Nick Saban Confesses Miss Terry’s Blunt Criticism That Changed His Public Image: “Do You Watch Yourself?”

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Throughout his coaching career, Nick Saban’s presence spoke for itself. Whether he was standing on the Alabama sideline, facing reporters after a frustrating loss, or addressing his players, the former Alabama head coach was a no-nonsense person. However, his portrayal in the media still bothered him during his tenure at Michigan State. Fortunately, Miss Terry was there to give him a reality check.

But that wasn’t necessarily the image he carried with him when he first stepped into Michigan State.

“I had this terrible image with the press. I mean, horrible,” Saban said on the You Got Byrned Podcast on October 7. “They made me out to be this crazy tough guy that didn’t have any compassion for other people or the players or anything, which really wasn’t true, right? I used to come home, and I would complain about it. I would say, I don’t understand why I’m being sort of depicted this way when that’s not really who I am.”

Among fans, Saban was often called the Darth Vader of college football. Even his own staff carried that impression. His former Michigan State player, Jason Strayhorn, told SI in 2015, “There is no softer side to Nick. He is all business.”

Discover the candid moment that made Nick Saban rethink his public persona. Subscribe for the untold stories reshaping college football's biggest figures.

Saban would harshly reprimand anyone for their mistakes in front of everyone, which many found extremely intimidating. If any mistakes were noticed during the film session, the subsequent practice was considered a punishment. The tone was set that he was a tough coach. In his own head, he felt it odd that he was perceived that way until Miss Terry helped him see something he may not have noticed himself.

Miss Terry asked him, “Do you ever watch yourself?” To which Saban replied, “No,” as he continued the story on the podcast.

Saban then explained that Miss Terry had drawn him a map showing what he had been doing wrong. “Well, it comes from your press conferences. You’re anxious. You don’t treat these people with much respect. You don’t have any relationships with them. You never smile. You never joke. You never make people feel a part of what you’re trying to do or respect what they’re trying to do, which is to promote your sport. So, what do you expect?” Miss Terry said.

This reality check didn’t please Coach Saban at first, but eventually he realized she was right. He regularly snapped at the reporters during press conferences and never smiled. His famous rat poison rant also went viral when he snapped at media publications for publishing things about his team and players, which acted like poison.

The media training also helped, as he finally began to enjoy his time at the podium. He went from ‘quit asking me questions’ to saying, ‘So we had a media training session yesterday… how’d I do? Did I do better?’

Saban changed his persona with the media. Still, there were rants, annoyance at stupid questions, and shouting at mistakes during the games. The usual Saban stuff. But behind the scenes, he formed bonds with the players for life. T

“He works as hard as we do. We all work hard. He’s more than a coach; he’s like another father. He really cares about us as people, not just as players. He’s taught us that life is more important than football; family is more important, too. It’s not just about getting us to be better football players but better people. He wants us to be winners in everything,” Mark Ingram told Bleacher Report back in 2018.

The contrast between what players said about him at Michigan State and at Alabama is just proof of how much he changed and evolved. Forming relationships became so important to him that it was also the reason he hung up his headset.

Trending Articles

The post Nick Saban Confesses Miss Terry’s Blunt Criticism That Changed His Public Image: “Do You Watch Yourself?” appeared first on EssentiallySports. Add EssentiallySports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos