Alabama Athletics
Nick Saban Remains Focused on Team, Desires Early Teaching Period For Fall Camp
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Following the cancellation of spring practices and A-Day, Alabama football coach Nick Saban does not seem overly concerned about his team's preparation for the 2020 season.
The six-time national champion coach believes that if his team were to have 14 days of teaching prior to the start of fall camp, that is all itwould need to be brought up-to-speed.
"Obviously we have 14 practices in the spring not counting A-Day, which makes 15, which is not going to happen," Saban said in a virtual press conference on Thursday morning. "You know if there was some kind of way that we could have 14 days of teaching with our players some time before fall camp happens I think that would probably be beneficial.
"Historically we're not allowed to work with our players in the summertime and this would be hypothetical that at some point in time in the summer we would have the players back here and we would be able to work with them."
Saban went on to clarify that by teaching players he did not mean on the field, but in an off-the-field capacity instructing players on the team's systems and the fundamentals of individual positions.
"I'm not talking about having pads on or anything," Saban said. "But just be able to teach. Teach systems, teach schemes. We'll have to evaluate the players based on fall camp and I think the players who benefit the most from spring practice are really the young players on the team so hopefully this'll work out that we'll be able to have some time to be able to teach them and we'll just have to evaluate them in fall camp."
Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, Saban is remaining in his home and orchestrating his efforts from there. While the players are working out from their respective homes, Saban and his team monitor their player workouts via Apple Watches and other technology to ensure that the team is conditioned and ready once fall camp begins.
While the matter of whether players will be conditioned in time for the 2020 season is a real concern, Saban believes that the contact and experience that players get in the spring does not benefit the players to the same extent that it does in fall camp.
After discussing his 14-day teaching period that he desires to host for his players prior to the beginning of fall practice, Saban detailed the lessons he wants to instruct to his players and what exactly he has in mind.
"I think the technique and the thing that you teach whether it's tackling, block protection, footwork, hand placement for offensive linemen, pass protection and blocking for running backs, whatever it might be, perimeter blocking for receivers, block protection for DBs—I think the how to do it, the why it's important to do it that way probably has a lot of carryover," Saban said. "That's why we do it.
"I don't think the actual contact that you have in the spring prepares somebody to have contact in the fall. I think that's why you have fall camp."
Stay tuned to BamaCentral for more news from Saban's teleconference throughout the day.
