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Saban explains ‘rebuilding year’ after Alabama’s first practice

Crimson Tide photos / Alabama won the Southeastern Conference championship and reached the title game of the four-team playoff last season, but Crimson Tide football coach Nick Saban referred to that this week as a rebuilding year. He explained what he meant following Thursday's first practice of the preseason.
Crimson Tide photos / Alabama won the Southeastern Conference championship and reached the title game of the four-team playoff last season, but Crimson Tide football coach Nick Saban referred to that this week as a rebuilding year. He explained what he meant following Thursday's first practice of the preseason. Crimson Tide photos / Alabama won the Southeastern Conference championship and reached the title game of the four-team playoff last season, but Crimson Tide football coach Nick Saban referred to that this week as a rebuilding year. He explained what he meant following Thursday's first practice of the preseason.

By David Paschall 3 min read

Alabama won its seventh Southeastern Conference championship in a 10-year stretch last season to earn the top seed in the College Football Playoff, and the program also played for the national title for a ninth time in 13 years.

Obviously not all rebuilding years are equal.

Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban made some headlines on the doorstep of his 15th preseason camp in Tuscaloosa, using “rebuilding year” to refer to last season’s 13-2 showing. Alabama even led the national championship game 18-13 with 10 minutes remaining before Georgia pulled away for a 33-18 triumph.

Saban made the comment Wednesday morning on WJOX in Birmingham and was asked about it Thursday afternoon following Alabama’s first of 27 practices before its Sept. 3 opener against Utah State inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“What’s so hard to understand?” Saban said in a news conference. “The point being is that we were young. We should have had nine starters back on offense and nine starters back on defense, but six guys went out for the draft. That’s the point I was trying to make.