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Nick Saban Won’t Back Off Claim That Texas A&M Pipes in Noise to Kyle Field

The former Alabama coach brought it up multiple times this week.

Dan Lyons

Nick Saban continues to accuse Texas A&M’s Kyle Field of piping in crowd noise.
Nick Saban continues to accuse Texas A&M’s Kyle Field of piping in crowd noise. / via College GameDay on X
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Few opponents found much success against Nick Saban’s Alabama program, but Texas A&M picked off the Crimson Tide twice during his incredible run—once during Johnny Manziel’s Heisman season in Tuscaloosa, Ala., and once with Jimbo Fisher on the opposing sideline at Kyle Field in 2021.

Evidently, that game left an impression on Saban, and has left him a bit conspiratorial as well.

With a record capacity of over 110,000, Kyle Field is one of the biggest stadiums in the country, and it is certainly one of the loudest. It is so loud, in fact, that Saban is letting everyone tuning into ESPN this week know that he believes the program pipes in extra crowd noise during games.

He first made the claim during The Pat McAfee Show on Thursday.

“I did more complaining to the SEC office—it was more than complaining that I don’t really want to say on this show—about, this is the noisiest place, plus they pipe in noise,” Saban said. “You can’t hear yourself think when you’re playing out there, and it is a huge advantage when they play at home, especially for their defense, especially getting off the spot. Makes it really difficult for the offensive line.”

McAfee seemed to agree with Saban on Thursday. By Saturday’s College GameDay from College Station, Texas, he seemed to flip to the A&M fans’ side and helped the legendary coach draw some heat from the crowd.

“I think it’s real! I think it’s real!” Saban said, turning to address Aggies fans before turning heel on them. “But y’all still pipe in noise to make it difficult, I don’t give a s--- what you say.”

During an interview with the panel, Texas A&M coach Mike Elko made sure to deny Saban’s claim.

Saban added that Kyle Field is the “hardest place to play in the SEC.” Whether the environment features some artificial boosters or is au naturel, Aggies fans will probably take that plaudit coming from arguably the greatest coach in the sport’s history.

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Dan Lyons
DAN LYONS

Dan Lyons is a staff writer and editor on Sports Illustrated's Breaking and Trending News team. He joined SI for his second stint in November 2024 after a stint as a senior college football writer at Athlon Sports, and a previous run with SI spanning multiple years as a writer and editor. Outside of sports, you can find Dan at an indie concert venue or movie theater.

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