NCAA college football head coach Nick Saban of Alabama speaks during the ceremony for the acceptance of The MacArthur Bowl trophy which is in front of him during the Southeastern Conference Media Days at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Wednesday, July 18, 2018. The trophy is presented annually, since 1959, to the top team in the country. (AP Photo/John Amis)ATLANTA - Alabama football coach Nick Saban made his 17th appearance at the Southeastern Conference's annual Media Days event Wednesday afternoon.
It was Saban's 12th journey representing the Crimson Tide after previously making five visits with LSU, and his 17 trips are second only to the 23 made by former Florida and South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier. Only Spurrier has coached in the SEC as a 70-year-old, and Saban was asked if he might match that feat.
Saban turns 67 on Halloween.
"Mrs. Terry does not want me at home," Saban said. "She doesn't care if I'm 60, 70 or 80. She is looking for something for me to do. I really enjoy what I'm doing right now, and as long as I'm healthy and I can do it, I'm going to continue to do it and not worry about any numbers or what my age is or anything like that.
"I would not want to be in the position where I ever rode the program down because I wasn't capable of making a contribution that would be positive to the success of the program."
Such a position is nowhere in sight for a program coming off its fifth national championship in the last nine seasons. Saban has compiled a mind-blowing 125-14 record since his 7-6 debut season at Tuscaloosa in 2007, and his impact on the league has been even more profound.
Georgia and South Carolina finished 1-2 in the SEC East last season, with former Saban defensive coordinators Kirby Smart and Will Muschamp heading those programs. Saban had a former offensive coordinator leave the SEC last November when Jim McElwain was let go at Florida, but another one joined last December when Texas A&M hired Jimbo Fisher.
SEC Network personality and former LSU defensive end Marcus Spears said Wednesday that Saban could coach until he's 75.
Saban is preferring to focus on developing yet another Alabama team that can challenge for a league and national championship. An SEC title eluded the Tide last season, when Georgia topped Auburn for the championship, but Alabama rallied past Georgia in the title game of the four-team playoff.
"We lost a lot of really good football players, especially on defense," Saban said. "We had 10 guys sign NFL contracts, so there is going to be a lot of opportunity for a lot of young players at every position. We've got a few guys coming back up front. We've got a few linebackers coming back, but we still have a lot of opportunity for a lot of young players, especially in the secondary, where we lost the most players.
"You're going to ask me questions about these young players and how they develop, but they are all things that are yet to be determined."
When asked if losing out on last year's SEC championship could serve as motivation this season, senior running back Damien Harris said, "Our biggest goal is to win every game that we play and to beat every team that we face."
The biggest question facing the Tide between now and the Sept. 1 opener against Louisville concerns the starting quarterback. Jalen Hurts has compiled a 26-2 record as the starter through two seasons, but it was Tua Tagovailoa who rallied the Crimson Tide from a 13-0 deficit to January's 26-23 overtime triumph over the Bulldogs.
Saban took a "we'll see" approach when discussing the quarterbacks, but he was asked whether he thought Hurts would be with the program for the opener.
"I have no idea," Saban said. "I expect him to be there. I think it's our job to give both players a very fair opportunity to have a chance to win the team at their position. Obviously, both are capable.
"We'll create a role for one or both of those guys on our team, and they'll all have to make a decision based on what that outcome is as to what their future is at Alabama."
Holcombe's departure
Alabama has suffered two setbacks at linebacker this summer following the ACL injury to Terrell Lewis and the dismissal of VanDarius Cowan for violating team rules. A third linebacker, Keith Holcombe, can be added to that list, as the senior from Tuscaloosa has decided to focus solely on baseball.
The 6-foot-4, 236-pounder saw a lot of action early last season due to injuries to Lewis, Christian Miller and Rashaan Evans, tallying seven tackles in the second game against Fresno State and nine in the third game against Colorado State.
"He has made the decision to play baseball and not be a part of the team," Saban said. "I think he would add a tremendous amount of experience, knowledge and diversity to our defense if he decided to come back, but that doesn't seem to be the case right now."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.