“Vanderbilt Aims to Prove Nick Saban Wrong in Upcoming SEC Showdown”
In a recent appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, former Alabama head coach Nick Saban mentioned that Vanderbilt is the only SEC school where playing isn’t particularly challenging. Saban explained that when his Alabama team played in Nashville, where Vanderbilt is located, Alabama had more fans in the stands than the home team. His comments emphasized the competitiveness of the SEC, as most schools provide tough environments for visiting teams.
“The only place in the SEC that’s not hard to play is Vanderbilt,” Saban said. “When you play there, you have more fans than they do, and that’s no disrespect—it’s just the truth. When we played in Nashville, we had more Alabama fans than they had Vanderbilt fans.”
As Alabama prepares to visit Vanderbilt in two weeks, the Commodores are gearing up to respond to Saban’s remarks. Despite trying to avoid playing against Saban’s teams during his time at Alabama and LSU, Vanderbilt lost all five matchups with him.
Now an ESPN College GameDay analyst, Saban may soon hear from Commodores fans eager for the show to come to Nashville, giving them a chance to react to his comments. However, Saban and the College GameDay crew will be in Norman, Oklahoma, this Saturday for the Oklahoma Sooners vs. Tennessee Volunteers game, while Vanderbilt faces the Missouri Tigers in Columbia.
Vanderbilt will host Alabama for the first time without Saban leading the Crimson Tide on Saturday, Oct. 5. As anticipation grows, Vanderbilt fans are hopeful their team can create a more challenging atmosphere and prove they can compete with one of the SEC’s elite teams, while also countering Saban’s previous comments.