoring with touchdown grabs of 80 and 41 yards and finished with 224 yards on the night.

Alabama 20, LSU 13 OT (Nov. 8)

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The Tide seemed dead when LSU had the ball at the six-yard line and 1:13 to go in a 10-10 game. But the Tigers settled for a field goal, and Bama evened it up with three seconds left. Sims hit DeAndrew White for the game-winning score in overtime.

Alabama 25, Mississippi State 20 (Nov. 15)

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Alabama handed Mississippi State its first loss thanks to a dominant performance from the defense. Bama opened the scoring with a safety and kept the Bulldogs out of the end zone until early in the fourth quarter.

Alabama 48, Western Carolina 14 (Nov. 22)

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As expected, Alabama stomped FCS-level Western Carolina. Running back Derrick Henry was the difference-maker, scoring two touchdowns in the second quarter and finishing with 12 carries for 92 yards.

Alabama 55, Auburn 44 (Nov. 29)

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Auburn seemed in position to upset the Tide after taking a 33-21 lead early in the third quarter. But Bama hung 34 second-half points to keep its College Football Playoff hopes alive. Sims was the star: He went 20-of-27 for 312 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions, and rushed for 23 yards with a score.

Alabama 42, Missouri 13 (Dec. 6)

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There was no drama in the SEC Championship Game: Alabama raced out to a 14-0 lead and never looked back. Henry and Yeldon both found the end zone twice as Alabama secured a spot in the Sugar Bowl.