Nick Saban: Preparation, execution led to Alabama loss to Texas A&M

Nick Saban and the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide were no different from the rest of the country on Saturday night, as they also watched in utter shock as the Texas A&M Aggies converted on a game-winning, 28-yard knuckleball field goal courtesy of Seth Small.

The Aggies were tremendous underdogs at home against the mighty Alabama Crimson Tide, and for good reason. But following a week of strong preparation and a game in which the Aggies went up early, Texas A&M pulled off an upset of the ages, and Jimbo Fisher delivered on his promise to beat Saban.

Among the many shocking storylines of the Aggies’ signature win was the fact that Saban lost his first-ever game to a former assistant in Fisher, dropping to 24-1` on his career. Meanwhile, Saban saw Alabama’s 100-game win streak against unranked opponents end abruptly, a streak that dated back to 2007. And of course, perhaps the most shocking part, it was Texas A&M of all schools — the same Aggies that lost to both No. 13 Arkansas and unranked Mississippi State — that upended the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide.

Saban was as calm and collected as always while answering questions in the postgame press conference, and he even critiqued Alabama’s preparation heading into the primetime tilt with Texas A&M.

“Well, this is the second time we’ve won 19 games in a row,” Saban said to reporters after the loss to Texas A&M. “I think if you look back in the record book, we won 19 games in a row and then went to South Carolina and played — not like we played today, and we got beat. … When you get to the game, everybody wants to win. Everybody wants to play well. It’s: what did you do to get to the game? How did you prepare? How did you practice? What kind of habits did you create so you can carry those things to the game? And that’s what eliminates bad plays.”

Bryce Young, Saban’s quarterback, was critical of his team’s performance in the loss yesterday, despite playing a solid game himself. The sophomore from Pasadena, California completed 28 of his 48 pass attempts for 369 passing yards, three passing touchdowns and one crucial interception, and he shouldered the blame for their struggles in the redzone. Saban did not blame a thing on Young; instead, he said that Texas A&M deserves credit for its preparation, while Alabama deserves criticism for its lack thereof.

“You’ve got to give the other team credit, they’re capable of making plays. Their guys are on scholarship, too. But when you don’t do things like you think you need to do. And that’s because of what kind of habits you prepared in preparation,” Saban said, commending Texas A&M’s preparation. “Practice, how you take care of yourself, rest, recovery — all of those things contribute to how you play in games. … We need to do things better to get ready to play better, especially when we’re playing on the road, especially when we’re playing against really good teams. And I don’t know of anybody in our division that’s not a really good team. So, if we don’t play really well, we’ll struggle against anybody we play against.”