Nick Saban fires up Kim Mulkey’s Lady Tigers, reveals he’s “always rooting for LSU” until they face Alabama
In a rare crossover, legendary football coach Nick Saban visited the Lady Tigers at LSU during their pre-game shootaround. The roster was prepping before its game against Northwestern State Demons when the coach fired up the players with a speech.
While Nick Saban rooted for a Tigers' win in the upcoming contest, he shed light on the importance of habits, unity, and "the process" for long-term/post-athletic success. LSU's social media posted the clip on its X, thanking the coach for his encouraging words.
"I would say the most important thing for everybody here is how can you create the most value for yourself by the choices and decision you make as a person, as a student, as a player," Saban said. "And all those things are gonna help you be more successful in life.
"When I was here as a coach, in Alabama as a coach, is how can we make our players be more successful in life because they were involved in the program. I know winning is important but being able to stay focused on things that help you win, which I call the process, is more important than anything."
"And then you transfer that into your life and you have a tremendous amount of success and you'll be happy and self-fulfilled and I think that's the most important thing. I wish y'all luck, I know you got a game tonight .. I appreciate have the opportunity, I'm going to watch how you guys do because I still root for LSU all the time - except when they play Alabama"
Nick Saban coached football for five years at LSU
Saban came to LSU at a time when its football program needed a turnaround, and he immediately laid a winning foundation. Even though the program was competitive before him, it was not perceived as dominant.
Like the coaches before him, Nick Saban’s time at LSU’s helm was short-lived. However, it was impactful like no other. He disciplined his players around defense in practice, deployed power running actions on the field, and recruited heavily to make LSU a national contender in five years.
LSU mounted a 10-win season and lifted the SEC championship in Nick Saban's second year (2001). In 2003, he made LSU the national champion after 45 years, including another SEC title. The year also indicated that the Tigers' program has developed enough to sustain its success.