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Saban considers Texas a good barometer for his Crimson Tide

Crimson Tide photos / Last year's football game between Alabama and Texas in Austin came down to Will Reichard's 33-yard field goal with 10 seconds remaining. The two teams play again Saturday night in Tuscaloosa.
Crimson Tide photos / Last year's football game between Alabama and Texas in Austin came down to Will Reichard's 33-yard field goal with 10 seconds remaining. The two teams play again Saturday night in Tuscaloosa. Crimson Tide photos / Last year's football game between Alabama and Texas in Austin came down to Will Reichard's 33-yard field goal with 10 seconds remaining. The two teams play again Saturday night in Tuscaloosa.

By David Paschall 5 min read

Alabama has opened most football seasons in the Nick Saban era by humbling an elite opponent.

For a second straight year, however, the first challenging foe can be found on the season’s second full Saturday. The Crimson Tide produced an impressive start to Saban’s 17th season in Tuscaloosa this past weekend with a 56-7 trampling of Middle Tennessee State inside Bryant-Denny Stadium, but the test Saturday night (7 on ESPN) is visiting Texas.

The Crimson Tide escaped the Longhorns 20-19 last September in Austin.

“Games like this are something that players certainly look forward to,” Saban said Monday in a news conference. “Texas has a really good team and a really veteran team returning with 10 starters on offense and six on defense. They’ve got a really good quarterback (Quinn Ewers) who can throw the ball effectively, and they make a lot of explosive plays.

“This is a really good team all the way around, and it’s going to be a good barometer for us to find out where we are as a team.”