Coach Saban upset with high expectations

[Padreruf]

CNS is frustrated because his OL isn't up to par and his QB isn't where he thought he would be. This team is closer than it looks -- the D is coming around and the coaches are understanding what they can and cannot do. However, the OL must develop some sort of identity in order for us to function as an offense. Early games we pass blocked well...but now they do not seem to be able to do that.

Do we have unrealistic expectations? Yes...but we must balance these with reality. Nah...

 

[BamaMoon]

LOL - You must be on the Board of Directors with davefrat!

Really??? The 100,000+ fans have a say, indirectly at least. You know what I meant.

 

[KrAzY3]

He's upset because fans have high expectations, the same expectations he said "we" have for the program on January 4, 2007 - the day he began building the program he has today.

I can't remember what all we disagreed on, I'm bad at remembering that sort of thing, but I have it in my head that you're a pretty reasonable guy. You just seem so adamantly on the other side (which is your right of course), to the point of applauding some pretty disrespectful (personal) stuff so I'm not sure what to make of that...

That's not even what he said though.

“Everybody’s got such a high expectation for what our team should be. I was just happy to see our players be happy about playing a game and winning,” Saban said.
“It really, if you want to know the truth about it, ______ me off when I talk to people that have this expectation like they’re disappointed that we only won the game 14-13 and the way we played. That’s frustrating. You want to talk about something that’s frustrating? That’s frustrating to me, for our players, who play with a lot of heart in the game.”

He never actually says he's upset with high expectations. I mentioned that before several pages ago, but what he actually says is that it upsets him that people are disappointed after the win. It takes a decent bit of inferring to get to upset with fans high expectations.

I've argued all along that he was alluding to fans, but does anyone have a quote where he actually even singles out fans? It seems to me some of the ire and posts in this topic are direct responses to a statement that was never actually made. I know I'm parsing words here, but where does he say he's upset with high expectations or even allude to fans? If he wanted to be more pointed I suppose he could have, at best this is kind of a warning shot though. There seems to be a lot of overreaction here and may be part of that is just people taking the statements as more personal than they were intended to be, because otherwise I can't really comprehend this much negativity. Then again, there was once a fuss made about the color of his tie.

Why can I not disagree with what I think was a mistake he made today and still think he's a great coach and hope he stays many more years at Bama???

Of course you can, but your disagreement gives you something in common with people on record as being upset with Nick Saban, UAB fans, that openly said they would stop being Alabama fans if he made X amount of money, etc... I have a lot of respect for most of the posters here, even the ones I'm arguing with, but there's a fringe element there that I do believe to be fully capable of helping run him out of town one of these days.

 

[Alasippi]

I'm good with what I've said :biga:

I'll give you my support.

 

[JTBama]

I'll just add this: I respect CNS and I am VERY appreciative of what he has brought to the University and for the success we've enjoyed. I do, however, grow increasingly weary of constantly being told how to act as a fan. I also grow increasingly weary of the segment of our fan base that has the attitude of "Saban is ALWAYS right...how dare a meager fan question him...he'll fix it, he's Nick Saban...trust the process...it's always the players' fault, never Saban's... etc."

Folks, he isn't a deity. He's a football coach and he's one of the best...ever. But he needs to move past these trivial things that he's hung up on and work to correct the issues that are actually plaguing the team. He's being WELL compensated to run the program and that includes having to endure a restless fanbase from time to time.

Bravo:hurray:

 

[CrimsonForce]

I can't remember what all we disagreed on, I'm bad at remembering that sort of thing, but I have it in my head that you're a pretty reasonable guy. You just seem so adamantly on the other side (which is your right of course), to the point of applauding some pretty disrespectful stuff so I'm not sure what to make of that...

That's not even what he said though.


He never actually says he's upset with high expectations. I mentioned that before several pages ago, but what he actually says is that it upsets him that people are disappointed after the win. It takes a decent bit of inferring to get to upset with fans high expectations.

I've argued all along that he was alluding to fans, but does anyone have a quote where he actually even singles out fans? It seems to me some of the ire and posts in this topic are direct responses to a statement that was never actually made. I know I'm parsing words here, but where does he say he's upset with high expectations or even allude to fans? If he wanted to be more pointed I suppose he could have, at best this is kind of a warning shot though. There seems to be a lot of overreaction here and may be part of that is just people taking the statements are more personal than they were, because otherwise I can't really comprehend this much negativity. Then again, there was once a fuss made about the color of his tie.


