It Is Going To Be a Special Season, a Very Special Season

By Wayne H. Smith

Beginning in the spring, Coach Saban was consistently pleased with practice, the effort and ability of the team.  His satisfaction continued into the Summer and then, into the Fall.  Now  you can see why, with the talent, the willingness to work, the desire to get better and the physical training, this is a very special group.  There was so much joy and accolades, with the first number one recruiting class and then on top of  that, the second, the fans got caught up in excitement and seemed to forget the first class had a year in the program and they are ready to play, along with those who played last year.  

With the first number one recruiting class now in the mix along with those entering early for the Spring, there is not much room on the field for the second probably more heralded class, which so many had already put in the starting lineup.   Now positions which were shallow on depth are deep in depth and the depth has great talent.  Add to that the physical conditioning and the result is awesome.  And, if  you notice the two top recruiting classes, not only are they top of the line in physicality, but they are also top notch in character, desire to be the best they can be, and leadership.   And those who were already there have been rejuvinated and "coached up" or gone. It is interesting to note that many of the starters on this team are three star or lower.  Now that is "coached up".  

The football stars are aligning, and the fireworks are beginning.  As Brother Oliver said, “the sky is the limit”.  

The media seemed to downplay the greatness that was shown.  It appeared that the team was like a dropping atomic bomb, waiting to explode with talent, athleticism and ability, and that against a team that was also well coached physically and mentally but were no match for the onslaught.  And they exploded.

Now,  let’s give the Coach  his due,  the coaching is tremendous, now at the pinacle of coaching greatness.  Some people put Coach Saban in with Carroll, Myer, Stoops and Brown.  But they are wrong!  There is only one member of the top echelon of college coaches and that is Nick Saban; the others are in a battle for second.  In listening to the master, (and I was greatly blessed to be in the crowds during the great Bryant years and hearing him.), you get the impression that the team is totally coached, not leaving anything to chance and as Coach Saban said, if the team performs as coached, they will be in the right place at the right time with the right plays, they just have to perform as coached. Maybe he didn't say it that way but that is what he meant.  

Again, costly mistakes were made.   But  the coaching and hard work will correct those.  If you take away the mental errors on both sides- fumbles, runbacks, missed coverage and personal actions, it was a 34-0 or greater game, giving Upchurch (wasn’t he great?) his touchdown and taking away their fumble and subsequent touchdown; (the cause and effect fumble recovery was outstanding".  With those considerations,  the yardage by Virginia Tech would have been about 25 to go along with the no score.  The score you get is the score you get, but the domination was so great, justice in the score was not served.  The big overall problem was that it was Alabama vs Virginia Tech and Alabama and Alabama was tough in opposition.  Thankfully, the right Alabama  prevailed.  The holes in the foot may be sore.

If the team can keep the focus of one game at a time and play to be the best they can be, regardless of the opposition, it will truly be the sky, winning in Pasadena as the limit.  Now, with the stars, a physically and athletically imposing team working to get better and better and the best coaching staff in the business, aligned.  all that is necessary is performance in line with ability to make for that very special year.   And then the best will just get better.

As for Coach Bryant, those years were magical and incomparable-He and his teams in that era will forever be unmatched in the annuals of college football and his life and football teachings are carried forward by Coach Saban. Coach Saban is following in the footsteps of the great coaches which came before.  And, he is filling their shoes very well.