Nick Saban shares hilarious story about Alabama fan who doubted him after ULM loss in 2007
By Jacob Moss
Published:
It may seem a bit strange to think that there was ever a time when Nick Saban was doubted as the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, but his first season in Tuscaloosa was certainly full of ups and downs.
The undisputed low point for Saban during that tumultuous first year as the head man for the Tide was an embarrassing 21-14 loss at the hands of the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks.
This was probably the lowest point of Saban’s entire legendary tenure with the Tide, and he recounted a hilarious story about a conversation he had with a doubtful fan following that loss on College GameDay.
“First year at Alabama, we lost to ULM,” Saban said. “Alabama beat them 73-0 this year; we lost to them. Most humiliating loss of my career. You know, I get in my car to go home, and I stop to get gas. I used to wear my LSU National Championship ring, the guy says, ‘Hey, what is that?’ I said, ‘It’s a National Championship ring, we’re going to do the same thing here at Alabama.’ He said, ‘We’ll never do that as long as Nick Saban is the coach.'”
Given how things went on to play out over the next 15 years, it’s safe to say that this fan had about as cold a take as possible with his prediction for the Tide under Saban.
It just goes to show that fans can’t be too quick to judge a coach on first-year results, even if those results are absolutely awful at certain points.
