Nick Saban gives emotional speech at field dedication ceremony: ‘This is a great honor’
By Sean Labar
Published:
Nick Saban was the focal point in Tuscaloosa before today’s matchup between the Crimson Tide and South Florida as the school held a ceremony to officially re-name the team’s field in Saban’s honor.
Alabama’s home field will now be known as Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
The legendary Alabama head coach addressed a massive crowd of fans and expressed his gratitude for their support over the years.
Here’s Nick Saban’s speech as Saban Field is dedicated pregame pic.twitter.com/zDxH7DICR0
— Nick Kelly (@_NickKelly) September 7, 2024
“Your support has always been the best in the country in terms of how you have supported Alabama athletics and how you’ve supported the football program and how you have supported us so I thank you so much, we appreciate it more than you know,” Saban said.
Saban then touched on the honor to have his legacy go down in Alabama history forever moving forward, making a point to acknowledge everyone who helped him turn the Crimson Tide into one of the top programs in the country.
“It’s a great honor to have a field named after the legacy that we have been able to create here, but I want this legacy to represent every player who played and worked hard, every coach who helped those players develop, our administration who set a foundation for us to be successful by providing all the resources we needed to be to have the best program in the country,” Saban said.
The Tide coach reflected back to 18 years ago when he took the Alabama head coaching job and expressed his thanks for the community welcoming him.
“And to you the fans, who were always positive in terms of our players, our program and all the things that we did,” Saban said. “You have given more to me than we have given to you. You made us part of this community 18 years ago, it’s our home now, you’ve given us the opportunity to be the coach at one of the great universities in the country and I can’t tell you how much that means to me.”
Finally, Saban noted that one of his proudest accomplishments was helping his players earn degrees, while preparing them for life after college football.
“I’m also proud of the fact that because we had so much support, we developed a program that helped our players be successful in life,” Saban said. “We can develop better people. We have 668 degrees in 17 years which I’m very proud of, which is going to help those guys have a better quality of life.
The former Crimson Tide front man said it took everyone involved with the Alabama athletic department to help the team accomplish so much success under his watch.
“In terms of wins and championships, it’s all a reflection of the team,” Saban continued.”Which is the players, the coaches, you the fans, the administration and everyone who represents the program. I can‘t thank you enough for being here today and can’t thank you enough for the support you’ve given us in good times and bad in terms of helping our program be successful.”
Saban insinuated his desire to continue to stay plugged in with the program in some capacity and help the Tide continue to compete for championships in any way he can in retirement.
“We want to continue to help Alabama continue to be one of the outstanding football programs in the country, but also one of the outstanding athletic programs in the country,” Saban said. “Because I think it’s the window that people look at this university. And the impact that we were able to have by having a successful program, has elevated the university, and I’m proud of the fact that we were able to contribute to that in so many ways. So thank you very much and Roll Tide!”
The Sabans will be recognized on the field at halftime after the end of the Million Dollar Band’s performance, per the athletic department.
Sean Labar is an SEC football contributor for Saturday Down South.
