Alabama coach Nick Saban spoke with the media at the Alabama Pro Day on Wednesday. He talked about next year’s Crimson Tide squad, what NFL representatives are looking for at Pro Day and a couple of his former players.
Speaking with SEC Network, Saban said that several question marks hover around his Alabama team in the spring, including how it’ll handle success and the bullseye on its back.
“This team’s gotta create their own identity,” Saban said. “What last year’s team did will have nothing to do with how we do next year. All it did was create the fact that we’re gonna be the target for a lot of teams because we had success. I think our players need to be ready for that challenge.”
Saban also had a lot to say about his former quarterback Jake Coker. He was disappointed that he didn’t get invited to the NFL Combine.
“I think Jake didn’t get invited to Indy because 97 juniors went out. And I think that’s a whole other conversation … They should’ve stayed in school and developed. But because the NFL wants to see guys that they don’t know much about, guys like Jake Coker don’t get to go to the combine. I think that’s very, very unfortunate, and I think for the number of players that we’ve had play here and play in the NFL, Jake Coker should’ve been invited to the combine … He’s got a great arm and can make all of the throws, and for his size, he’s very athletic, and I think a lot of people are going to like that.”
Saban also stood up for the leader of his defense from last season, linebacker Reggie Ragland, highlighting his versatility.
“If there’s any question about his ability to play every down, I think people are really wrong about that. I think he can play standing up in space, and I think he can rush as well … He does have some pass-rush abilities, which we didn’t really develop here because he didn’t play that position for us … I think that’s an area where people will be surprised in how they’ll be able to develop him as a pass rusher as well.”
There’s a swarm of NFL scouts and coaches at the Alabama Pro Day, and Saban gave his take on how NFL representatives approach pro days.
“There’s a lot of criteria that you have for each and every position, but I think what a lot of people are looking for is a good teammate, which means they’re good guys, they have good habits, they have good character.”
Born and raised in Gainesville, Talal joined SDS in 2015 after spending 2 years in Bristol as an ESPN researcher. Previously, Talal worked at The Gainesville Sun.
