Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban has transitioned seamlessly into becoming a college football analyst, which should come as no surprise given the extensive insight into the game he brings to his role in the media.
But Saban also never shies away from highlighting his dominance over the sport whenever he gets a chance, which was the case when discussing the upcoming Big Ten matchup between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Oregon Ducks.
Penn State is bringing out all the stops for their biggest game of the season to date, as the Week 5 matchup will be the program’s annual White Out game, where everyone in attendance will wear white T-shirts for the game.
White Out games have proven to be an incredibly tough environment for opposing teams to play in, with Penn State winning its last five White Out games. But during an appearance on Friday’s edition of The Pat McAfee Show, Saban made it a point to remind everyone that Alabama had no problem going into Beaver Stadium and utterly dominating Penn State in his lone experience playing in a Penn State White Out game in 2011.
“We played in a White Out here, and it didn’t help them much,” said Saban, alluding to the Crimson Tide’s 27-11 victory over the Nittany Lions back in 2011.
Saban would then emphasize the harsh reality that while the fans at a White Out game will be loud, they play no effect on how the game on the field plays out, a message he would relay to his team whenever they were in a hostile road environment.
“I do think that the things I tried to do with our team when we played on the road and we were going to play in a Black Out or a White Out, or whatever it was, is to emphasize to the players that the fans don’t make any plays in the game,” added Saban. “Yeah, there is gonna be noise. And we’re gonna have to handle the noise like we do in all circumstances on the road. That could have an impact on the game, especially when it comes to the offensive line. False starts, those types of things putting you behind the sticks. But I have really really tried to emphasize to the players that those circumstances, those external factors like a White Out, don’t really have any impact on the game.”
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning could definitely take some notes on how to prepare his team for this highly anticipated matchup on Saturday night. However, given that he is 1-0 against Penn State since Oregon joined the Big Ten, Lanning will have his team well-prepared for the White Out environment in Beaver Stadium.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.