‘Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains,’ episode 1 preview

survivor.wadeonbirmingham.com

Video: Host Jeff Probst sizes up the heroes
and villains in this season of “Survivor.”

J.T. is back!

In tonight’s 2-hour premiere, James Thomas, Jr. returns to a game he conquered just 1 year ago. Can the cattle rancher from Mobile succeed again in “Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains”?

He faces much stronger competition this time, as the 19 other contestants are also returning players (some for their third time! some as previous champions!). What J.T. accomplished in “Survivor: Tocantins” will prove much harder to repeat.

Video: J.T. shares his favorite “Survivor” moment.

Video: J.T. on Wednesday’s “Late Show”:
“Top Ten Things You Didn’t Know About ‘Survivor.’ ”

Video: “Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains” preview.

Also:

• Novelty may be gone, but familiarity might help this season.
• Looking back on 10 years of “Survivor.”

“Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains ” airs at 7 p.m. Thursdays on CBS 42. Look for the full recap tonight following the show.

• • •

Back up for grabs … more “Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains” at survivor.wadeonbirmingham.com.

A look at today’s front pages showing Alabama winning the BCS National Championship Thursday night over Texas.

Alabama

The Anniston Star

The Birmingham News

The Decatur Daily

The (Florence) Times-Daily

The Huntsville Times

The Montgomery Advertiser

The Opelika-Auburn News

The Tuscaloosa News

Texas

The Arlington Star-Telegram

The Austin American-Statesman

The Beaumont Enterprise

The Corpus Christi Caller-Times

The Dallas Morning News

The Houston Chronicle

The Killeen Daily Herald

The (McAllen) Monitor

The San Antonio Express-News

Tide brings home first title since 1992 season

Video: Nick Saban and Mark Ingram
on Alabama’s championship victory.

Alabama ended its season tonight with a perfect 14-0 record, defeating Texas 37-21 in the BCS National Championship game. The Longhorns suffered its only defeat this season at the hands of the Crimson Tide.

Nick Saban is the first coach since 1936 to win national championships at two different schools. And Heisman winner Mark Ingram beat the trophy’s curse: Previous Heisman winners went 1-6 in BCS title games.

Ingram’s Heisman rival, Texas quarterback Colt McCoy, exited the game early with a shoulder injury. Alabama’s QB Greg McElroy continued his unbeaten streak, having never lost in college or high school.

Alabama hadn’t won a national championship since the 1992 season under Gene Stallings. And it’s the first time the Tide has ever beaten the Longhorns, having gone 0-7-1 against Texas in previous matches.

Earlier in the bowl season, Auburn defeated Northwestern in overtime 38-35 New Year’s Day in the Outback Bowl in Tampa. And Troy lost to Central Michigan in overtime 44-41 Wednesday in Mobile’s GMAC Bowl.

Samson native part of 20-person, 20th-season cast

Video: James ‘J.T.’ Thomas prepares
for ‘Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains.”

After more than a month in Brazil, James “J.T.” Thomas Jr. earned $1.1 million as the winner of “Survivor: Tocantins — The Brazilian Highlands” in 2009. He’s back for more. The cattle rancher from Samson returns to battle in Samoa in “Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains,” premiering Feb. 11 on CBS 42.

The reality show pits contestants against each other in distant locales for $1 million. Thomas, who will compete on the Heroes tribe, not only won the grand prize but picked up an extra $100,000 fan favorite award during May’s season finale.

This isn’t the first season with returning competitors. A previous “All-Stars” season had 18 returning players, while a “Fans vs. Favorites” edition had 10 returning players. Rumors had accurately predicted the cast list weeks before host Jeff Probst revealed it on Wednesday night during the People’s Choice Awards.

