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Nick Saban has seen 18 scholarship players leave via the transfer portal in the last year. However, on Wednesday, the coach admitted that he’s only shaken up over 1 of them.
“I’m not mentioning any names – but there’s only like one player that I was really like disappointed that the guy didn’t stay here, and I couldn’t understand why he was leaving,” Saban said during his Wednesday press conference. “And all the rest of them, they would have contributed if they stayed and had the right attitude, but it’s their choice. And what we have an opportunity to do when guys leave is we have an opportunity to replace them, too.”
We don’t know who Saban is referring to, but it’s an interesting comment nonetheless. Of the players who left, only Javion Cohen, Khryee Jackson, JoJo Earle, and Traeshon Holden started in a game. Aaron Anderson or Tommy Brockermyer could also be the player in question, as both are five-star talents.
Saban admitted that losing players to the transfer portal is not always the worst thing. “And what we have an opportunity to do when guys leave is we have an opportunity to replace them, too,” explained Saban.
That’s exactly what Saban did. The team brought in 5 transfers this offseason, all of whom have seen first-team snaps in camp.
[H/T Rivals]
Bryce Lazenby covers college football for Saturday Down South. A Nashville native, his previous stops include FanSided, Dimers, and The Leaf-Chronicle.
