HOOVER, Ala.—Alabama’s Nick Saban stands on the podium at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. He looks exhausted. The bright white lights shining on him for television don’t do a good job of hiding the fatigue in his eyes.
It’s been a tiresome six and a half months for the Crimson Tide head coach. Six months ago, his team was coming off of a heartbreaking, unfathomable and unbelievable 34-28 loss to Auburn in the Iron Bowl, highlighted by last second field goal return by Chris Davis.
Instead of being in Atlanta on the first weekend of December where they had become so accustomed to being, they were sitting at home with the bitter taste of the Iron Bowl in their mouths.
Things looked up in Tuscaloosa in the weeks that followed, however, as they were selected to play in the BCS Sugar Bowl against Oklahoma. It wasn’t the National Title game that they had wanted, but it was a pretty decent consolation prize.
‘Bama came in as a 31-point favorite and was expected to roll over the Sooners and finish their season sugary sweet.
But Bob Stoops and the Sooners had different plans. The offense, along with quarterback Trevor Knight, came out swinging with an up-tempo attack that gave them a 31-17 halftime lead. It was the first time since 2003 that the Tide had given up more than 30 points in a half.
The Tide’s defense made brilliant adjustments in the second half to slow down the white hot Sooner offense. Bama’s A.J. McCarron hit Derrick Henry on a swing pass to cut Oklahoma’s lead to just seven points in the fourth quarter.
The Tide got the ball back with 60-seconds to go on their own 10 yard line in the fourth. There was a glimmer of hope still left for Alabama. That’s until OU’s Eric Striker stripped McCarron, who took his seventh sack of the night, and Geno Grissom scooped it up for an 8-yard game-sealing touchdown.
It was supposed to be a sugar sweet finish for Tide fans. Instead, they were left with two consecutive losses to close the book on their 2013 season.
The offseason came in Tuscaloosa. Tide fans were restless, some still in disbelief. How did this happen? Isn’t this Alabama? No National Title, no BCS Bowl trophy. Bama fans were left with the sting of two straight losses.
Then came the Saban rumors.
Longtime University of Texas head coach Mack Brown resigned just two weeks after the Sugar Bowl. The stories of Saban to Texas seemed legit. There were even allegations that Mrs. Saban — otherwise known as Ms. Terry — was house hunting in Austin, Texas.
All that was put to rest a month later, as Louisville head coach Charlie Strong signed a five-year, $5 million dollar deal to be the new head honcho in Austin.
Saban was asked about the Texas rumors on Thursday, and confirmed he was never offered nor spoke to anyone from UT.
“Miss Terry is very happy at Alabama,” Saban said. “We certainly enjoy the challenges that we have there, the friends that we have established here. This is where we just choose to, you know, end our career someday.”
Tide fans rested easier knowing their head coach was still there. Saban then hired former USC head coach Lane Kiffin — a poor head coach but a brilliant offensive mind — as offensive coordinator in January.
Those two losses got even easier to deal with in February, as Saban — named the “best recruiter in the history of college football” by Steve Spurrier this week — rang in the No. 1 overall recruiting class for the third consecutive year.
In May, The Tide landed their supposed quarterback to replace A.J. McCarron, as Jameis Winston backup Jacob Coker announced he was transferring to Tuscaloosa. Coker was the No. 18 quarterback in the 2011 recruiting class. The other option for the position is senior Blake Sims. Saban responded candidly Thursday when asked if Coker had already earned the starting spot.
“That's really not internally the perception by me, our staff or our players,” Saban said. “Jake Coker has the opportunity to come in and compete for the position. Blake Sims has been competing for the position. Really did a pretty good job in the spring.”
Whoever wins the job won’t be asked to do too much, as the talent on offense Bama has for 2014 is almost unfair.
The running back corps is led by T.J. Yeldon, Kenyan Drake and Derrick Henry. Yeldon rushed for more than 1,200 yards last year, and Drake racked up 694 as a sophomore last year. Wide receiver Amari Cooper is one of the best in the country, as is tight end O.J. Howard — both voted by the media onto the All-SEC Preseason team.
The defensive line is led by defensive end A’Shawn Robinson, who led the team with 5.5 sacks last year. JUCO transfers Jarran Reed and D.J. Pettaway will see playing time early, and inside linebacker Trey DePriest returns with 65 total tackles including 5.5 tackles for loss.
The secondary has just one returning starter — All-SEC Preseason safety Landon Collins—who had two interceptions and six pass breakups, but true freshman Tony Brown will be a playmaker at corner.
The Preseason SEC Champion, as voted by the media at SEC Media Days, was Alabama. The odds are usually against the media-voted winner, as the pick has only been correct four out of the last 22 times.
“Every year that we've been fortunate enough to win the championship, you picked somebody else to win it,” Saban said. “So just to let you know that we're evaluating you.”
Follow Morgan Moriarty on Twitter @Morgan_Moriarty
Alabama coach Nick Saban speaks to the media at the Southeastern Conference Media Days on Thursday in Hoover, Ala.
