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Nick Saban says SEC title game picks were ‘reverse rat poison’ for Alabama
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Nick Saban says he was playing mind games when, at SEC Media Days in July, he picked his former team to miss out on the SEC Championship Game.
Call it reverse rat poison.
Saban made headlines when he picked Georgia and Texas to make the conference title game this season in the SEC. Sure, the Bulldogs are stacked. Sure, the Longhorns are coming off a College Football Playoff appearance. Sure, both schools have a Heisman Trophy contender at quarterback.
Alabama checks all those boxes, too.
But the Crimson Tide no longer have Saban — widely regarded as the greatest coach in the history of the game. And when Saban left, so too did a number of his players, particularly in the secondary. When Saban made his prediction last month, he pointed to an unproven Alabama secondary as part of the reasoning for his decision.
During an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show on Friday, Saban said he was serving motivation to Alabama.
“Kind of reverse rat poison. I always hated it, and I’m gonna hate it on this show — I might as well say it right off the bat — this show or any show or GameDay, having to predict and make hypothetical decisions about who’s going to win a game, who’s going to win a championship, who’s going to win what conference. I’ve always hated that,” he said. “So I picked Georgia and Texas because it’s reverse rat poison for Alabama. It’s a motivating factor for them not to get picked.
“I hated to be picked first or second because you don’t know how that’s going to impact your team psychologically. These kids are affected a lot by what they hear, what they read, what they see. So, I didn’t want to say anything too good.”
“I picked Georgia and Texas because it’s reverse rat poison for Alabama..
It’s a motivating factor for them” ~ Nick Saban#PMSLive pic.twitter.com/gFQolXJ0lh
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) August 23, 2024
Earlier this year, Saban was asked how he’d go about picking Alabama when it came to his College GameDay obligations. In response, he said he doesn’t believe he always has to pick the team he thinks will win, but rather that he can occasionally trust “a spiritual feeling about who you like and who you want to win.”
With the Alabama icon moving from the sideline to ESPN’s set, this is almost baked into the equation. Saban will be fair, he’ll be objective in most instances, but he’s also likely to still bleed Alabama crimson if you hold him to the knife.
Saban has said he’ll give new head coach Kalen DeBoer help if DeBoer comes calling. Saban still has an office on Alabama’s campus.
Using his new seat to provide something of a competitive advantage to his old team doesn’t come as much of a surprise.
DeBoer did well in his first offseason to address Saban’s concerns (and that of others). Five-star freshmen defensive backs Jaylen Mbakwe, Zavier Mincey, and Zabien Brown could all find themselves in the rotation by the time November rolls around (to varying degrees). Three of the 5 likely starters in the secondary are transfers DeBoer brought in.
Reports from camp have offered encouraging signs about the growth of the unit. Alabama’s safety pairing looks like a strong one. There’s a tremendous amount of talent throughout the secondary, even if most of it is young. And defensive coordinator Kane Wommack, after building an outstanding defense at South Alabama, probably deserves some trust.
Alabama’s SEC schedule includes games against 5 teams ranked in the preseason AP top 16. Three of them are on the road. The home games are against the highest-ranked teams. Nothing about DeBoer’s first season will be easy even with the stockpiled talent.
Alabama is +300 to make the SEC title game at DraftKings. Ole Miss, Texas, and Georgia all have shorter odds — with the latter 2 being the clear favorites. The Crimson Tide are +500 to win the SEC, but they’re -110 to make the CFP.
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Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
