Too many people were looking ahead to what’s next.
That’s what Nick Saban said on Wednesday at SEC Media Days. That was his roundabout explanation for Alabama’s shocking, 28-point loss to Clemson in the national championship.
It wasn’t Clemson. It was Alabama.
Alabama didn’t prepare for the game properly.
The offensive coordinator had already checked out, and so had the defensive backs. There were too many people thinking about themselves, and not about the team.
There wasn’t a commitment to “the process.”
The “Alabama Factor” didn’t make the trip to Northern California.
“I think the most important thing for us, you know, in this offseason and going into this season is sort of re-establish the standard that we'd like to play to, standard of discipline, also, players that are going to be responsible and accountable to do their job at a high level on a consistent basis and also put the team first,” Saban said.
It wasn’t my fault. It was the players. They were too selfish. Not enough buy in.
Hopefully Saban doesn’t actually believe that nonsense. No one works harder inside Alabama’s building than those players.
“A lot of our players have benefited from their great performance, and the team success in terms of the awards that they've been able to get and the recognition that they've got, and you know, leadership on every team is also an important part of being successful because once you establish these principles and values and standards that you'd like to have in the program, you have to have people in the organization who reinforce those, and I think sometimes peer to peer is very effective,” Saban went on. “And, you know, that's something that I think is important on every team and certainly something that we challenge the leadership on our team to do a great job of this year to help our young players understand the culture and the standard that we'd like to do things to.”
There weren’t any leaders last year, in other words. Excuse me, but was Jalen Hurts a figment of my imagination last year?
Dylan Moses, a returning linebacker, went so far as to say on Wednesday that Georgia was the toughest team Alabama faced last season, and not Clemson.
Stop it, Dylan. Just stop. Enough.
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa blamed all the blowouts. Alabama didn’t know how to compete in a close game.
Guess what, Tua? Maybe the SEC was just trash last year.
Are Saban and his players arrogant or just delusional? Whatever they are, they’re not ready to start this season. Not yet.
Before this preseason begins, before anyone reports to fall camp, before the first whistle is blown, Alabama needs a cold, hard slap in the face. A reality check. A come to Jesus.
Repeat after me, Alabama. Say it really slowly so it sticks.
Clemson. Was. Better.
Clemson is still better.
Clemson is the new superpower in college football.
Like that clueless attempt at a fake field goal in the second half of the national championship, Alabama apparently can’t see what everyone in the world already knows. The San Jose Smackdown was the coronation of a new king.
Don’t let the bright lights of SEC Media Days fool you, Dylan Moses. You’re not that good.
Don’t think for a second, Tua, that all those reporters crowding around you inside a ballroom in Hoover, Ala., means the SEC is home to the best football in the country. It’s not. Not anymore. Not until someone from this conference beats Clemson, which went undefeated (3-0) against SEC teams last season.
Tua is a great quarterback. He might even be the best quarterback in the history of Alabama football. Is he even half as good as Trevor Lawrence, though?
Lawrence took a blowtorch to a defense that shut out LSU in Death Valley. The SEC should be embarrassed.
Alabama returns a quarterback who can’t stay healthy, and some defenders who allowed 44 points in their last game. That’s reality.
Alabama didn’t score a single point in the second half of the College Football Playoff national championship. We thought it was the best offense in the history of Alabama football. That’s how good Clemson was.
Saban’s big message at SEC Media Days? He wants Tua to be smarter in the pocket, and he wants his assistant coaches to be better prepared for the second half of the season.
How about start with this, and accept the cold hard truth. Dabo Swinney is just a better coach right now.
Joseph Goodman is a columnist for the Alabama Media Group. He’s on Twitter @JoeGoodmanJr.
https://www.al.com/alabamafootball/2019/07/alabama-football-needs-a-cold-hard-slap-in-the-face.html
2019-07-18 14:25:00Z
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