Read these comments that followed the announcement of former head coach Dennis Franchione's decision to leave Alabama to coach at Texas A&M ...

Tyler Watts (#14 Sr. QB, 6-3 220 lbs. Pelham, AL - Pelham High School)

Tyler Watts says the team wishes Coach Fran the best, and Alabama will fight on without him.

These comments came following the announcement of Franchione's departure ...

Press Pool - Did today's news come as a surprise? Did you believe the rumors?

We didn't think there was anything to it, that any of it was truth. We really felt that Coach would be here for several more years.

Do you feel at all betrayed? I mean this coach talked a lot of you out of leaving after the NCAA sanctions were handed down, talked players into staying. He talks a lot about loyalty, commitment and accountability on his web site, and then he walks away. How do you feel about that?

Well, it's part of the profession, it really is. Coach is always out there looking for better opportunities. He thought that he'd found one, and he took advantage of it. The players, we did stick through these tough times, and we will continue to stick through these tough times and hopefully we can grow even closer together. The seniors will no longer be around to aid in that process. But we feel very confident in the underclassmen taking the reins and making sure this program continues to head in the right direction. If the players that are still playing continue to show the kind of character that they have had to over the last several years, this program is in very good hands and in a very short time, we will be in prominence again.

How did you find out about it?

We just had a team meeting and that's the first official word that I've heard of it.

What did they tell you in that meeting?

Just that Coach had found what he thought was a better opportunity and that he was going to take advantage of it.

After the coach talked to all of you about staying, would you like to see him come back here and talk to you about his decision?

Well we'll see what happens. Hopefully, we'll get that opportunity. Coach is going to have his work cut out for him at Texas A&M. I'm sure he's eager to get started with the recruiting process over there and start building a team, as we are. This is terrible news for us, but we're going to move on.

What kind of coach is Texas A&M getting?

I think they're getting a well-rounded coach. He's very good. He's a hard worker. He's going to push his player to be the best that they possibly can, and they should be proud of what they got because they got a good coach.

Tyler, you always seem to remain even keel about big things like this. Were there any players that were visibly upset after the team meeting?

I feel like every player was at least a little emotional, deep down inside, whether they showed it or not. You know, we had spent a good deal of time with this man and now he's no longer going to be a part of the Alabama football program. But he made the decision to leave and we wish him the best of luck. But this program will continue on. The players will keep working and try to get better, and we'll look forward to next year.

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Dennis Franchione (head coach Texas A&M University)

Tyler Watts (#14 Sr. QB, 6-3 220 lbs. Pelham, AL - Pelham High School)

Ahmaad Galloway (#29 Sr. TB, 6-1 220 lbs. Millington, TN - Millington High School)