Nick Saban: Tide scouring video of last year’s loss to Ole Miss to find edge

Here is a recap of what Alabama head coach Nick Saban had to say at his weekly press conference.

The Crimson Tide plays Ole Miss on Saturday in its SEC opener.

• Summation of thoughts on 37-10 win over Middle Tennessee: “We have a lot of things to work on and a lot of things to improve.”
• Saban said that while he will have a few players in black jerseys, his team is relatively healthy heading into Saturday. “I don’t think anybody will be out for this game.”
• On Ole Miss offense: “Obviously when you score over 75 points a game you have a dynamic offense in a lot of ways.”
• Saban complimented Cyrus Jones as a leader in the secondary. “He sets a good example in terms of how he works and what he does. That’s been a positive for us with some of the younger players in the group.”
• Saban said plenty of attention has been given to the game film of last season’s loss at Ole Miss, finding ways to improve against the things that worked well for the Rebels.
• On whether Ole Miss offense is different with Chad Kelly at QB instead of Bo Wallace: “Conceptually, it’s pretty much the same offense. They’ve always been a team that like to do quarterback runs. He has run the ball a few times and he has been an effective runner.”
• On Ole Miss DL Robert Nkemdiche: “He’s a very diverse player in terms of his physical skills, but also in the instincts and athletic intuition.”
• On defensive alignment for Ole Miss: “It’s pretty hard to play these guys if you don’t play nickel.”
• Saban said he had no idea if Rebels OT Laremy Tunsil would play against his team this weekend. He said that his presence impacts the game, but not how his players study their schemes.
• On quarterbacks after uneven performances against Middle Tennessee: “I think both guys need to play better.”
• On plan for using more than one quarterback: “I think both guys need to improve, and I think we evaluate this on a day-to-day basis. We’re going the make the best decision for our team. if that’s to play two guys, we’re going to do that. If we think one guy gives us a better chance than the other, then that guy will play.”

Nick Cole

Nick Cole is a former print journalist with several years of experience covering the SEC. Born and raised in SEC country, he has taken in the game-day experience at all 14 stadiums.