Nick Saban Picked Georgia, Texas In SEC Championship Game To Motivate Alabama: ‘Reverse Rat Poison’

Nick Saban is trying a little reverse psychology on his former team.

The newly retired Alabama football coach is already getting rave reviews as he begins his media career at ESPN. And during a broadcast from SEC Media Days in Dallas, he surprised a lot of college football fans by picking Georgia and Texas to face off in this year's SEC Championship Game — leaving out the Crimson Tide.

Asked about his pick on Friday's episode of The Pat McAfee Show, Saban admitted there was some strategy involved.

"I always hated it, and I’m going to hate it on this show … having to predict and make hypothetical decisions about who’s going to win a game, who’s going to win the championship, who’s going to win what conference," Saban said. "So I picked Georgia and Texas because it’s reverse rat poison for Alabama. It’s a motivating factor for them not to get picked, because I hated getting picked first or second because you don’t know how that’s going to affect your team psychologically."

Saban won seven total National Championships as a head coach — six at Alabama. In 2015 and 2020, the Crimson Tide were third in the preseason AP poll and won the championship. Each other title season, they were ranked either first or second in the country before the season began. That is to say, expectations for Alabama were never low under Saban.

Nick Saban won six National Championships in 17 seasons as Alabama's head football coach.

(Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images)

READ: Jalen Milroe Reveals One Very Big Difference Between Nick Saban And New Alabama Coach Kalen DeBoer

But things will certainly be different in Tuscaloosa this year. The program is coming off three straight two-loss seasons — which would be phenomenal for any normal school, but it's a rough patch for Alabama. And new head coach Kalen DeBoer has some big shoes to fill. Saban knows that, too.

"These kids are affected a lot by what they read, what they hear, what they see," Saban said. "So I didn’t want to say anything too good."

Alabama — currently ranked No. 5 in the preseason AP poll — will open its season next Saturday against Western Kentucky. We'll see if the ol' "reverse rat poison" does the trick.