Alabama will look to repeat as national champions this year as it aims to add a 19th title to its trophy case. The Crimson Tide opens its season on Sept. 4 against Miami inside Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. To help pass the time until then, BamaInsider is delving into 21 topics and questions concerning the 2021 season.
Today we continue our series by taking a look at Tide defense which has the potential of being one of Nick Saban’s best at Alabama.
At this point, Nick Saban is ready to throw his hands up. The defensive-minded head coach has found a way to win in college football’s new high-scoring setup. However, that doesn’t mean he isn’t losing a bit of sleep when it comes to drawing up game plans for today’s high-powered spread offenses.
The Alabama head coach admitted as much in an appearance during a virtual clinic with the Louisiana High School Coaches Association earlier this year where he jokingly compared offensive coaches to terrorists.
“All these offensive coaches on here — and I’m sure we got a few — I wish I could look at you when I say this to you, you guys are all part of the Taliban man,” Saban said. “I mean, you’re a part of Al-Qaeda.
“You have changed our game and made it so hard to play defense for all of us poor defensive guys that, you know, I can’t sit in church without shaking my leg or my hands start shaking because I’m worried about what you guys want to do next. So, I do respect you, but I still think you’re part of the Taliban.”
Alabama has given up 24 points in a combined 13 games over the past three seasons compared to a combined seven from 2015-17. Five of those occasions occurred last season, the most since Saban’s first season with the Tide in 2007. That won’t sit well with the head coach.
However, Saban should be able to rest a bit easier considering the talent he returns on defense this season.
