Nick Saban reveals the three biggest keys to Alabama beating Tennessee
If there is one thing that Alabama head coach Nick Saban knows how to do, it’s beat Tennessee. For 15 consecutive years that he’s played them, he’s beaten them. That’s a streak that dates back to his time at LSU. This season feels different, though. The Volunteers are unbeaten, explosive, and playing at home. So, winning shouldn’t be too easy for Alabama this year.
While speaking to ESPN’s Marty Smith, Nick Saban explained the three biggest things that Alabama needs to do to beat Tennessee.
“Well, the number one thing is you got to stay focused on what’s happening on the field, and play the next play,” Nick Saban said. “Stay focused, one play at a time, and, you know, don’t worry about what happened on the last play. Just focus on the next play.”
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“Don’t turn the ball over, and explosive plays are gonna have a huge impact on this game–probably both ways.”
So, the three big things for Nick Saban are staying focused, winning the turnover battle, and explosive plays.
It makes sense why Nick Saban would want to keep the focus on the field during this game. Neyland Stadium, for big games, is one of the best environments in all of college football. The Ole Miss game from last season was a great example of how intense that environment can become. Turnovers, meanwhile, tend to dictate the outcome of every game.
Explosive plays are another thing that can affect every game. However, they’re a bigger consideration when you’re playing a Josh Heupel-coached team. His offense is designed to create explosive plays and they can be incredibly difficult to stop when they’re at their best.
Nick Saban explained the process for deciding if Bryce Young can play
Alabama’s Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Bryce Young missed the Texas A&M game with an injury. Since then, there have been questions about whether he’ll be able to play against Tennessee or not. It’s a process that Nick Saban explained.
“Bryce has practiced some this week, and I think it comes down to does he feel and do we feel that he can throw the ball effectively enough?” Nick Saban said. “He’s not going to hurt himself by doing it. I just don’t know how much it will hurt him if he does it. He’s done it on a limited basis. That’s the question, and nobody’s going to know that until Saturday comes, aight? He won’t know it, I won’t know it, nobody will know it. I know he wants to play and I know he thinks he can play, and we’ll see. We’ll see.”