After further review…

I’ve been thinking since Coach Saban’s press conference on Monday, and apparently, I’m not the only one.

“On Monday, Saban was asked if he had since thought about whether Alabama should have just gone under center for a quarterback sneak on the first play.

‘There’s a lot of thought about that, Saban said. ‘It was not smart on our part to do what we did, and we get a bad snap after all that. I’m not defending anybody, but with better execution, we shouldn’t snap the ball over the quarterback’s head and we’ve got to get on the same page with the snap count. I agree with you that, at a time when it’s first-and-1 on the 1, why do we need to be in gun?’”

Where was Coach Saban?

A question that keeps haunting me is “where was Coach Saban when this decision was made? The answer is obvious. He was right there, and he was in charge and responsible. He could have overruled Tommy Rees, but he didn’t. So why? And why didn’t he take responsibility after the fact on Monday?

Is something different about Saban?

I don’t want to make too much of this, but why didn’t Coach Saban take full responsibility for the decision? He usually does whether we believe it is his fault or not.

I can’t shake the feeling that this is all part of the “kinder, gentler” Nick Saban. You know. The one who hasn’t ripped his team a new one publicly for their lack of focus and discipline. The one who’s only using the media to talk oddly positively about this team. I’m beginning to believe that the age of NIL and CFB free agency has robbed us of cranky Nick Saban. The one who gave Lane Kiffin @$$ chewings like party favors at a 5-year-old’s birthday. The one who would chew an unsuspecting sideline reporter up as collateral damage.

I miss that guy!

I miss cranky Nick Saban, and I think we need him. I for one am hoping that mild mannered Coach Saban will duck into the trainer’s tent this Saturday in Starkvagas, and Cranky Nick will emerge from the tent (probably without a cape) and go thermonuclear on someone.

What do you think? Do you miss Cranky Saban? Are you ready for him to make a triumphant return like the Man of Steel coming back from the Fortress of Solitude (a.k.a. Miss Terry’s Charm School).