Nick Saban reflects on 2011 national championship game, experience with rematches

It’s not a surprise when college football teams face off against each other twice in the same season. Because of the way most conferences are set up, there’s a good chance that a pair of teams could meet in both the regular season and then later in the conference championship game if things worked out that way, occasionally setting up rematches.

Although Alabama and Georgia didn’t meet in the 2021 regular season, they collided back on Dec. 4 in the SEC championship game and are now set to face off again – this time for the College Football Playoff national championship next Monday night.

The Crimson Tide were in a similar situation back in 2011, when they played LSU in the regular season and then in the BCS national championship game. Alabama lost the regular-season meeting 9-6 in overtime, but bounced back with a 21-0 win over the Tigers in the title match.

Heading into the College Football Playoff national championship rematch with Georgia, Alabama head coach Nick Saban was asked if the Tide’s 2011 experience of playing a team twice – with the second meeting coming in the national championship – translates to this season’s.

“I don’t know that experience is going to have anything to do with this experience,” Saban said. “We’ve got a different team. They’ve got a different team. They’ve got a good team. So, you know, I don’t know. Our players were focused in the game. Those two games were extremely hard-fought, close games in both circumstances – and I would expect the same in this game.

“I think both teams sort of realized where they are. The opportunity that they created for themselves and everybody’s going to be really zeroed-in on trying to do the best job they can to take advantage of it. So, I don’t know that there’s anything that I can really take from that experience that’s going to have any effect or impact on this one.”

No. 1 ranked Alabama and No. 3 Georgia are scheduled to kickoff at 8 p.m. ET Monday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, with ESPN carrying the national broadcast. The Bulldogs are three-point favorites, with the over/under currently set at 52 total points.

Saban describes what the term ‘warrior’ means to him, Alabama program

Following its New Year’s Eve win against Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl semifinal, Alabama – which follows a a “warrior mentality” – is now gearing up for a rematch with Georgia in the College Football Playoff national championship. Heading into the matchup, Tide coach Nick Saban discussed what being a warrior means to his program.

“I think the warrior mentality just is sort of a great compliment to the kind of competitor somebody is,” Saban said. “I think it speaks to your intangibles, your intensity and ability to sustain and play with great energy and enthusiasm.

“So, it’s, to me, the ultimate compliment to a competitor to be a warrior, war daddy, whatever you want to call them. And that’s something that we really try to get our players to buy into, because it does create tremendous value for them when they compete at that kind of level and with that kind of standard.”