The Alabama football crowd got a little extra star power Saturday night, and one of the most unexpected names on the video boards was Scott Stapp.
The Creed frontman was shown alongside University of Alabama President Peter J. Mohler, with Bryant-Denny Stadium PA announcer Tony Giles introducing him as a longtime Crimson Tide fan. The stadium later played Creed’s “One Last Breath” from the band’s 2001 album “Weathered,” the same record that also included “My Sacrifice” and went platinum six times.
Stapp’s Alabama connection goes back years. In a 2010 interview with ESPN, he said his ties to the program trace to his family and to growing up surrounded by Crimson Tide history.
“For me, growing up, that was all I knew,” Stapp told ESPN. “I’d go over to my grandparents’ house and sit with my granddad and my dad in their lounge chairs each and there’s Alabama pictures of my grandfather at the Rose Bowl in ’34 when Alabama won, picture of my granddad coaching … coaching the track team and coaching football with The Bear, he was Bear Bryant’s roommate in college. It was like a virtual museum of Alabama stuff.
“And then my dad’s just getting everything Alabama you could imagine. From toilet seats to curtains to my clothes, and so Alabama was the only team.
Every other team stunk. I was brainwashed.”
He also said in a 2012 interview that after an accident left him injured, he and rapper T.I. talked about their shared love of Alabama football.
Saturday’s game wasn’t the first time Alabama fans have seen a surprise celebrity pop up in the stadium. Former Crimson Tide quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram was among the alumni recognized, and the crowd also got a look at former Alabama basketball standout Brandon Miller, now with the Charlotte Hornets, as he waved during a break in the action.
Chloe Holladay, the former Crimsonette who became the first-ever majorette in Tennessee Titans history, was shown hugging Big Al on the field. Nick Saban also appeared on the field named after him to support his friend and former running back who helped bring him his first national title as Alabama’s coach.
Kid Rock was another notable face at the Alabama-South Carolina game. The Michigan-born performer drew loud cheers when he appeared on the Bryant-Denny Stadium jumbotron after the stadium played “All Summer Long” during the 2023 Alabama-LSU game in Tuscaloosa. Wearing a cowboy hat and shades on the sideline, he was even seen mouthing “Roll Tide” into the camera.
Kid Rock later showed up in the suite with President Donald Trump during Alabama’s 2024 home game against Georgia.
Creed, formed in Tallahassee, Florida, in 1994, became a massive act in the late 1990s and early 2000s, releasing three multi-platinum albums and selling more than 50 million records worldwide. The band has live dates coming up in Las Vegas on Dec. 11 and 12, Highland, California, on Dec. 14, and the Summer of ’99 Cruise 2027 in Port of Miami, Florida, from April 17-21, 2027.
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Alabama Looks Dangerous Again But One Concern Still Lingers
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It was the kind of complete showing that can change the tone around a season, especially for a Crimson Tide team trying to look more like the version people expected under Kalen DeBoer. Still, even a result this convincing does not erase every question, and Alabamas next stretch will reveal whether this was the start of something more durable or simply the kind of statement win that needs to be backed up quickly. [Read more 🡒]