Nick Saban opens up about what impresses him most about Caleb Downs

One of the key pieces of Alabama’s recruiting class this year, Caleb Downs has made an immediate impact on the recruiting trail. Through six games, the true freshman safety leads the Crimson Tide with 37 tackles and two interceptions as he jumps off the tape during film sessions.

He also garnered some high praise from Nick Saban on his radio show Thursday night.

Saban raved about Downs on Hey Coach and The Nick Saban Show after a question from ESPN’s Dusty Dvoracek, who served as the media guest. He didn’t talk about the stats, though. Instead, he talked about how Downs carries himself off the field — and it’s not what you might expect from a true freshman.

“I think what impresses me most about Caleb Downs is his maturity,” Saban said. “He’s a very instinctive football player, but this guy, there’s no arrogance about him, being one of the best players in the country at his position. He’s very focused, he’s very coachable. He wants to know everything that you can ever tell him about how he can play his position better. He takes coaching well when you talk to him about what he did or didn’t do. Wants to completely understand the whole defense not just what he’s supposed to do, so he knows exactly how he fits.

“For a guy that’s a freshman, man, that’s really, really unusual. He’s bene a really, really solid player for us. He played really well, eh’s got a lot of production. I think he’s only going to get better and better.”

Downs brought in plenty of hype on the recruiting trail this year. He was a Five Star Plus+ recruit, which means he was one of the only players ranked by all four major recruiting media companies as a five-star. A product of Mill Creek (GA) High School, Downs was the No. 5-ranked recruit in the nation from the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Through the first half of the season, Downs has lived up to the billing at Alabama. He was selected to the On3 Midseason Freshman All-American Team, and he was chosen as a player of the week this past week by the Crimson Tide coaching staff.

As Alabama goes through the rest of its schedule, Downs will have more opportunities to show off his unique skillset and improve on what’s already been a strong season. Next up for the Crimson Tide is a matchup with Arkansas on Saturday at noon ET.