Alabama opened practice for Nick Saban’s 15th season on a Monday other than in his career.
He detailed it from the pop stage in the Crimson Tide football complex, because he is a being of habit. Alone, it was in an empty room with 30-plus reporters video conferencing in from home offices and kitchen tables, with Alabama holding more than social distance between outsiders and his coach.
Saban is actually 68 years old.
And while much of the discussion surrounding the game of college football as no concerns the health of the players, Saban and his assistant coaches are in more of an age scale with a risk, they would get sick.
Saban cried when that fact was presented Monday in a question.
“That, you call me an old man?” he said with a grin not just in a setting of a news conference.
Saban went over all the steps he took to prevent risk of infection. He wears a mask everywhere, and removes it only for the video conference “because it was so hot outside.”
“I wear one that pulls around your neck that you can pick up when you rob a bank,” Saban said. ‘Whatever they are called.’
Be an Alabama Insider: Sign up here for $ 4.99 per month on text, learn information about inside AL.com beat writers.
Players are tested every Sunday and twice a week so that they have peace of mind during contact exercises.
Saban is also great at social distance.
‘When I see my mother, who’s 88 years old, we sit 10 feet apart on a park bench and talk for 45 minutes or an hour,’ Saban said, ‘I say’ Mom, I don ‘t give you a hug today.’ I love you. ‘”
That’s exactly how it will be in 2020.
“I’m not afraid of this because we are trying to do the right thing and we have great medical care here,” Saban said. “And we have great medical protocols to try to keep us safe and I feel very confident to respect and do these things as well as possible.”
With the players, Saban said the measures in place have been successful so far. They have seen a two percent positivity rate among the players since the return trip from July 4th.
A new challenge is looming with the rest of the students back on campus and classes starting Wednesday.
“The personal bubble that guys out here need to form, I think, will be a real key for us to keep the players safe and healthy,” Saban said. “That’s relative to what they do as a student.”
Michael Casagrande is in Alabama beat writer for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande as to Facebook.
