Nick Saban says No. 1 ranking more meaningless than ever
Nick Saban is constantly trying to prevent the media from inflating his players’ egos, which is an uphill battle when Alabama is ranked No. 1 in the country almost every season. The Crimson Tide found themselves back atop the polls again this week, and Saban is once again trying to stop the hype.
With Clemson having lost to Notre Dame on Saturday night, Alabama is now No. 1 in both the AP and Coaches Polls. Saban was asked about that this week, and he said the No. 1 ranking is “more meaningless this year than ever before.” He also spoke about how rankings can negatively impact the focus level of players and coaches.
"Complacency creates a blatant disregard for doing what's right… It's not where you are right now, it's where you finish."
Alabama Coach Nick Saban on the Tide's No. 1 ranking. pic.twitter.com/7Ck4w3RTmw
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) November 10, 2020
“Our players are gonna have to show maturity and understanding that it’s not where you’re at right now, it’s where you finish that counts,” Saban said. “If you’re gonna finish the right way you need to continue to try to improve and do the things we need to do to execute even more consistently on a week-to-week basis.”
The college football schedule has been greatly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. That is why Saban feels rankings are more meaningless than ever, as it’s hard to gauge where teams are at without them facing certain opponents.
Of course, this is nothing new for Saban. He has gone to great lengths to get the media to not cover Alabama so positively. He’s also a six-time national champion for a reason. Most of the time, his teams are deserving of the credit.