Joining Thomas, 25, on the Heroes tribe are:

• Rupert Boneham, “Pearl Islands” and “All-Stars”;
• James Clement, “China” and “Fans vs. Favorites”;
• Colby Donaldson, “Australia” and “All-Stars”;
• Cirie Fields, “Panama” and “Fans vs. Favorites”;
• Amanda Kimmel, “China” and “Fans vs. Favorites”;
• Jessica “Sugar” Kiper, “Gabon”;
• Stephenie LaGrossa, “Palau” and “Guatemala”;
• Tom Westman, “Palau”;
• and Candice Woodcock, “Cook Islands.”

The Villains tribe has:

• Tyson Apostol, “Tocantins”;
• Randy Bailey, “Gabon”;
• Sandra Diaz-Twine, “Pearl Islands”;
• Danielle DiLorenzo, “Panama”;
• Russell Hantz, “Samoa”;
• Jerri Manthey, “Australia” and “All-Stars”;
• Rob Mariano, “Marquesas” and “All-Stars”;
• Parvati Shallow, “Cook Islands” and “Fans vs. Favorites”;
• Benjamin “Coach” Wade, “Tocantins”;
• and Courtney Yates, “China.”

Thomas’ bio on the show’s Web site shares a little more insight on why he’s back …

• Residence: Mobile
• Personal claim to fame: “Being the first in my family to go to college and earn a degree.”
• Inspiration in life: “My family.”
• Favorite past moment: “Winning the final immunity challenge.”
• Previous Survivor he respects most: “Myself. I am my own hero, because of what I accomplished and how it brought my family together.”
• Previous Survivor he respects least: “Jonny Fairplay” (Jon Dalton) (“Pearl Islands,” “Fans vs. Favorites”)
• Why did he come back? : “It’s the ultimate challenge, I couldn’t pass it up.”

Video: Jeff Probst gives a sneak peek at “Heroes vs. Villains.”

• • •

Look for recaps and features from “Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains” on Wade on Birmingham.

After 4 years of legal battles, McWane Inc. pleaded guilty to violating the Clean Water Act. The McWane Cast Iron Pipe facility had polluted Avondale Creek.

The pipe maker had been convicted in 2005 and fined $8 million, but that case was overturned. McWane pleaded guilty Friday in Huntsville federal court to nine felony violations and agreed to pay $4 million in fines and for the construction of a city park.

In April, McWane was fined $8 million for safety and environmental violations at its New Jersey plant. That case showed the company’s pattern of lying to regulators. In 2006, the company paid $3 million in fines for rigging air pollution tests and using equipment out of compliance at a Utah subsidiary.

PBS’ “Frontline” has investigated the company for years for its criminal activities, leading to injuries and deaths among its workers. Watch “A Dangerous Business” from 2003 and “A Dangerous Business Revisited” from 2008.

The Hyundai Sonata 2011, built in Montgomery.

The new Alabama isn’t just football championships and high-gravity beers. The success of auto manufacturing in the state continues to grow despite a worldwide downturn.

Earlier this month, Montgomery’s Hyundai factory rolled out its 1 millionth vehicle. That figure includes 655,496 Sonatas and 344,504 Santa Fe SUVs, or about 600 cars a day, or a car every 2 minutes.

The Korean manufacturer opened the plant in May 2005. For comparison, Mercedes-Benz hit 1 million cars in 2007 after opening in Vance in 1997. Honda hit 1 million in 2006 after opening in Lincoln in 2001.

The plant is already turning out the redesigned 2011 Sonata, due to hit showrooms in January or February at $20,000 each.

As Alabamians figure out their year-end tax strategies, consider the following …

The state has the lowest tax burden in the nation, based on Census Bureau analysis of the 2007 fiscal year. Gov. Riley considers that a plus in attracting businesses. But lobbyist Paul Hubbert of the Alabama Education Association argues that limited funds keep Alabama lowest in education as well.

Meanwhile, that seemingly light tax load still hits the state’s poorest families the hardest. A study from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington shows that households below the poverty line pay more in taxes than those in the other 49 states.

More families are sliding ever closer to poverty because of the highest state unemployment rate in 25 years.

The Legislature raised the threshold in 2007 where families start paying tax. Other states followed suit, keeping Alabama at No. 1. The tax on food is also considered a contributing factor to this dubious distinction.

