Alabama head coach Nick Saban gave an interview to ESPN reporter Chris Low, and he spoke candidly about the last-second 35-31 loss in the College Football Playoff title game to Clemson.
During the interview, Saban said, “I’ll never get over it because you never do with those kind of losses. I never got over the returned field goal at Auburn. I never got over playing poorly against Ohio State and losing that game late. And then in this game, we didn’t play very well, and Clemson did when they had to. That’s what eats at you… You look at the Clemson game, and our really good players didn’t play very well. But Clemson was a damn good team. They were the best team we played against with the best quarterback, and where we needed to play well, we didn’t.”
He is referring to several late-season losses that Alabama has had the past few years. In 2013, Auburn’s Chris Davis returned a field goal 100 yards to end the Tide’s quest for a third consecutive national title. In 2014, Alabama was beaten by eventual national champion Ohio State 42-35 in a College Football Playoff semifinal.
It is well-documented that Saban has won five national championships, four while at Alabama. He is entering his 22nd season as a head coach this year. Through all of the winning and celebratory moments, it seems as if he is always able to call to mind his toughest losses.
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