Who seriously thought Nick Saban had a pregame hype music playlist?
The Alabama coach – who turns 72 on Oct. 31 – had a very-Saban like response at SEC Media Days on Tuesday.
"I don't understand the question," Saban said. "I don't really listen to music before the game."
There it is – that little crease to allow for a narrative to spin that Saban can't relate to players, the game has passed him by and allow the legacy talk to start if the Crimson Tide fails to make the College Football Playoff for (gasp) the second consecutive season.
Here is another way to spin it: Alabama is being ignored this offseason to the rest of college football's detriment. The Crimson Tide might actually be underrated (if that's possible), and if Saban and new offensive coordinator Tommy Rees find the right answer at quarterback then Alabama will be right back in its customary spots in the SEC championship game, College Football Playoff and CFP championship game.
Why that narrative? It is the rush to declare the Alabama dynasty DOA. Saban – who has six of his seven national championships with the Crimson Tide – is held to a different standard than everyone else.
Clemson has a two-year playoff drought with Dabo Swinney. Ohio State's Ryan Day can't win a national championship. Jim Harbaugh, Lincoln Riley and Brian Kelly are 0-7 in College Football Playoff semifinals. Georgia's Kirby Smart will feel what Saban feels down the road on the years where the Bulldogs don't win it.
Saban has been doing that for the last 15 years. Georgia might be on top of college football, but Alabama will be the center of college football as long as Saban is on the sideline.
MORE SEC MEDIA DAYS: Sankey's Texas challenge | Georgia's off-field focus
"I never look back at the past," Saban said. "It's always about the future. Most of the things I remember about the past are the games we didn't win. The games we lost a year ago on the last play of the game and how that impacted our chances to have a successful season."
Saban did look back – at the 52-49 loss to Tennessee; a game in which Alabama could have managed the clock better in the final two minutes. Then, there was the 32-31 loss at LSU. Saban sat quietly and listened to David Pollack say Georgia has "taken hold of college football" at last year’s CFP championship game.
LSU's Brian Kelly on Monday what it will take for the rest of the league to close the gap on Georgia. Not Alabama and Georgia. Just Georgia.
"We will have a roster to compete against Georgia," Kelly said. "Is that now? No, but if we continue to recruit like we have we will."
So, we're skipping over Alabama now? The team that has its three toughest games against Texas, Tennessee and LSU at Bryant-Denny Stadium this season. Maybe it’s a good time to remind viewers the Crimson Tide is 59-2 at home during the CFP era, and the last loss was to Joe Burrow-led LSU. Make no mistake – even with the Bulldogs at the top, the Crimson Tide remains in national championship-or-bust mode.
"I'm not here to create expectations for our team,” Saban said. "Lots of people will do that. Expectations in some way are a premeditated way to create disappointment. We need to stay process-oriented, not focused on outcomes."
Of course, those outcomes will hinge on who wins the three-way quarterback derby among Jalen Milroe, Ty Simpson and Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner – who followed Rees from Notre Dame after spring practice. This is the biggest reason why there is a lack of hype around Alabama this offseason. That’s justified considering their last four quarterbacks – Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa, Mac Jones and Bryce Young – will be starting for NFL teams this season. Ohio State and Georgia are replacing Heisman finalists at quarterback too, but it is always a more-visible battle at Alabama.
"We have three guys that are competing at that position right now," Saban said. "I don't think any of them have separated themselves at this point, and it's not something we're going to rush."
Remember, Jake Coker led Alabama to a national championship in 2015, Tagovailoa replaced Hurts in the 2018 CFP championship game and Jones was a first-year starter in 2020 when Alabama scored 48.5 points per game. This is not the first time Saban has had uncertainty at that position or being in the passenger seat of the SEC race to start the season.
"Every season is a new challenge," Saban said. "It's like you took a new job."
Saban said he feels like he is 39 – and he appears no closer to retirement than he was when the four-team playoff era started in 2014. Besides, there is another challenge coming in 2024 with the 12-team playoff and the arrival of Texas and Oklahoma in the SEC. Saban does not need a playlist to get ready for that. Besides, he waits until after the game to crank up a personal favorite from The Rolling Stones.
"We always play 'Gimme Shelter' going home after the game," he said.
That one was released in 1969 and still works. Why would you expect anything different from Saban?
