Nate Oats Throws Jab at Florida Being 'Best Rebounding Team in the Country'

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama basketball is one day away from its ultimate test regarding one of its biggest weaknesses this season.

The No. 23 Crimson Tide will face No. 19 Florida on the road on Sunday, and while the Gators finished last season as national champions, they are currently at the top of the mountain in terms of rebounds. UF is first in the country in total rebounds per game (46.1), first in offensive rebounds per game (16.7) and eighth in defensive rebounds per game (29.4).

Crimson Tide head coach is well aware of this, as he commended Florida's rebounding ability for nearly two full minutes of Friday's press conference. It seemed like he was done answering the question of whether or not the Gators are Alabama's toughest rebounding test this season, but after a brief pause, he threw a jab at them.

"...And when you can sit in the lane for 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 seconds at a time, it helps your offensive rebounding quite a bit."

The 2026 rendition of Alabama-Florida has a good amount of spice to it, and Gators head coach Todd Golden has been looking forward to facing Alabama for more than a week in advance. Alabama has been the center of the college basketball world for nearly two weeks, as former Crimson Tide center Charles Bediako sued the NCAA on Jan. 20 with hopes of regaining collegiate eligibility and a Tuscaloosa judge granted him a temporary restraining order.

Bediako has played for Alabama in each of the last two games, and countless coaches, analysts and fans have voiced their opinions on the matter. Golden spoke on 'Gator Talk' last week about the situation, as he's not exactly on board with it and claimed, "We're going to beat 'em anyways." He then spoke with Field of 68 earlier this week and thought that UA head coach Nate Oats wouldn't care and that, "He's going to expect to kick our a— too."

Oats reacted to this on Friday as well, stating that he's with Golden in that, "They should be planning on beating us," but naturally, the Crimson Tide head coach disagreed with the Gators head coach's stance on Bediako.

Bediako, who is one of two 7-footers on the team, will play a key role in limiting Florida's rebounds. So, what did Oats say about the Gators' rebounding before throwing the jab?

"They're the best rebounding team in the country," Oats said. "If you go to KenPom, they're second in offensive rebounding rate and second in defensive rebounding rate. Nobody else is that high on both sides of the ball. [Rueben] Chinyelu, [Micah] Handlogten, [Alex] Condon, they could put [Thomas] Haugh at the three. I mean, they're good."

All four of the Florida players that Oats mentioned are averaging over six rebounds per game. Alabama only has one player who has accomplished that feat. Oats discussed how Bediako and forwards Aiden Sherrell and Taylor Bol Bowen will need to be at their best on the glass in this one, but he also named guards like Labaron Philon Jr. and Latrell Wrightsell Jr.

Alabama's lone player averaging over six rebounds is Amari Allen. He's missed the last two games due to an injury, and Oats shared on Friday that the freshman forward is "chomping at the bit" to face the Gators. He explained how Allen "makes a big difference" on the boards, but he'll be a game-time decision for Sunday.

The bottom line is this for Alabama, and it will decide the result of this one...

"I think paint scoring and rebounding are two of the biggest issues with [Alabama]," Oats said. "[Florida] they can score in the paint at a high level, and they go get a bunch of offensive rebounds."

Nate Oats Throws Jab at Florida Being 'Best Rebounding Team in the Country'

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