Nick Saban said he could feel it back on New Year's Day in the Superdome, just like he did in Jordan-Hare Stadium a year earlier.
He could feel his Alabama team, with a two-touchdown lead on Ohio State in the second quarter of a College Football Playoff semifinal, take a breath and relax a bit.
Saban, speaking at a charity event for Team Focus in Mobile, told a large crowd at the University of South Alabama's Mitchell Center that for each of the last two seasons, the Crimson Tide has seen its national title hopes end by failing to mirror the disposition of Alabama's 2011 and 2012 teams, which were worried less about the scoreboard than about imposing their will on the opponent.