LINEUP
FEATURES
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
26 Rolling Tide
Can anyone beat Alabama? Probably not—but here's the case for the three teams that have the best shot
BY ANDY STAPLES
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
34 Tyrann Mathieu
The Honey Badger, a star a year ago, is now exiled from the LSU program and at a crossroads his family knows well
BY THAYER EVANS AND PETE THAMEL
CYCLING
40 Lance Armstrong
The most dominant cyclist in history long denied doping, but undeniable evidence refutes his most strident assertions
BY ALEXANDER WOLFF AND DAVID EPSTEIN
PRO FOOTBALL
48 Chris Kluwe
Beating Packers and Bears is fine, but the Vikings' punter—the NFL's nerdiest player—would rather slay orcs and ogres
BY L. JON WERTHEIM
BOOKS
54 Football's Greatest
Montana or Manning? Payton or Brown? A new SI book tackles gridiron debates—and here fans have a say too
BY STEVE RUSHIN
BONUS
58 Mourning Glory
Deep in the heart of Maryland, a magical story mixed with tragedy ended with the realization of an impossible dream
BY CHRIS BALLARD
DEPARTMENTS
4 SI Digital
6 Leading Off
MLB postseason
12 The Mail
16 Scorecard
College hoops: Let the madness begin
22 Faces in the Crowd
24 Just My Type
J.J. Watt speaks
BY DAN PATRICK
68 Point After
Justin Verlander. Period
BY PHIL TAYLOR
ON THE COVER: Photograph by Andrew Hancock; Greg Nelson (Florida), Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images (Oregon), Gregory Shamus/Getty Images (Notre Dame)
PHOTO
DAVID E. KLUTHO
THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM Alabama's opponents can dream of stopping the Tide, but as soon as the ball is snapped, Nick Saban's team crushes those hopes.
