If you had any doubts about the Alabama Crimson Tide overlooking the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday, think again.
While appearing on The Pat McAfee Show for his weekly segment, Alabama head coach Nick Saban shared with the guys a little bit of the conversation he had with his wife, Miss Terry. She mentioned how hard it will be this year playing the Iron Bowl at Auburn. Kentucky is up next!
There are so many things that Saban does and has done that have made him the greatest head coach in college football history. It can be recruitment, level of competition, hiring and great staff around him and then empowering them, but the biggest separating factor is his relentless approach to taking it one game at a time. Alabama plays Kentucky, then Chattanooga, then will face Auburn...
At 8-1 (6-0) and firmly inside the top 10 of the latest College Football Playoff rankings, Saban is well aware that his Crimson Tide team could get got by a feisty and well-coached Kentucky team led by Mark Stoops, a man everyone in the SEC has such tremendous respect for. Auburn is Auburn, and playing the Crimson Tide down on The Plains gives them a puncher's chance, but one game at a time.
Here is Saban telling the boys about what he said to Miss Terry after she talked all about Auburn.
Alabama needs one more win or an Ole Miss conference loss to clinch the SEC West this season.
Nick Saban is not going to let Alabama overlook Kentucky at all, aight
Look. This is not one of Saban's most talented teams he has had at Alabama, but we have to give him, his coaching staff and his players a ton of credit for getting so much better in the last several weeks. This is not the same team that lost at home to Texas in Week 2, or got pushed around by South Florida down in Tampa a week later. It will not be easy, but this team can win a national championship.
Of course, none of that is possible if Alabama does not take care of business vs. a well-run Kentucky program. Although the Wildcats may never have the upward trajectory to beat SEC juggernauts like Alabama and Georgia with any regularity, or at all, they are not going to beat themselves. While I think we should all appreciate Miss Terry identifying Auburn as a tough game, which is it, one day at a time.
Ultimately, is going to need to win its next six games to be national champions. This includes wins over Kentucky, Chattanooga, Auburn, presumably over Georgia in Atlanta, and then come whatever may in the College Football Playoff should we even get that far. Alabama is good enough to get to 11-1, maybe even beat UGA in Atlanta, but running the gauntlet will be his greatest achievement to date.
Once again, it starts with beating Kentucky to get to 7-0 in SEC play to eliminate Ole Miss in-division.
