Here's what Steve Sarkisian, Nick Saban had to say about each other ahead of Texas-Alabama clash
One thing Saturday’s Texas-Alabama football matchup isn’t short on is storylines.
As if having ESPN’s “College GameDay” and FOX’s “Big Noon Kickoff” pregame shows — not to mention the No. 1 team in the nation — in Austin for the Week 2 game didn’t provide enough intrigue, Longhorn coach Steve Sarkisian also gets an opportunity to face off against the mentor he is “forever grateful” to.
Sarkisian was fired as USC’s head coach in October 2015 after several alcohol-related incidents, and later that month decided to enter rehabilitation to confront his alcoholism. The coach who provided Sarkisian with his next college football opportunity is the same one who will stroll the visitor’s sideline inside DKR Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday — Alabama’s Nick Saban.
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Saban brought Sarkisian on as an offensive assistant for the 2016 season, and made him Alabama's offensive coordinator for that season’s national championship game. After a two-season stint as the OC for the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, Sarkisian returned to Tuscaloosa for another two seasons calling plays under Saban. Sarkisian left the Crimson Tide staff again after Alabama won the 2020 College Football Playoff Championship, this time to take the Texas job.
Now, Sarkisian gets a chance to face off with his former boss and team when No. 1 Alabama (1-0) faces Texas (1-0) in Austin on Saturday (11 a.m., FOX). Here’s what Saban and Sarkisian have said about each other ahead of the matchup.
What Texas coach Steve Sarkisian had to say about Alabama's Nick Saban this week
The impending Texas-Alabama clash naturally has Sarkisian recalling his time with the Crimson Tide — stints he remains thankful for after a rocky end to his tenure at USC.
“They didn’t have to hire me,” Sarkisian said of Nick Saban and his wife, Terry, to The Tuscaloosa News, “knowing what I had been through … I think as (the Sabans) got to know me and made that commitment and that willingness to hire me and support me in my own journey, at that point showed me a ton of compassion when others maybe wouldn’t have. I am forever grateful to them for that.”
Sarkisian pointed to Saban’s game-planning, schemes, and ability to motivate as his biggest strengths as a head coach.
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Ahead of a game of this magnitude, Sarkisian said one of his strengths as a coach will need to be preventing distractions from getting to his team.
"The biggest thing for us is be enamored with us," Sarkisian said at a press conference Monday. "You can get caught up in being worried about Alabama, you can get caught up being worried about GameDay being here, you can get caught up being worried about Fox being here. You can get caught up with all the stuff that really is irrelevant with our ability to play good football."
Alabama's Nick Saban dominates against former assistants. Will that include Texas' Steve Sarkisian?
Saban, whose seven national titles as a college coach are the most ever, is used to facing off with head coaches who were once on his staff. And the results speak for themselves.
Heading into an encounter with Sarkisian, Saban is 24-2 vs. his former assistants. Both of those losses came last season — to Jimbo Fisher (Texas A&M) in the regular season and Kirby Smart (Georgia) in the national title game. When it comes to coaching against Sarkisan, Saban knows what he’s up against.
"(Sarkisian) has done a really good job,” Saban said at a press conference Monday. “... I think he's a very bright guy, very well organized. He did an outstanding job when he was here.
“He's got a good system. He understands defense. He likes to see what you're in if he can, so that he can run a play that's going to be an effective play against that particular look or give his players the best chance to be successful. I think all those things and a combination of those things and good preparation, make you a really, really good play caller.”
To Saban, though, familiarity with an opponent — or the opposing coach — isn’t everything.
“We seem to play several teams now that kind of know us, but you act like we don’t know them,” Saban said. “So just because somebody knows you when they play you doesn’t mean they’re going to beat you. Just because you know them when you play them doesn’t mean you’re going to beat them either.”
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Sarkisian, Saban discuss their history ahead of Texas-Alabama football game
