Hayes: Playoff hopes on the brink, Nick Saban is challenging the Tide to respond
By Matt Hayes
Published:
It’s important now. All you have to do is listen to Nick Saban to understand this week is different from the rest.
He’s not blaming the mean media. He’s not talking about “rat poison” or “s— through a tin horn.”
He’s pointing directly at his players, the foundation of his 16 years and 6 national titles at Alabama, and publicly challenging them like he rarely has heading into this week’s SEC showdown at LSU.
This is what happens when all else fails. This is what happens when there is no wiggle room in the chase to reach the Playoff.
“It’s gotta come down to what are you attaching yourself to?” Saban said at his weekly press conference. “That means what’s going on in your head? Are you thinking about the Internet and what other people think, or are you thinking about the self-gratification you get from being productive and doing a good job?”
The master motivator is pulling out all the stops. He has tried everything over the first 9 weeks of the season, and he can’t seem to get this team to stop — in no particular order — committing game-turning penalties (and too many penalties, in general), missing tackles, taking bad angles, losing leverage, dropping balls and missing blocks.
This isn’t panic-level stuff, but it’s definitely become a significant problem — and usually at the wrong time. Late last month, during the final seconds of a blowout win over Mississippi State — and while the second-team defense was trying to hold onto a shutout at its 4 — cornerback Malachi Moore was hit with a questionable pass interference call that gave the Bulldogs an automatic first down at the 2. And Saban lost it.
Rarely in his time at Alabama has Saban looked more upset with a call. But that’s what this team has done to him.
They’re so close to elite — on both sides of the ball — that small misses, or a lack of concentration, or failure to be consistent in your preparation in practice during the week, shows up when you least expect it.
Two plays later, Mississippi State celebrated a 1-yard TD run on the last play of the game while Tide backup defensive backs DeMarcco Hellams and Jahquez Robinson argued about who missed the play.
This stuff happens all the time all over college football. It doesn’t happen all the time at Alabama.
Because when you’re not consistent with your preparation, when you’re not doing your job and not confident that the guy next to you is doing his — and you’re freelancing — well, that’s how Tennessee scores 7 of the 15 touchdowns the Alabama defense has given up this season.
That’s how the Vols complete 2 passes for 45 yards in 13 seconds to set up a game-winning field goal.
And just in case you think this is all aimed at the players, it’s not. Everyone, Saban says — coaches and players — has to “attach” themselves to what’s important.
No one is spared the wrath of Saban at this point in the season. When you’re a game away from not reaching the SEC Championship Game — much less the Playoff — everyone’s backside is on the line.
The play-calling from coordinators Bill O’Brien and Pete Golding must get better, putting players in better position to succeed. They know player limitations, so zero in on their strengths.
“It’s a great time to do a little self-assessment of what we need to do to get a little more consistent execution,” Saban said. “Whether it’s individual players, systematically on offense, defense, special teams.”
The offense hasn’t consistently protected quarterback Bryce Young all season. The receivers haven’t consistently won on the outside and have dropped too many balls.
The play-calling has been strange at times, especially the last series of the Tennessee loss. The defense has the best pass rush in college football with two future NFL first-round picks (Will Anderson Jr., Dallas Turner) but finished with 1 sack and no quarterback hurries against the Vols.
Translation: The defense that has affected the quarterback better than any other since 2008 whiffed in the biggest game of the season.
That can’t happen this week against LSU. Or the following week at Ole Miss. Or, potentially, in the SEC Championship Game and beyond.
“The focus is important, regardless of whether you’re coming off a bye week, or you’re playing week-in and week-out,” Saban said. “To be able to sustain that, recapture it, regain it — momentum, whatever you want to call it. It’s important to do in a game, it’s important to do in a season and it’s important to do in a bye week.”
It’s important right now.
Matt Hayes is a national college football writer for Saturday Down South. You can hear him daily from 12-3 p.m. on 1010XL in Jacksonville. Follow on Twitter @MattHayesCFB
