Aug 4, 2013; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban throws a football during practice at Bryant Denny Stadium. Kevin Liles-USA TODAY Sports
On Thursday Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban opened up practice for a rare glimpse inside the Tide program as ESPN was allowed access into practices, and interviews with Saban and players all day.
In a truly unique and rare instance, Saban allowed ESPN cameras to sit in as he coached the defensive backs during practice today, giving a truly intriguing view of one of the greatest defensive minds in football at work. It also showed just a hint of just how complex the Alabama defense is, especially in pass coverage, as Saban walked the cornerbacks through several different types of coverage’s in under five minutes. Most of his coaching and instruction went to the younger players like Cyrus Jones.
Alabama returned to full pads outside for today’s practice in 90+ degree weather.
A new member of practice was from a walk-on wearing No. 96 and “Hodge” written on his helmet, but no mention of who the player was yet. He was likely a stand-in for Dakota Ball, who had an emergency appendectomy yesterday.
Scouts from both the San Diego Chargers and Minnesota Vikings were in town viewing practice today. The Chargers drafted former Tide offensive tackle DJ Fluker in the first round of the recent NFL Draft.
Sophomore linebacker Reggie Ragland was spotted with a taped up right foot, but seemed to be moving fine and fully participating in drills.
Cornerback Deion Belue visited trainers, who attended to his leg in practice, but during position drills Belue seemed to be moving fine.
In a humorous moment during DB drills, Saban needled senior cornerback Nick Perry for not being aggressive on a block shedding drill (where the DB attempts to shed a block to get a ball carrier).
Saban asked Perry if he was afraid of “punching” the guy he was going against. Perry responded by saying the other player, Geno Smith, had earlier mentioned his neck hurting. Saban asked Perry sarcastically if he needed to get running back Dee Hart, who practiced some at cornerback in the spring, to come over and take his place.
New cornerback Cyrus Jones was getting a lot of one-on-one tutelage from Saban during position drills.
Saban also spoke to ESPN during the day on trying to coach against complacency as Alabama begins its quest for a third consecutive BCS Championship:
“The players have to understand there’s a couple things that are really going to affect their ability to continue to be successful. Complacency is one. Selfishness is one. And not paying attention to detail, not doing the little things right, not doing the things that got you there.”
Saban says that the next step in quarterback AJ McCarron’s growth is getting better at making all of the players around him better.
ESPN also spoke to McCarron, and was asked the toughest thing about being the Alabama quarterback. McCarron said the push for perfection was always the toughest. He stated that if the team doesn’t win a championship it’s considered a failure, something they created by their success and now have to maintain.
McCarron also talked about Amari Cooper’s work ethic being among his best attributes.
“He doesn’t have a young guy’s mindset… as in when things go wrong he doesn’t give up,” McCarron said of Cooper. “He’s gonna come back and try to beat you ten times more than he has before.”
The senior QB talked about his relationship with Coach Saban, and noted the primary factor in that relationship was him maturing and growing up.
McCarron was tossed some Johnny Manziel questions yet again today, but as at SEC Media Days, McCarron said he was focused on his team and the season.
* * * *
Also today, New York Yankees general manager Joe Girardi spoke to the Tide, joining the likes of Herm Edwards and Ray Lewis in speaking to the team. Girardi compared the expectation on the Yankees every year to the same lofty expectations for the Tide, and talked about dealing with distractions and complacency.
Also, earlier today Sports Illustrated revealed its Pre-Season All America team and once again Alabama dominated. Three Tide players landed on the first team, while two were named to the second team; the most in the country.
Running back T.J. Yeldon along with linebacker C.J. Mosley and safety Ha’Sean “HaHa” Clinton-Dix were named to the first team, while offensive tackle Cyrus Kouandjio and wide receiver Amari Cooper were named to the second team.
In more news regarding Alabama’s week one opponents, Virginia Tech redshirt freshman running back Joel Caleb will be unavailable for the Hokies, as he has been suspended for the season opener. Caleb was given a one-game suspension for an undisclosed “violation of team rules.” Running back is a thin position for Virginia Tech after the dismissal of projected starter, Michael Holmes, earlier in the offseason.
Alabama returns to practice tomorrow before the first scrimmage of the year on Saturday.