ESPN All Access Day with Saban

tide96 said:

http://www.espn.com/college-footbal...ball-defending-champions-alabama-crimson-tide

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Saban admits he is still stung by the whole Maurice Smith saga, where he took a lot of criticism for not initially giving the grad transfer a full release. And, yes, it was made worse that Smith left to play for Saban's former longtime assistant, Kirby Smart, at Georgia. But the part that eats at Saban is that Smith felt it wasn't in his best interests to finish his career at Alabama.

"The thing I lose sleep over the most is not winning and losing the games. It's about players. It's about a guy who's not doing the right thing or somebody you're trying to get to see the light and buy into doing the right things," Saban says. "I've been coaching for 43 years, and to have what happened with Maurice Smith and his family, that's what I lose sleep over.

"We've got 53 players in the NFL and a whole bunch of other ones who aren't in the NFL and are very successful. But what I lay awake at night and think about is where did I fail a guy like Maurice Smith. What didn't I do, or what could I have done better?"

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Meanwhile, Saban is already thinking about the next day.

"When I lose that feeling, I'll know then that it's time to get out," he says. "But that's something I never think about. There's always another challenge, another way to improve, another way to get through to a kid that maybe I haven't been able to.

"Those are the wins that mean the most to me."

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RTR91 said:

Yep. Mean ole Saban really hates the players...

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