Nick Saban shares his appreciation for the senior class at Alabama

College football is a daily grind. Players pour countless hours of their blood, sweat, and tears into their programs. Especially at a place like Alabama under Nick Saban, where winning at an extremely high level is the standard.

On Thursday’s edition of the Hey Coach & The Nick Saban Show, the legendary football coach shared some appreciation for his senior class, after a viewer asked him a question about them.

Nick Saban wants Tide fans to appreciate the seniors

“Well, I’m glad you mentioned it. Because you know, this is always a game because we don’t have school during Thanksgiving week. So, the students, a lot of students are not here. This game, sometimes, does not draw the kind of attention and crowd that we would like,” Saban began.

“But I think from the standpoint of showing your appreciation for what a class of guys have done over four or five years in terms of how they’ve represented the University, the quality of football they’ve played, the number of games that they’ve won. These guys all won a national championship in 2020. And to show your appreciation. I just hope everybody comes out and really, really supports this group and their family. These guys have done a first-class job in every way in terms of the kind of people they are. The way they’ve represented the institution,” Saban continued.

“And I don’t think anybody really realizes how hard it is to be a student athlete. You all come to the game. You watch the guys play. You think you’re watching the same thing as pro football players do. These guys go to class. They’ve got to go to study table. They all have tutors. We have really stringent rules and regulations on checking what they’re doing academically. We have personal development programs that they have to invest their time in,” Saban explained.

“And then they work in football twenty hours a week. Aight. Which is pretty intense, in terms of practice and time spent. So, these guys put a lot into it. And I think sometime people take that for granted. That, hey, these guys just show up and we’ve got a good team. And we win this many games and give us something to cheer about. And I understand we’re in the entertainment business. And I think they understand that, too,” he continued.

“Aight. But they’re also college student athletes. And I think as much appreciation as you can show for these guys and the special way that they’ve represented the University and the good football that they’ve played and the entertainment that they’ve provided for you because of the quality of football that they played is something worthwhile to come out and pay respect to,” the legendary football coach noted on Thursday evening.

Alabama faces off against Chattanooga on Saturday, Nov. 18th. Kick time for that one is slated for noon EST.