How Nick Saban is using Jalen Hurts as example to current Alabama team

Alabama coach Nick Saban hugs Oklahoma's Jalen Hurts as the South squad runs drills during practice for the Senior Bowl Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020, in Mobile, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)
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Nick Saban held a meeting Wednesday with his players to preview the team’s “Fourth Quarter” offseason strength and conditioning program that begins this month, and instead of speaking to the team about its importance, he let someone else make his point.

Current Alabama players were shown the start of a news conference Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts held during training camp in August 2021, when he wore Alabama’s “Fourth Quarter” T-shirt under his pads at practice.

“Four quarters: commitment, discipline, effort, toughness and pride,” Hurts said at the time. “Fun shirt.”

Now Hurts is about to lead his team into Super Bowl LVII in Phoenix later this month.

“So I said, ‘Just give me that [news conference video],’” Saban told The 33rd Team during an interview with former NFL coach Bill Cowher published Thursday. “‘I’m putting that up on the board today. They’re going to the Super Bowl. I’m not gonna say the importance of the Fourth Quarter Program. I’m gonna let him do it for me.’”

Cowher also brought up a viral interview earlier this week in which Hurts’ Eagles teammate, DeVonta Smith, answered “Bama” when asked where his relentless mentality came from. Saban reacted with a smile when Cowher quoted Smith, although Saban did not directly address it.

Said Saban about the upcoming Super Bowl: “We’ve got four guys on the Eagles. Everybody says, ‘Who are you rooting for in the Super Bowl?’ I just root for our guys. I just look at the roster and say, ‘How many guys do we have on that team? OK, that’s what I’m for.”

Hurts and Smith are joined on Philadelphia’s roster by former Alabama offensive lineman Landon Dickerson and cornerback Josh Jobe. The Kansas City Chiefs do not have any former Tide players.

Hurts is a finalist for NFL MVP, although the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes is widely expected to win.

“I can’t tell you how proud I am of seeing this guy in the Super Bowl,” Saban told The 33rd Team. “Only because I know firsthand what he went through to get there and how he dedicated himself to doing the things that he needed to do to make himself a better player, make him a complete player at the position.”

Mike Rodak is an Alabama beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @mikerodak.

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