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Nick Saban seems to have broken out of his shell upon retirement from coaching.
The legendary coach joined the College GameDay crew this season and fit in seamlessly. Saban has also been more open about things than he used to be, as recently demonstrated on The Pivot podcast.
Saban was asked who some of his favorite players were that he coached at Alabama. The coach responded by giving 5 names: Julio Jones, Derrick Henry, Tua Tagovailoa, Rolando McClain, and Reuben Foster.
“Julio [Jones] was great,” he said. “Derrick Henry. Tua [Tagovailoa] — I always liked Tua. Rolando McClain. And the other one I always liked was Reuben Foster.”
In the past, this is the type of question that Saban would’ve shied away from answering. Past his coaching days, however, the coach seems more willing to reflect. Saban later elaborated on why he chose those certain players.
“I liked the guys that were always in my office because they were screwing up,” he continued. “I got closer to them, you know? We had more conversations.”
Jones played for Alabama from 2008-10 and caught 179 passes for 2,653 yards and 15 touchdowns. Henry starred from 2013-15 and still holds the school’s single-season rushing record. Tagovailoa is 4th in career passing yards with the school, while Foster racked up 222 tackles over 4 seasons. McClain was on the BCS National Championship team with Jones and collected 274 total tackles in 3 seasons.
Nick Saban is one of the most legendary coaches of all time. He ended with 292 career wins and 7 national titles.
[H/T 247Sports]
Bryce Lazenby covers college football for Saturday Down South. A Nashville native, his previous stops include FanSided, Dimers, and The Leaf-Chronicle.
