Two well-known leaders had strikingly similar approaches, and strikingly different results, about fighting COVID-19 over the weekend.
Each is a well-known name and face. Each reached the apex of their profession. And each was in the state of Alabama – one of the least vaccinated states in these sorely under-vaccinated, anything-but-United States.
The first was Nick Saban, the wildly successful University of Alabama football coach. When asked about a player who was trying to move up the depth chart after missing chunks of the preseason for failing to adhere to the team’s “COVID protocols,” Saban could not have been more direct.
“That’s up to him. That’s not up to me,” Saban said Saturday of the player, via AL.com. “He knows what he’s supposed to do . He’s known what he’s supposed to do. This is not a democracy. Everybody doesn’t get to do what they want to do. Everybody doesn’t get to do what they feel like doing. You got to buy in and do what you’re supposed to do to be a part of the team.”
Now consider Saban’s approach and message with backlash against an individual who demands fealty from supporters.