If there’s anyone who knows about the high expectations at Alabama, it’s Nick Saban.
New head coach Kalen DeBoer is feeling the onslaught from the ‘Bama faithful. After a huge win over Georgia, Alabama followed it up with a debilitating loss to Vanderbilt. They then wrestled with South Carolina for sixty minutes, and while they emerged victorious, few were pleased with the efforts they saw.
DeBoer has incurred the wrath of the Alabama faithful. Saban understands what he’s going through and offered his honest advice on the situation on The Pat McAfee Show.
“Anytime you take over a successful program, I don’t want to be judgmental about what they do because I think he has to do what he does his way. You know, he can’t be me,” Saban said via On3. “Can’t try to be somebody that he isn’t. I think there’s more than one way to skin a cat, and I actually think the guy’s been successful, and I think his way will work.”
Saban defended DeBoer due to Alabama’s number of departures in the offseason. He listed Caleb Downs, Isaiah Bond, and Kadyn Proctor as three significant departures from the Crimson Tide.
“I can’t make any predictions about the future in terms of what people’s patience are going to be, but they don’t have a lot of patience in Alabama,” Saban admitted. “They have high expectations. You can’t get caught up in that; you’ve got to just focus on what you have to do to make the team play as well as you can. Don’t let any of that stuff affect you.”
Much like if anyone knows about the heat, if anyone knows how to tame it, it’s Nick Saban.