Nick Saban trusted the process to build the greatest dynasty in college football
Nick Saban’s “process” has carried him to six national championships. But how his process shaped this 2018 team may be his finest hour.
At the end of the first half of the Orange Bowl between Alabama and Oklahoma, Crimson Tide running back Damien Harris commits a false start penalty. The Crimson Tide held a 28-10 lead and appeared to be well on their way to their fourth consecutive National Championship Game appearance. But the foregone conclusion of a win did not appear to matter to the irate Alabama head coach on the sidelines, Nick Saban. In Saban’s world, the same mental error that forced the Crimson Tide to settle for a field goal could cause the Crimson Tide to potentially lose the contest.
A small issue to the average man. A big deal to Nicholas Lou Saban, Jr.
Alabama went on to defeat Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl, 45-34, advancing to the National Championship Game. National championship appearances have become routine for Alabama. Under Saban, the Tide have transformed into the resident bully of FBS football: too fast, strong and powerful for their competition. Since 2009, the Tide have imposed their will to five national championship wins in nine seasons.
But while Saban’s teams have always enjoyed the physical advantage, it’s his well-known “process” that has permeated this 2018 Alabama team like never before.
Saban has hung his hat on “The Process” a philosophy developed by Saban which puts a premium on his teams to focus on doing the little things so that the big things (winning, individual accolades, national championships) happen. For example, instead of worrying about the scoreboard, Saban will instruct his teams to worry about dominating their opponent on each play, and the score will take care of itself.
With Saban’s intense focus on the details instead of the finished product, the Alabama program employs not just the athletic advantage, but the psychological advantage, too.
In this era, recruits are becoming social media brands and the NCAA’s new redshirt rule is giving young players an advantage. So the things that Saban prioritizes such as following his philosophy for team success instead of individual success is becoming a moot point across the country. Players want to protect their image, and highly touted recruits arrive on campus comprehending that their future earnings are more important than their team’s success down the line.
At Alabama, Saban has kept his teams focused on winning and doing it the right way. This year’s team has plenty of athletes who could become distractions. A plethora of his roster could vouch for more playing time, and opine that they could transfer elsewhere. With Saban, his players understand that being an individual and causing a circus has no correlation to the team’s goals.
This has led to Saban not having any issues with complacency, with Alabama frequently imposing their will on opponents year in and year out. Sure, there have been games in which Alabama has underperformed. But catastrophic loses suffered by his former rival Urban Meyer at Ohio State just don’t happen at Alabama. In a sense, it’s as if Saban has convinced his team’s that it doesn’t matter if they are playing a Pop Warner team. When Alabama steps on the field, you have faith they will take care of business.
But prized recruits buying in, his team’s understanding of the psychological approach and having them primed to always treat every opponent equally all started with the culture that Saban ushered in when he arrived in 2007. Some coaches believe that in order to keep top recruits happy, pandering to them is just apart of the process. With Saban, his system is the necessity; the players are the accessory. Meyer found success at Florida during Saban’s first few years at Alabama. But his inability to prioritize a balanced system over the players led to burning out and his first retirement.
At 67, and concluding his 12th season in Tuscaloosa, Saban is alive and functioning just fine. His system and expectations were set in stone a decade ago. Players know coming in what to expect and to leave the egos at the door.
Perhaps, how he handled the Jalen Hurts/Tua Tagovailoa quarterback exchange is the best testament to how his coaching style has planted Alabama as the king of the hill. Very easily, Hurts could have been a distraction this season after losing his job to Tagovailoa in fall camp. Hurts also could have been a distraction after Tagovailoa replaced him in the second half of last year’s National Championship Game win vs. Georgia. But Saban’s influence has clearly made its mark on his two talented quarterbacks, and the storyline of ego and drama that could have been never happened.
Hurts did state he was confused over the lack of transparency from the coaching staff over the status of the initial competition between him and Tagovailoa. But there were no more comments after that. All-American defensive tackle Quinnen Williams nearly disrespected Oklahoma’s quarterback and Heisman winner Kyler Murray in the days leading up to their matchup. Instead, he stopped mid-sentence, knowing that’s not part of the process. This is all a correlation to Saban’s impact as the head coach. High expectations for the legendary coach are imposed on and off the field.
It’s easy to not be fond of the Saban, and the hatred for Alabama outside of Alabama fans (and some SEC admirers) is commonplace. Many fans have christened Saban as “Nick Satan” as if he’s the evil genius of the evil empire. Those thoughts are easy to accomplish. What’s rather difficult, is understanding and accepting how Saban built Alabama to be the unquestioned king of college football, with no signs of slowing down.
He built this program based on his philosophy and system on how to play the game with focus while placing priority on team success over individualism. For Saban, this is the way to success, and it’s been clear if you look at his career.
Even as the world has changed, Saban has stayed grounded to his core beliefs. If he’s successful Monday night against the Clemson Tigers, it will give him the record for most national championships with seven. This season had the recipe for chaos for Saban and his Tide. Instead, it’s just another example of his extraordinary ability to coach young men to success.