You know, everyone talks about it, but it really is amazing to see how big of a role athletics play in the identity of the University of Alabama. For anyone who may have missed it, a report was recently released listing Alabama as having the single-most profitable athletic program in the country for the 2010-2011 academic year. Granted, most of the profits came from football and basketball, but you can still see how big of an impact that type of money has on the athletic programs. Of course, there are some traditional teams for Alabama that simply dominate all the time. One of those teams — softball — has seemed simply unstoppable lately. With a 35-1 record, an unbelievable pitching corps and consistent talent at the plate, this team isn’t going away. Gymnastics is cut from the same cloth. It’s one of those teams we’ve come to expect results from. Currently ranked No. 4 by the NCAA, the Tide is the returning national champion and is expected to do amazing things in the NCAA tournament later this month. Under the leadership of head coach Sarah Patterson and elite talent like Geralen Stack-Eaton and Ashley Sledge, gymnastics can make it two in a row for Alabama. Of course, you can’t forget football. With another championship under Saban’s belt, it’s hard to avoid seeing some football-related news on campus. Spring training, recruiting, summer workouts, fall camp, more recruiting, regular season, postseason and recruiting again. There’s no escaping it, and no one wants to. But don’t think success has been limited to just these programs. For instance, how many people knew that Alabama’s men’s and women’s golf programs were among the best in the nation? According to the NCAA website, our men’s program is ranked sixth in the nation. They’re coming off back-to-back tournament wins in the Schenkel E-Z-Go Invitational and the Linger Longer Invitational. The women’s program is ranked second, and has won two of the last three tournaments it has competed in. The other competition was a second-place finish in the Gator Women’s Invitational. Women’s tennis has also been among the elite in its sport. The Tide is currently ranked No. 11 in the nation, has a 13-2 overall record and a 7-1 record in Southeastern Conference play heading into the rest of its season. Like I said, the role athletics plays here is huge. We have five teams that all have legitimate opportunities to win championships for the University. Alabama could potentially have six national champions at the end of this year, seven if you count football recruiting (which, of course, you will). I don’t know about you, but that’s a whole lot of winning for just one school year. When it comes to athletics, Alabama does more than compete — it dominates, and it shows. Take a look at the facilities offered to the programs I just talked about if you don’t believe me. And it’s not just isolated to the teams themselves, either. Look around. Look at the students walking around on the Quad. Every time I’ve been out there, I’ve seen a smattering of Alabama athletic T-shirts. If you don’t want to look, then listen: See how long it takes you to hear someone saying “Roll Tide.” I bet it won’t take long. Alabama hosts one of the most loyal, demanding and frenzied fan bases in the country. That’s part of who we are, who we’ve been and, more than likely, who we will be.