Of course you can, but your disagreement gives you something in common with people on record as being upset with Nick Saban, UAB fans, that openly said they would stop being Alabama fans if he made X amount of money, etc... I have a lot of respect for most of the posters here, even the ones I'm arguing with, but there's a fringe element there that I do believe to be fully capable of helping run him out of town one of these days.

It's kinda of off for him to be satisfied with the win when all he has preached is process and not results. The process (what happened during the game -each play and the game as a whole) was very underwhelming by almost any standards. The results (which he has said not to focus on) was good. So now it's about results and not how poorly we played against a team that hasn't won a SEC game in over two years? We are all happy we won. It was the way we played, which has been discussed ad nauseam, that most are disappointed in..

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

It's surprising how many folks on this board appear to have really fragile feelings. If what Nick Saban said offends you, prepare to be offended again. He's a passionate coach, and passion takes many forms. None of us know what this team is hearing from its followers, but let's take a wild guess at the gems the fringe came up with Saturday night.

Please, no more Paul Bryant comparisons. His era might have well as been the Ice Age. And had he and his personal struggles been subjected to a tenth of the scrutiny of today, he would have been run out of coaching.

If you were offended by Nick Saban, that is your right. Why don't you write him a letter, and sign your real name.

 

[CrimsonForce]

It's surprising how many folks on this board appear to have really fragile feelings. If what Nick Saban said offends you, prepare to be offended again. He's a passionate coach, and passion takes many forms. None of us know what this team is hearing from its followers, but let's take a wild guess at what gems the fringe came up with Saturday night.

Please, no more Paul Bryant comparisons. His era might have well as been the Ice Age. And had he and his personal struggles been subjected to a tenth of the scrutiny of today, he would have been run out of coaching.

If you were offended by Nick Saban, that is your right. Why don't you write him a letter, and sign your real name.

Lol he is the one who went on a rant today when asked a harmless question. Take that sensitivity stuff somewhere else..

 

[Tidefan1]

This may not be a popular opinion, but...

CNS needs to suck it up and coach the team. They've looked ill-prepared and sloppy the last two weeks and that's on him. If he thinks fans expecting a coach to win when he's given $7million/year, has an arsenal of talent that's as good or better than any other team in the country and is given everything he's ever asked for wrt tools, buildings, etc. is unreasonable, then maybe he needs to refocus his efforts.

Frankly, I'm tired of hearing what CNS and wife think of us as fans. Put a product on the field that reflects what you preach and we'll all be happy.

Thank you. I was getting kind of tired of the complaining as well. Coach seems to be making an awful lot of excuses lately. It's always somebody else's fault. Whether it's the fans, the media, or the younger players on the team.

 

[Leeroy]

This may not be a popular opinion, but...

CNS needs to suck it up and coach the team. They've looked ill-prepared and sloppy the last two weeks and that's on him. If he thinks fans expecting a coach to win when he's given $7million/year, has an arsenal of talent that's as good or better than any other team in the country and is given everything he's ever asked for wrt tools, buildings, etc. is unreasonable, then maybe he needs to refocus his efforts.

Frankly, I'm tired of hearing what CNS and wife think of us as fans. Put a product on the field that reflects what you preach and we'll all be happy.

Bingo! I love Coach and what he's done, but he's painting himself in a corner with that rant. You have the tools to put a good team on the field, use them. And, find a QB that can work under center or scrap the proset and print your play book in color crayans like the barn does.

 

[Alasippi]

It's surprising how many folks on this board appear to have really fragile feelings. If what Nick Saban said offends you, prepare to be offended again. He's a passionate coach, and passion takes many forms. None of us know what this team is hearing from its followers, but let's take a wild guess at what gems the fringe came up with Saturday night.

Please, no more Paul Bryant comparisons. His era might have well as been the Ice Age. And had he and his personal struggles been subjected to a tenth of the scrutiny of today, he would have been run out of coaching.

If you were offended by Nick Saban, that is your right. Why don't you write him a letter, and sign your real name.

Amen. Coach Bryant use to bury the media, if they so much as asked him a strategy question, and he didn't give a crap what they, nor the fans thought about it.

 

[TideFan in AU]

Really don't understand how folks are struggling to comprehend my original comment. I didn't say the two were exactly the same. I said the mentality Saban does no wrong is the foundation of the belief Penn State fans had when told JoePa didn't act in the Sandusky case. That's all. I'm not saying the two are identical.

