Getty Nick Saban snapped at the media ahead of Alabama's Week 6 matchup against Texas A&M on October 8 for trying to get him to reveal his strategies (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Ask Nick Saban what his plans are for Alabama’s next matchup at your own risk. On Monday, October 3, the media scrum covering the Crimson Tide Head Coach — ahead of the team’s Week 6 matchup with his heated rival Jimbo Fisher’s Texas A&M Aggies on October 8 — felt the wrath of an impatient Saban who was unwilling to talk about his future game plan.
The questioning centered around Alabama’s quarterback situation, which is in flux due to a Bryce Young shoulder injury that occurred in the second quarter against Arkansas on October 1. In his stead, Jalen Milroe stepped in and delivered 153 all-purpose yards, 1 passing touchdown, and 1 rushing touchdown against the Razorbacks in Fayetteville during a 49-26 Crimson Tide victory.
When a reporter asked if the team had packages designed for the second-year signal-caller, Saban snapped. “We already have one,” Saban said before launching into condescending questioning. “You want us to put a new one together now cause he might play? Or use the old one? I’ll go talk to the offensive coaches.”
Nick Saban Angered By Question of If Tide Will Run Ball More
Nick Saban keeps things close to the vest regarding his players, as is customary for SEC football coaches. There’s no need to tip off the opponent on what to expect, and Saban has made that clear time and again in his lashings of media members hoping he’ll divulge more.
That didn’t stop a reporter at the October 3 media scrum from digging into whether or not Saban would alter his offensive attack to accommodate Jalen Milroe’s run-heavy style. Once again, Saban scoffed at the question and offered a patronizing response. “Um, again, I don’t talk to Jimbo on a regular basis but I’ll call him and tell him right after the conference,” Saban said. “Do you guys think I’m gonna tell you what we’re going to do with our offense and our team? You might as well make it up.”
Saban then called out the Tuscaloosa News for printing a story based on a quote he never said. “I saw today where there was headlines in the paper that I’m gonna keep it a secret what we’re gonna do with Bryce,” the Crimson Tide Head Coach chided. “I’m…that’s…it sounded like me making that statement. But I’ve never said that. But it was there in black and white.”
Nick Saban Discussed Last Year’s Loss to Texas A&M
Though it didn’t preclude Alabama from winning the SEC Championship and punching their ticket to the College Football Playoff, and eventually, the CFP Championship game, the Crimson Tide’s 2021 Week 6 loss to Texas A&M on October 9 left the then-defending champions looking like something the 2020 team was not: beatable. Alabama answered that loss with 2 spread-covering wins over Mississippi State and Tennessee, but they nearly lost to rivals LSU and Auburn in November.
Addressing that loss, Nick Saban once again took aim at the press present at the October 3 media scrum. “We were big favorites. It was like no big deal, just show up for this game and go play the next game,” Saban said. “I don’t get affected by it because I don’t listen to you all.”
Referencing his favorite term for pundits’ opinions, rat poison, Saban continued to let the media know how little their takes mean to him. I don’t really don’t have any interest in what anybody thinks about any of this stuff,” the angered coach opined.
With that said, Saban does care about how his players handle it and respond. “I do have an interest in how it affects and impacts the players on our team, and I think it does,” he said. “And I think they have to show maturity in how they manage and know that external opinion, external noise, whatever you wanna call it – rat poison, whatever it is – absolutely has nothing to do with the outcome of the game.”