From Rivals...
1. NICK SABAN HASN’T LOST A STEP
Recent comments by new
Clemson commit
Peter Woods
, a four-star defensive end who lives about an hour from Tuscaloosa, that coach
Dabo Swinney is more lively and more understanding of teenage life than
Alabama coach
Nick Saban has raised some eyebrows.
Saban is 70-years-old. Swinney is 52. There has always been a pep in Swinney’s step that is contagious and exciting where Saban, off the field, I’ve been told is more relaxed in recruiting meetings with a CEO personality. I’ve taken that as a compliment toward Saban.
Woods’ comments could have been off-handed after announcing the biggest decision of his life so far, the thinking of a teenager who doesn’t calculate every word and its meaning. It could have been meant as a compliment to Swinney and not necessarily a knock on Saban. Kids say things all the time that might not be so well-considered.
Or it could be a tactic being utilized by younger, maybe more vibrant coaches to win heated recruiting battles. The same strategies were used against
Joe Paterno and
Bobby Bowden in their later years but both were much older than Saban and both
Penn State and
Florida State fell on hard times at different segments in the closing stanzas of their careers.
That is not the case at Alabama.
The Crimson Tide would have finished first in the team recruiting rankings in 2022 if not for an historic class by
Texas A&M which started not only a signing day controversy around NIL deals but Saban made comments in recent months that sparked another outrage by Aggies coach
Jimbo Fisher. Whichever side you fall on that argument, Saban is definitely engaged.
In 2021, Alabama had the No. 1 class. The Crimson Tide finished second or third in the previous two years. No. 1 classes have been so commonplace in Saban’s career that it’s completely surprising when it doesn’t happen now even as
Georgia and Texas A&M have ramped things up under Fisher and Kirby Smart in recent years.
The Crimson Tide battled incredibly hard in the national title game this past season in a loss to Georgia where numerous starters were out. After the game, quarterback
Bryce Young
and others looked crestfallen that they lost, not just disappointed but shocked that it could happen. The program remains in incredibly good hands.
In his career, Saban has seven national titles and 10 SEC championships. Has he lost a step at 70-years-old? Probably not. But even if Saban has, he’s still so far ahead of most everyone else that national titles are still the expectation and recruiting should not fall off one iota.