Nick Saban Shares His Thoughts on SEC Championship, Recent Play of Ty Simpson

The former Crimson Tide coach previewed the upcoming SEC Championship matchup between Alabama and Georgia and provided his own insight as to how Ty Simpson can alleviate some of his recent struggles.

Oct. 4, 2025; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Former Alabama coach Nick Saban smiles as he is on set during ESPN’s College GameDay on location on the Quad at the University of Alabama before the Alabama versus Vanderbilt game. | Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban joined "The Pat McAfee Show" ahead of the Crimson Tide's SEC Championship showdown with Georgia, and shared some of his own thoughts on the rematch between two conference juggernauts.

Saban spoke on the magnitude of the game, discussing the decision of ESPN's College GameDay to not attend the Big Ten Championship, which features the No. 1 and 2 ranked teams in the nation, but instead take the show to Atlanta for the SEC title game.

He said, "Having played in the game a few times, it's is one of the best competitive venues I've been a part of because of the passion that people have in this conference and the support that this game has had... [Mercedes Benz Stadium] is a great place to play it, and there's usually two really good, highly ranked teams playing in the game."

"Having played in this game a few times this is one of the best competitive venues that I've ever been a part of..

This is a great place to have the SEC Championship and there's usually two really good teams playing in this game" ~ Coach Saban #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/G02hQMXfFU

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) December 5, 2025

Saban dove deeper into this year's matchup between Alabama and Georgia -- two teams that faced off in September with the Tide coming out victorious, 24-21.

He spoke highly of the Bulldogs, saying, "I think Georgia is playing really well. Since the Alabama game, they've made significant improvements on both sides of the ball, specifically on defense."

Saban also spoke on Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson, praising him for his consistency this season, but sharing a few of his own coaching tips for the junior signal caller.

He said, "Ty has done a great job all year long, but one of the things that I think is important, is that Ty has been leaving the home position to change plays, and the other team has been changing the defense, so that doesn't create any advantage for you by checking a play on offense."

"Hopefully he'll do a little better job of that this week, and that won't be a problem for Alabama's offense."

"I think Georgia is playing really well right now and they've improving every week..

Ty Simpson has done a great job for Alabama all year long and this should be a good game"

Coach Saban #PMSLive https://t.co/5BzfY54shC pic.twitter.com/mufMbPIFl4

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) December 5, 2025

In the Tide's most recent matchup on the road against Auburn in a hostile Jordan-Hare Stadium, Alabama looked as if it was struggling to communicate across the entire offense when making checks at the line of scrimmage. On multiple occasions, either Simpson or Kalen DeBoer were forced to call a timeout in order to gain a bit of cohesion within the offensive unit.

While Atlanta is a mere hour and 23 minute drive from Athens, Georgia, Mercedes Benz Stadium has been quite the favorable venue for the Tide with Alabama possessing an undefeated 7-0 record when playing there. So, although Georgia fans will likely be piled into the stadium on Saturday afternoon, it is unlikely that the Tide faces the same type of environment it did on the road against Auburn.