HOOVER, Ala. -- Alabama's failure to give Clemson its proper credit at SEC media days on Wednesday was no accident. If you've followed Nick Saban's time at Alabama and what happens in the aftermath of those few losses the Crimson Tide have had to endure, then you weren't surprised when Saban questioned his former coaching staff's commitment and linebacker Dylan Moses questioned his team's preparation heading into the game.
There were plenty of times in Hoover when Saban and players tipped their cap to the Tigers for beating them in the College Football Playoff National Championship, of course, but it was typically in the context of some larger excuse for why they hadn't played their best.