TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — If there’s one thing the University of Alabama football team likes playing for it’s a ring.
The last five times it’s done so, between the national title and the SEC Championship Game, the Crimson Tide has come out on top. The only time it lost in either under Nick Saban was to Florida in 2008, which only helped set the stage for the developing dynasty.
“I think what’s special about this one is you get a chance to run for a ring, a SEC Championship ring, and be named conference champion,” junior safety Landon Collins said. “It’s going to be one of the best games you play in.
“Especially some of these freshmen, they don’t understand … when I went my freshman year I was like, ‘Man, I get a ring for this?’ I asked several of the upperclassmen, ‘We get a ring for this?’ They said, ‘Yes.’ I said, ‘Wow, I’m about to ball on special teams.’”
A few minutes later sophomore tight end O.J. Howard essentially confirmed that when he said: “That’d be great, for me to win a ring,”
Nevertheless, after Wednesday’s practice Saban decided to send a message to his team through the media, just in case any of them were taking any aspect of Saturday’s game with Missouri in the Georgia Dome (4 p.m. ET, CBS) for granted.
“I know you all are going to ask me about the magnitude of the game, I think everybody understands the magnitude of the game, I think everyone understands the consequences of the game one way or another,” Saban said before fielding a single question during his press conference. “You know I’ve been getting asked that question ever since we started played SEC (Championship) Games, and we played Florida. ‘What’s the magnitude of this game?’ ‘How big of a game is this?’ Then Ole Miss week, then how big of a game was that? So every game we played all year it’s the same question. So I’ve got the same answer, it’s the most important game because it’s the next game.
“And it’s the next game that has an importance because of what the players have created for themselves, and they’ve created a great opportunity to play against a great Missouri team, an outstanding Missouri team, it’s a very competitive venue to play in the Georgia Dome for the SEC championship. Everybody understands that’s the magnitude of the game for us, and that’s what we need to make sure that we’re focusing on and being prepared to get done.”
Some of the things on the line range from being invited to attempt championship anniversaries on campus for the rest of their lives to the coaching staff getting bonuses.
In a broader sense, a loss could keep the SEC completely out of the inaugural playoff after it won seven of the last eight titles during the BCS era. According to the College Football Playoff website each of the power five conferences will receive approximately $50 million for this year’s playoff, with each team in the semifinals earning another $6 million for its conference.
Regardless, the players, none of whom got a ring in 2013, seemed to get the coaches’ message.
“I feel as though, playing in this league, you play in a lot of big games,” junior cornerback Cyrus Jones said. “This is just another one of them, but it just so happens it has more stakes on the table. At the same time, you try to hone into the fact that it is a big game, but you can’t let it overtake your mind. You have to approach it like any other game.”
Christopher Walsh has covered Alabama football since 2004 and is the author of 19 books. In his free time, he writes about college football.
