When ex Alabama HC Nick Saban jokingly accused Dabo Swinney of “disrespecting” his Alma mater

During the 2017 college football season, Alabama head coach Nick Saban and Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney were two of the longest-tenured head coaches in college football. In the playoff that season, Clemson, Oklahoma, Georgia and Alabama earned spots from the selection committee.

However, in the coaches' poll, Dabo Swinney voted for Ohio State in the No. 4 slot over Alabama. He was asked about it in a press conference before the start of the college football playoff and explained himself (Timestamp 0:00).

"You want the honest answer. 3 o'clock in the morning on a bus ride home from Charlotte, moment of insanity. Complete insanity. No just coming home, it was literally three o'clock in the morning, like oh I got to do this poll."

"Looking at it, Alabama won 11 games, they (Ohio State) won the Big Ten championship. It's different, obviously the committee has a lot of things to look at and a lot of data. They're gonna pick the four best teams however they see it. In that moment, that's how I voted. They're all great teams man."

Dabo Swinney is an alumni of Alabama, playing for them as a wide receiver from 1990 to 1992. Since Saban was also at the press conference, he took the opportunity to jokingly accuse Swinney of disrespecting his alma mater after he finished answering the question.

"He was disrespecting his alma mater, that's all."

Nick Saban was able to get his payback on Dabo Swinney in the college football playoff that year

While Nick Saban might have been joking in the press conference, it definitely seemed like he took Swinney's vote personally when their teams played. Clemson was the No. 1-ranked team in the playoff, and Alabama was No. 4. As a result, they faced off in the semifinals of the college football playoff. Alabama dominated the game, defeating the Tigers 24-6.

The Crimson Tide would advance to the national championship game, where they would play the Georgia Bulldogs. The Bulldogs earned their spot after defeating Oklahoma 54-48 in double overtime.

The national championship game was close and went to overtime. However, the championship experience of Nick Saban helped the Crimson Tide defeat Georgia 26-23.

It was an impressive performance from Saban and the Crimson Tide as he continued to cement his legacy as one of the great college head coaches of all time. Saban later retired in 2023 after winning six national championships with Alabama.