Is Alabama succeeding or failing based on its taxation?

What matters more to industries considering coming to Alabama: low tax burden or educated workforce? And are they mutually exclusive?

The last time Alabama’s unemployment rate was this high was more than 25 years ago. With 226,790 unemployed workers, the state’s jobless rate hit 10.9 percent in October, a slight increase from 10.7 percent the month before.

But the news is far worse in Birmingham. In October 2008, 26,000 people in the Birmingham-Hoover metro area were out of work. This October, more than 50,000 were unemployed, a 95 percent increase from year to year.

It could be worse. No, really: One economist at Regions Bank says Alabama’s unemployment rate could hit 12 percent by spring.

Running back’s victory represents Tide’s first ever award for top college football player

Video: Mark Ingram’s Heisman Trophy acceptance speech

Alabama’s perfect season just got a little perfecter.

Tonight, sophomore running back Mark Ingram won the Heisman Trophy in New York in the closest vote ever. He represents the first Crimson Tide player ever to win college football’s highest individual honor in its 75-year history. Ingram, a native of Flint, Mich., broke the school record for single-season rushing yards with 1,542 total.

The runner-ups were, in order, Stanford’s Toby Gerhart, Texas’ Colt McCoy, Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh and Florida’s Tim Tebow, who won in 2007.

No. 1 Alabama defeated Florida in last week’s SEC Championship match and faces McCoy and No. 2 Texas on Jan. 7 in the BCS National Championship Game.

Video: BCS National Championship Game preview

The weekend brought early Christmas presents for football teams across Alabama …

• Hoover beat Prattville 28-23 for the state 6A championship Friday night at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. The Bucs, who went 14-1 this season, earned their sixth state title, and their first since 2005 during the Rush Propst era. Prattville’s loss ended the team’s 3-year streak as 6A champions.

• No. 2 Alabama defeated No. 1 Florida 32-13 in Saturday’s SEC Championship Game in Atlanta. The Tide, with a perfect 13-0 record, climbed to No. 1 in the BCS and AP polls, while the Gators (12-1) dropped to No. 5. (Gallery of newspaper front pages.)

• And in Sunday’s bowl announcements …

• No. 1 Alabama will play No. 2 undefeated Texas in the BCS National Championship Game on Jan. 7 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
• Auburn (7-5) faces Northwestern (8-4) in Tampa at the Outback Bowl on New Year’s Day.
• Troy (9-3), after winning its fourth straight Sun Belt Conference championship, heads south to Mobile to face Central Michigan (11-2) in the GMAC Bowl on Jan. 6.
• And here in Birmingham, the Papajohns.com Bowl will offer South Carolina vs. Connecticut (both 7-5) on Jan. 2.

Also: All 34 bowl games … the 2009-10 bowl schedule.

Will you be heading to a game or watching on television?

Video: preview of the SEC Championship
between Florida and Alabama

It’s almost like the BCS National Championship game about 4 weeks early. No. 2 Alabama will play No. 1 Florida on Saturday in Atlanta for the SEC Championship. Both teams are undefeated.

In 2008, No. 2 Florida defeated No. 1 Alabama on its way to the National Championship. This year marks the seventh time these two teams have faced each other for the title. The winner will play for the actual BCS National Championship game (possibly against No. 3 Texas) on Jan. 7, while the loser will likely head to the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.

The game airs at 3 p.m. Saturday on CBS 42 and also streams live online at the CBS Sports site.

Video: Paul Finebaum weighs in.

Will it be Alabama or Florida? Who’s going to play for a National Championship?

Birmingham native became second winningest coach in college football history; will lead Seminoles in one last bowl game

Video: “I’ve got to go get a job. I ain’t had a job in 55 years.”

Coach Bobby Bowden announced Tuesday that he would retire after 34 years at Florida State, capping a 44-year career. The Birmingham native amassed 388 wins at Samford, West Virginia and Florida State, second only to Joe Paterno at Penn State.

