SEC Media Days: Saban laughs at mediocrity
HOOVER, Ala. — Alert the masses. Nick Saban just chuckled.
A reporter asked Alabama coach Nick Saban about facing the recent mediocrity — and, yes, he did say, “mediocrity” — in the last few years at ‘Bama and with the Miami Dolphins. Saban reacted with a smile, a small chuckle and, “I’ll try to get better, I guess.”
Saban is 22-23 in his last three seasons as a head coach. In his first year at Alabama last season, the Crimson Tide went 7-6 but the campaign was very tainted with a 21-14 loss at home to Louisiana-Monroe. Saban and those around him have lofty expectations for the coach who took LSU to a national championship in 2003.
“You guys use that word expectation a lot,” Saban said to the media contingent.
Building a program to prominence takes time, and Saban has seen that firsthand once before. Saban won six games in three of his first four years at Michigan State before a 9-2 season in 1999 got him noticed.
“Eight years ago I started out with not much success either,” Saban said, “but you have to build.”
Eight years ago, Saban took over LSU and led the Tigers to eight wins, then followed that with two BCS bowl appearances, including a national championship, in the next three years.
Saban refused to set a timetable for getting the Crimson Tide back to the BCS on Thursday.
“It is what it is,” Saban said. “We are where we are.”
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