When did anybody say Saban does no wrong? When did Saban say that no one had the right to question him? I can think of several things that I THOUGHT should have been different, but my next game coaching CFB will be my first. I don't understand why is it so hard to comprehend that he is saying that the fan's expectations are too high for this team. That's what he said, and I agree with him.

You're right though, what you compared is not identical. It is not even on the same planet.

Maybe he's upset at himself for those expectations and needed a way to release that anger. I don't know, but I'm not fine with him getting behind the microphone and going on a rant like that on his own.

Like I said before, bless your heart if that hurt your feelings. We are not going to dominate every opponent. That is the goal, but it is not realistic. We didn't dominate every opponent in any year he has been here, but people look back at the crystal footballs, and I think they think we did. We probably should have lost to UT and AU in 2009, but we won ugly games went on to undefeated season. Those were 2 unranked teams that we should have beat much more easily than we did. We were happy with those wins then, and we were ecstatic when we won. That isn't the case now. People go nuts if we struggle at all in a game. They go really nuts when we lose one because they don't think we should ever lose. That is unrealistic, and there's a reason why teams have never won 3 or 4 consecutive Championships.

Whether you want to admit it or not, our fan's expectations are entirely way too high right now, and I have no problem that he called people out on it.

 

[mittman]

Wow, what a wild ride I just had reading this thread.

I will. just say this. I had the opportunity to sit behind a player's parents at a game. Some of the things they were hearing about their son (and not reacting to them) was literally sickening. Some of the tweets posted by Drake were along those lines. My take from listening to what Coach Saban said was that there is a lot of over the top reactions from fans that are beyond what is reasonable, and I agree. However, it does come with the territory, and these days of social media to do this job or play this game you have to have seriously thick skin.

 

[bamacon]

For someone who bi-s about clutter he sure has been bringing a LOT of it in clubhouse. He did it all last week with AJ's stupid donkey comments and now this. Last year he griped about this crap. With all due respect to Sip this ain't brilliant and it ain't working. Personally I liked it better when he'd shred reporters for bringing stupid topics like this up. He used to would never entertain the media meme. I guess he's trying a new tact.

 

[bamacon]

Wow, what a wild ride I just had reading this thread.

I will. just say this. I had the opportunity to sit behind a player's parents at a game. Some of the things they were hearing about their son (and not reacting to them) was literally sickening. Some of the tweets posted by Drake were along those lines. My take from listening to what Coach Saban said was that there is a lot of over the top reactions from fans that are beyond what is reasonable, and I agree. However, it does come with the territory, and these days of social media to do this job or play this game you have to have seriously thick skin.

It's typical human nature not to hear the 100k cheering til they can't speak and spending thousands to support Bama and only hearing the handful of drunk a-holes.

 

[CrimsonForce]

Why do people keep referencing Coach Bryant? His act with the media wouldn't fly today. Different era..

 

[Alasippi]

Bingo! I love Coach and what he's done, but he's painting himself in a corner with that rant. You have the tools to put a good team on the field, use them. And, find a QB that can work under center or scrap the proset and print your play book in color crayans like the barn does.

Against Florida, Blake Sims broke the all time, single game, total offense record in the history of Alabama football.
I know racism isn't supposed to be brought up on this board, and it shouldn't. I agree 100%.
But bringing up the Auburn "color crayons", since they have a black QB, gives me no choice but to think you're a racist.
If I'm right, you're pathetic.
If I'm wrong, I apologize.
sip

 

[TideFan in AU]

Really??? The 100,000+ fans have a say, indirectly at least. You know what I meant.

No. No, I don't know what you meant. What I do know is that people celebrated like we had won a National Championship the day that we "gave him the opportunity to have the job". We had been through the worst 10 year span of most of our lives. We were hopeful that maybe CNS could get us back in contention and hopefully win a National Championship. If anybody had told us then that he was going to win 3 NC's in 6 years and win more games in a 6 year span than anyone in the history of CFB we would have not believed it. Remember?

DING DING DING!!!!

Now, can anybody tell me with a straight face that our expectations haven't changed slightly since that press conference in 2007 that y'all keep harping on???

 

[Gr8hope]

sip, I didn't take it that way. I think it was in reference to the cartoon type signs they hold up to call the signals. They do look rather juvenile.

 

[RTR91]

Some of you are worse than the media. One critique of Saban or the staff or the players means we fans are entitled and unappreciative of what is happening in Tuscaloosa.