Alabama Media Day Recap

Alabama held its annual Media Day event, the only time until the postseason that we will hear from the coordinators. Good friend Marq Burnett of SEC Country put together a nice summary for you. The highlights:

Both coordinators are funny, quotable, and comfortable in front of the microphone. A couple of media members said they wished we could hear more from them.

Jeremy Pruitt expressed a deep love for the University and choked up when discussing the late Mal Moore. He made it clear that this is Nick Saban’s defense, very similar to the one that was run during his stint as Alabama’s DB coach, and that he will try and bring some new wrinkles.

Lane Kiffin was his usual sarcastic self, at one point saying that Coach Saban tweets for him. He also sounds much more humble than in his younger years, expressing appreciation for his own personal development under Saban. He mentioned that replacing Ryan Kelly would be difficult, as one would expect from a first-round caliber center. On quarterbacks, he mentioned that Blake Barnett looks great having added plenty of size and strength, and used the word "special" to describe the skills of Jalen Hurts. He also looks for Robert Foster to have a huge year, and thinks he would have last year without the injury.

Saban’s comments were typical Saban, talking about complacency, how this team has to forge its own identity, keeping the focus on each player doing what he needs to do to develop into the best player he can be. He mentioned the depth at wide receiver as a strength. Interestingly, he said that he would like to have the QB position settled before the games start, a slightly different tone than usual for him.

Saban also briefly addressed the transfer rules again, responding to Kirby Smart's statement that he would allow grad transfers at UGA to transfer to teams within the conference, stating that he supports the conference rules and that "the SEC rules Alabama" and not the other way around. He also said that no player has ever transferred that he hasn’t tried to talk into staying.

In general, all coaches seem to like the demeanor and work ethic of this team. While early, there is plenty of reason for optimism. Check out full video below.

Roll Tide.