Racial slurs, comparisons to 9/11 have Nick Saban on the defensive
It might not be much of a stretch to say that Nick Saban is about as popular as FEMA in the state of Louisiana.
Saban, for those unfamiliar, is college football’s version of Benedict Arnold. He was named the “Coach of the Future” at Louisiana State University, but he skipped town to take the head-coaching job with the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.
And then just one year later, Saban took the job as the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, the bitter rivals of the Bayou Bengals. Ouch.
So why does this matter now?
Saban and the Crimson Tide will face off against the Colorado Buffaloes in the PetroSun Independence Bowl on Dec. 30.
The Independence Bowl, is held in Shreveport, La., so it also might not be much of a stretch to say that Saban’s return to his former state might be a little rocky.
Since Saban split from LSU to coach the Dolphins, he hasn’t just burned his bridges in Louisiana, he’s broken them down splinter-by-splinter and assured he’ll never, ever eat another Po’ Boy without a loogie in it.
This January he raised some eyebrows with some patently racist comments about Cajuns. In some apparent botched retelling of a joke, he managed to offend half the state in a story about an angry fan.
“He was walking down the street yesterday before the Sugar Bowl. He calls me,” Saban said. “There was a guy working in the ditch, one of those coonass guys that talk funny. I can’t talk like them, but he can. Most people in Louisiana can.”
Granted, it’s on the more obscure side of racial slurs.
But it’s no different than if Pete Carroll dropped the N-bomb about people in Los Angeles or if Mack Brown did the same about Hispanic people in Texas.
And that’s not even the end of things.
This fall, Saban again raised the bar in a post-game press conference when the UL-Monroe Warhawks marched into Tuscaloosa and beat Alabama. It was a tough loss, but nowhere near deserving of what he said in the post-game press conference.
“Changes in history usually occur after some kind of catastrophic event,” he said. “It may be 9/11, which sort of changed the spirit of America relative to catastrophic events. Pearl Harbor kind of got us ready for World War II, and that was a catastrophic event.”
Yes, folks. Let us remember the tragedies that shaped our country. Pearl Harbor, Black Hawk Down, September 11th. Alabama losing at home to a cupcake.
How’s that for being a gracious loser and accepting that you were out coached and outclassed?
“They talk about alcoholics and people like that who never ever change until they hit rock bottom,” Saban added. “Well, they change because when they hit rock bottom they have an awareness, they have an acceptance and a commitment to change. That’s what our players need to do right now because in the past two weeks since the LSU game, I haven’t seen the same spirit, I haven’t seen the same work ethic.”
Now, if I didn’t know better, I’d say Saban was calling his team a bunch of alcoholics. But that’s Saban – heavy on ego, heavy on overstatement and low on substance.
Saban is a guy who is very, very unpopular with some people in Louisiana. And people from Louisiana are no fools.
We all remember what happened when New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson tried to do his characteristic strut at a Saints game played in Death Valley, LSU’s home stadium.
With the help of bottles and cans, fans showed him what they really thought about his idea to move the Saints out of New Orleans.
And now Tricky Nick will be back in town for a limited time this month. It should be interesting to see: Will he get the welcome of Joe McAnyCoach?
Or will fans and locals hold a grudge?
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Justin Coons Justin.Coons@thecampuspress.com