Bowden led Florida State to two national championships in 1993 and 1999 and has never had a losing season there, save for his first season in 1976 at 5-6. The current Seminole team is 6-6, heading to a yet-to-be-decided bowl game.

He grew up in Woodlawn, then East Lake, played as a quarterback at Alabama, before transferring to Howard College (now Samford). Bowden modeled his career after another legendary coach, Alabama’s Paul “Bear” Bryant.

On his retirement, Bowden said:

“Nothing lasts forever, does it? But I’ve had some wonderful years here at Florida State, you know it. Hadn’t done as good lately as I wish I could have, but I’ve had wonderful years, no regrets.”

Video: The Bowden legacy

Also:

• Associated Press: “FSU coach Bobby Bowden to retire after bowl game”
• Bhamwiki: Bobby Bowden
• “Being Bobby Bowden”

• • •

And in other football news …

Alabama’s high school football championships take place today and Friday in Tuscaloosa. Birmingham had played host to the games since 1996, but lost a bid earlier this year to Tuscaloosa and Auburn.

The only Birmingham-area team still in the running is Hoover. The 13-1 Buccaneers play 6A arch-rival Prattville at 7 p.m. Friday in Bryant-Denny Stadium. All games will air on WUOA-TV 23.

For the second year in a row first of two years, the Iron Bowl will be on a Friday. No. 2 Alabama will visit Auburn for the 74th matchup.

Alabama comes in with perfect 11-0 record and ticket to the SEC Championship Game vs. No. 1 Florida on Dec. 5 in Atlanta, just like in 2008. If the Tide holds steady under coach Nick Sabam, the team is heading for the BCS National Championship Game against No. 3 Texas.

Auburn is holding on with a respectable 7-4 record under new coach Gene Chizik. The bowl-eligible Tigers could be headed to the Liberty, Music City or Outback Bowl in the post-season.

The game airs at 1:30 p.m. on CBS 42 and also streams live online at the CBS Sports site.

What’s good for CBS may harm Alabama retailers looking for a Black Friday surge. Said one furniture store owner:

“We are going to open at 8 a.m. and close 30 minutes before the game starts to let people watch the game, but yet still have time to come in and purchase something.”

Of course, if you hate football, it’s the perfect time to shop. (But you probably stopped reading when you saw the helmets.)

So, who’s gonna win the big game? Educated and wild guesses welcome.

Despite drop in major crimes, city jumps from eighth place in 2008

Birmingham may be seeing welcome relief when it comes to crime, but not enough to sway its ranking in the CQ Press’ annual city crime rankings released today. The city again made the Top 10, placing at No. 7.

In 2008, the city ranked eighth, and in 2007 and 2006, it placed sixth.

Last week, Birmingham reported a 12 percent drop in major crime in 2009, including a 25 percent drop in homicides.

The Washington-based publisher used crime data reported to the FBI in six areas: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. In previous years, CQ Press referred to the rankings as the “Most Dangerous Cities” list, but dropped the designation this year.

Other Alabama cities ranked:

95. Huntsville
136. Mobile
140. Tuscaloosa
152. Montgomery

Camden, N.J. topped that list.

In the list of 2009 Metropolitan Crime Rate Rankings, Birmingham-Hoover came in at No. 21. Also on that list from Alabama:

11. Columbus, GA-AL
20. Mobile
64. Tuscaloosa
101. Montgomery
123. Huntsville
141. Gadsden
159. Dothan

Pine Bluff, Ark., is No. 1 on the list.

• • •

Visit our Crime Watch page.

Love holiday eating? If so, why not shop and eat locally for Thanksgiving, Christmas and any other upcoming holiday celebrations and feasts?

Our pal Amanda at Food Revival has a great list of farms and shops that sell organic or sustainably raised turkeys and vegetables. See her list, shop smartly and let us know about other places to shop in the comments.

Also, Birmingham Magazine has recipes to get you started, including Satsuma-Stuffed Locally Bred Turkey with Alabama Root Vegetables and Conecuh County Sausage and Collard Cheese Grits.

Enjoy your holidays!