Ray Rice has been working for years to prove that he is not the same person who was seen on video physically abusing his then-fiancee, and he has a believer in Alabama head coach Nick Saban.
Saban, who has had a number of controversial figures speak to the Crimson Tide over the years, told reporters on Thursday that Rice is in town this week to address the team. The six-time national champion says he has “tremendous respect” for Rice and feels the former Baltimore Ravens star has plenty to share with young players.
“Well, he’s obviously going to talk about how to treat the opposite sex and having the proper respect for other people,” Saban said, via Michael Casagrande of AL.com. “And I think that’s important to relationships. It’s important as a person to be able to do those things in a very respectful manner.
“I think a lot of the players can relate to (Rice’s) circumstance. And it will be interesting to hear a guy that has had issues that now has turned a corner and has really done everything he can to help other people not have the same problem that he has.”
Rice has since married the woman whom he was shown punching in a casino elevator back in 2014. He was released by the Ravens and never got another shot in the NFL after the footage surfaced, but he has said in interviews that the second chance he got from his wife, Janay, is far more important than that.
Rice has offered to help NFL players who have gotten themselves into similar situations, so it’s no surprise he took Saban up on the offer to speak at Alabama.
