Alabama’s Mark Ingram gives offensive linemen their due

Offensive linemen don’t win Heisman Trophies. Neither do running backs without a few 300-pound bulldozers clearing a path.

That’s why Alabama running back Mark Ingram’s Heisman acceptance speech last month included a shout-out to his five faves.

“Everything I do starts with them,” Ingram said Monday. “I try to give them as much praise, as much acknowledgment, as I could because they’re kind of like the unsung heroes. They talk about me, but they’re never on the picture, they’re never on the highlights.”

As if to underscore his point, a throng of nearly 20 reporters gathered around Ingram’s interview podium inside a Newport Beach hotel even before he arrived. Meanwhile, only a handful stood near tight end Colin Peek’s podium and none near left guard Mike Johnson’s.

The linemen said they felt like they’re part of the excitement, though. Peek said he was so touched by Ingram’s winning the Heisman that he sobbed. Johnson said, “We felt like we were sitting there with him. It was a really special moment for the five of us. . . . I think we all felt like we had a hand in it.”

Alabama’s linemen might need to put their entire upper bodies into it against Texas in the Bowl Championship Series title game Thursday at the Rose Bowl. The Longhorns’ defense is ranked No. 1 in the nation against the run, giving up only 62 yards per game. Ingram has averaged 118 yards a game.

Johnson said Texas’ front seven defenders “seem like running backs on a bigger body. They’re so fast and they’re able to do so much with their schemes and make plays. All five of us are going to have to do our job up front each and every play or we’re not going to be successful.”

Catching on

Sophomore receiver Julio Jones is on a significant uptick, making 29 of his team-leading 42 catches over Alabama’s last six games. The increased production wasn’t a result of any just-give-me-the-ball demands.

“I’ve been around guys demanding the ball, making problems, making issues when they don’t receive the ball, but Julio never complains,” quarterback Greg McElroy said. “He’s a joy to have in the locker room, a joy to have in the huddle.”

Said Jones: “I really don’t care about stats and everything. I just go out there and play the game like it’s supposed to be played and try to block . . . it’s how I was raised.”

Ready, set, sputter

An Alabama offense averaging nearly 32 points a game has been plagued by one bugaboo: inefficiency on opening drives.

The Crimson Tide’s 13 opening drives have netted one touchdown and three field goals.

“I think sometimes maybe as players we’ve just got to get the anxiety out a little bit,” McElroy said. “One thing I will say is we’ve finished strong and made the adjustments necessary to be successful.

“But when we get off to a fast start, I know that gives everybody confidence in our ability to execute.”

One hot ticket

Alabama players said they fully expect the Rose Bowl to be awash in red on Thursday with the Crimson Tide making its first postseason appearance in Pasadena since 1946.

“I think if they raised the ticket price to $3,000 a ticket, everyone still in the state of Alabama would buy one,” said Peek, the tight end. “That’s how hard-core they are, and that’s why we love them to death. They’re fanatics.”

ben.bolch@latimes.com