What Nick Saban Said to Open Tennessee Week

Alabama and Saban will be going for the 15th straight win over the Volunteers on Saturday.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. —After playing what Nick Saban called the team's best 60-minute performance, it's now rivalry week in Tuscaloosa with the Tennessee Volunteers coming into town. 

Nick Saban and select players will come to the podium on Monday to talk about Alabama's win over Mississippi State and preview the matchup with Tennessee. Stay tuned here for updates throughout the press conference. 

Live Updates from Saban's Monday press conference

• "I was really pleased and proud with the ways our guys responded."- Saban on the Miss. State game. "We competed in the game the way I like to see us compete."
• Saban asks if this is who they are as a team after the win in Starkville with that type of performance, or does something bad have to happen for them to play well?
• "I think the rivalry between Tennessee and Alabama is one of the old, great rivalries in college football."
• Saban says it doesn't matter who is at quarterback for Tennessee, both guys have been doing well and will present challenges for the Alabama defense.
• He says the identity of this team is still up in the air. They can develop a positive identity and took a step towards that in the last game.
• Saban says Byron Young is day to day with a shoulder issue.
• Saban says he has a bruise on his arm from the field-storming incident at A&M, and he can use it as a reminder of what he needs to do to prepare his team better when asked about what the SEC can do to make things safer for players after the incidents at A&M and Tennessee this weekend. 

Full Transcript

Opening Statement

"I was really pleased and proud of the way our guys responded, you know, in this last game. I thought we played really well in the game, played for 60 minutes, tried to finish plays, played the next play, regardless of what happened in the game when we had bad plays. It wasn't always perfect execution, but I think we competed in the game like I like to see us compete. You know, the question is, is can this become a part of who we are, or does something bad have to happen for us to respond in the way we need to respond? And I think that's a challenge for all of us. And that's a challenge for all of our players in the leadership on our team to continue to do the things we need to do. Guys that practice well, played well in the game. Guys that prepared well, played well in the game, so that that's something that we need to continue to do.

"I think the rivalry between Tennessee and Alabama is one of the old great rivalries in college football. It goes way back. I know it a lot to a lot of people in our state. It certainly means a lot to me. And hopefully we'll get that translated to our team.

"You know Josh Heupel has done a really good job at at Tennessee, their team is playing really well. They're explosive on offense, they make a lot of big plays, they run the ball very effectively. I don't really think the quarterback situation, regardless of whatever it is, both guys are very capable. They're very similar in style in terms of the way they play. They're big guys, strong arms, accurate passers. And they have ability to make plays with their feet and run quarterback runs. They have good skill players outside. Their defense is playing really well. They're mostly a four-down team, but they do a good job. They play really well together as a unit, create a lot of negative plays. And they've got good specialists on special teams, and they played extremely well on teams as well. So all the way around, it's gonna be a very challenging game for us."

On how the defense played on third down against Mississippi State

"Well, I'm not satisfied with the way we played on third down. I think there was a couple third down-and-tens, and one third down-and-12, where we gave up first downs. And I think in those kinds of situations whether it’s screens, vertical passing game, whatever, we need to continue to work on trying to be more efficient and effective on third down in terms of getting off the field. We did do a good job at times, but that's something that we need to continue to work on."

Describing the identity of the team

"I’d say right now, based on what we just did, that’s still sort of up in the air. If we continue to play like we played in the last game, play for 60 minutes, play hard, support each other, play together as a group, compete in the game, play the next play, not look at the scoreboard. I think we can develop a really positive identity. I think we took the first step of that in the last game and hopefully we’ll be able to build on that in the future."

On Will Anderson’s leadership role

"Well I think you need leadership on every team. There’s two things about leadership and I've talked about this before, you have to have people who are willing to take responsibility for leadership, which we have some players stepping up on our team to do that but the other players on our team have to be willing to accept that leadership and respond to the standard that the leaders are trying to get everybody to aspire to. I’m happy that that’s starting to develop on this team I think that’s really critical to having a successful team that you have really positive and good leadership on your team.

On DL Byron Young's health status

"He’s got a little shoulder problem, he’s kind of day-to-day, so we can’t make a call on where he is right now."

What was your message to Agiye Hall, after he publicly expressed some frustration after the game and just how much more complicated are those situations now with transfer rules getting as they are?

"It is what it is. But, you know, look it still comes down to players creating value for themselves by what they do. You know I've said this before that, you know there's players that have talent, but they have to learn how to use it. And they have to use it in an effective way, in a way they practice. It's up to the player to impress the coaches that they can be trusted to go into game and do what they're supposed to do. So when players get frustrated, you know, they sometimes don't respond the way they should in terms of their preparation and focusing on what they need to do to become a good player, because they're so concerned about how much they're playing. So, you know, if players are competitors, they probably will be frustrated that they're not playing, but it's how do you respond to that, you know what, what do you do to respond to that in a positive way that's going to help you improve your circumstances in the future? And the way to do that is do the right things and go out of practice and play well so that not only you, but your teammates and everybody in the organization can trust you to go do what you're supposed to do.”

On Javon Baker's status after not traveling to Mississippi State and how the backup WRs are doing

“They're doing fine, but it's the same thing, you know players do what they're supposed to do. They travel, they play, they contribute to the team and that's every player's choice. Every player has a choice to do the things that they need to do to contribute to the team and everybody's got to buy in. So, you know players that do that, travel. Players that have issues with that, they're not really doing what they should do. I mean, that's our job as a coach to make sure that people were doing the right things and if they're not doing the right things there's consequences for that. There's consequences for that life. There's consequences in that when you're in competitive sports.”

On how the team maintains intensity after a big win

"I think that’s probably something that … people like to put negative things that happened to them behind them. But I don’t think that’s what you want to do in sports. You want to remember what it feels like when you don’t have success and let that be a motivating factor for you to do the right things, especially when you did the right things and that helped you play better to become a part of who you are. If you really learn from the lesson, that’s what you would do."

On RB Trey Sanders

"He’s worked really, really hard and he’s making good progress. It was good to see him get in the game a little bit this last game and make a couple positive runs. I think getting his confidence back is a big part of that. We’re going to continue to work him and he has a great attitude about what he’s trying to do, so I’m sure he’s going to get better and better."

On what the SEC can do to better protect players and coaches

"I don't think that's my question to really answer. I've said this before: We're in the entertainment business. There's a lot of people that come to the games. They've got a lot of passion and excitement for what they do. Hopefully as institutions and fans, we'll always do that in a positive way. I mean, I've still got a big bruise on my arm here from what happened after the Texas A&M game. I can always look at that as a reminder of what it feels like to be in that situation and motivate myself to try to do a better job with our players."