Trey Sanders credits Nick Saban's unyielding support for helping him through recovery

Alabama running back Trey Sanders is heathy and ready to get back on the field in an expanded role following his involvement in a car wreck that left him injured and cut his 2021 redshirt sophomore season in half. Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban was by his side every step of his recovery and has kept Sanders in good spirits while he couldn’t perform last season.

“I think Coach Saban was the main person who kept me going throughout that process because there were those times when I felt like I couldn’t do it,” Sanders said. “I wasn’t able to go out there and practice and Coach Saban called me into meeting and he’ll talk to me, and he gave me hope on the future.

“It gave me hope, and just gave me a better outlook on how to come out of my injury and come out of my car wreck, so it’s helped me a lot.”

The crash was Sanders’ second major injury at Alabama, the other coming in the preseason of 2019 when he suffered a season-ending foot injury. According to Nick Saban, the injuries took a large toll on Sanders, leaving the staff unsure about his future.

“I can’t be specific here and give you the extent of all the injuries he had but they were all pretty significant,” Nick Saban told reporters during a Monday press conference last season. “There was a point in time where I think he questioned, and a lot of us questioned – would he really be able to come back? And because of his perseverance and his resilience to continue to work the way he did is what allowed him to come back.”

Alabama started the 2021 season with a 44-13 win over No. 14 Miami in Atlanta. In his return to the field, Sanders rushed for 41 yards and a touchdown on eight carries. His impressive performance was capped off by a 20-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter.

“Certainly, for him that’s got to be a great confidence builder as well,” said Saban. “When you see a player go through that kind of adversity, it certainly makes them stronger as a person. But you also have a great feeling for being able to see them come back and do well in the game, score a touchdown and have some positive plays.”

Sanders ran for 134 yards on 72 attempts for Alabama in 2021, playing mostly with the second-team unit, lining up in games only during the final minutes of blowout wins and looks to expand on that role tremendously now that the former five-star recruit is healthy and back on the field entering his redshirt junior season.