Steve Sarkisian tells hilarious story on making Nick Saban angry

With Alabama and Texas facing off against one another this season, the two head coaches are going to be asked to venture down memory lane. Steve Sarkisian was in Tuscaloosa in 2016 as an analyst and then again for two years as the offensive coordinator. He has kept his relationship with Nick Saban since leaving the program.

In a recent interview, Sarkisian was asked to think back and remember the maddest he ever made Saban. To no surprise, the moment occurred early in his tenure as the OC. To a slight surprise, practice was the atmosphere where Saban lost his cool on Sarkisian, not a game scenario.

“There was one day in practice,” Sarkisian began. “We were working on a big personnel with a short yardage situation. I could not get the formation right that he wanted me to align up in. And man, he was upset with me because I was the new coordinator and I was instilling some things offensively that I thought would be beneficial to the team.

“I clearly didn’t do a good enough job of learning what they had been doing offensively. That was one time. I still get a chuckle about that one. That was about the most upset I got him. That was in practice, not in a game.”

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Sarkisian is famous for his offensive mind but on this certain day, he was struggling with the short yardage package. Saban himself can be known for losing his temper at times, especially when things are not done the way he wants. But at the end of the day, if that’s the only time Saban got overly mad, Sarkisian did well.

Steve Sarkisian comments on new Nick Saban contract

Just before the season got underway, Saban signed a new contract with Alabama. He will remain with the Crimson Tide through the 2029 season and is once again the highest-paid head coach in college football.

Sarkisian commented on the new deal for his own boss, saying he probably deserved more than what Alabama gave him. You can tell there is still a respect there, even before the two will do battle against one another on Sept. 10.

“He deserves it,” Sarkisian said. “Probably needs more than that, whatever he got. He’s unbelievable.”

Texas will play host in Week 2, welcoming the preseason No. 1 team to Austin. Sarkisian will need to have his young squad ready to roll because you know Saban will have his team prepared well.