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Nick Saban sends message to Alabama fans for Arkansas game
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Nick Saban and Alabama step on to Bryant-Denny Stadium for the final time this season as Arkansas is in town on Saturday. The Razorbacks will be looking to spring the upset on the Crimson Tide to all but end their College Football Playoff hopes.
There’s no question that Saban has been working hard all week long to keep his players focused on the task at hand. He called them out for a subpar practice session on Wednesday, stating that many of them had what he called the “poor me’s” while challenging them to adopt the “right mindset” for the game. But he challenged Tide fans as well to create the proper environment for the game, speaking about the mental lift it gives his players especially in matchups like this one.
“Sometimes, I think that fans don’t understand how what they do can impact the psychological disposition of young people and what they need to be doing so that they can play the way they need to play,” Saban said on his radio show ahead of the game against the Razorbacks. “Be positive, be supportive and understand your role. They need your help. They need your support. We’ve got to create a great stadium for them to play in and make it hard for the other team to play at our place, and not have the expectation that we’re just going to show up and win.”
Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
