Alabama football coach Nick Saban said Thursday evening that hardships and sacrifices college players endure are well worth it because of the opportunities a degree provides.
Saban was asked after the Crimson Tide’s seventh preseason practice about comments made earlier this week by UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen, who said that “human beings don’t belong in school with our schedules” and that trying to be a player and a student “is like trying to do two full-time jobs.”
“I don’t know that it’s changed a whole lot,” Saban said in a news conference. “We used to have two-a-days every day, and we don’t have two-a-days anymore. We don’t spend any more time in fall camp than we did when I was a player, and we don’t practice any longer through the course of a week.
“I look at it the other way. We’ve had 23, 29 and 22 guys play with their degrees in the last three years in their last game playing at Alabama.”
The Crimson Tide worked out for two hours in full pads and will practice again this morning in preparation for Saturday’s first scrimmage.