SEATTLE -- Wearing a backwards velcro hat to honor Alabama's third straight Southeastern Conference championship, coach Nick Saban blended together his coaching upbringing with the style of today's younger generation to perfection.
Sunday, the five-time National Championship winning coach emphasized that very same upbringing by crediting former Washington coach Don James as the man who convinced Saban to enter the coaching realm as a graduate assistant at Kent State in 1973.
"We have a tremendous amount of respect for the Washington program," Saban said on a conference call with reporters Sunday afternoon. "First of all, I played for Coach James, and he actually talked me into being a graduate assistant when I didn't even really care about being a coach. Probably wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for him."
Saban played defensive back at Kent State under James in the early 1970s before becoming a GA from 1973-74 becoming a full-time assistant as the linebackers coach from 1975-76.
In the coming decades Saban molded himself into a well-rounded football coach as an assistant coach at Syracues, West Virginia, Ohio State, Michigan State and even a three-year stint as the Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator from 1991-94.
While Saban was carving out his own niche in National Football League, his mentor was using the same method that originated from Kent State to turn the University of Washington football program into a perennial power.
James led Washington 22 consecutive victories from 1990-92, including a National Championship in 1991 after defeating Michigan 34-14 in the Rose Bowl and finish the season 12-0.
Now, with Saban and the Tide riding a current 25 game win streak heading into the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, the path for both Saban and UW Coach Chris Petersen - who when hired mentioned growing up in the Don James era of football and constructed the current Washington program in James' style - is layered with aspects of the late legendary Huskies' coach.
"Learned so much that we still use in our program because of him and the great success that he had at the University of Washington, winning the National Championship there," Saban continued. "So we really have a lot of respect for this team and the people that they have and the consistency they play with. Coach Petersen has done a fantastic job of developing this team to be one of the best teams in the country."
During his coaching rise James was known as a true man's-man by former coaches and players alike. After concluding the conference call Saban made an extra note to Petersen on what it means to the Alabama head coach to have Washington back as a national championship program again.
"I'd just like to congratulate Chris, Coach Petersen and his team on an outstanding season and being selected to play in the playoffs," Saban said. "And what a great job they've done all season long. It was really fun to watch the few times that I watched them and they really play well and have a lot of respect for what they've done.
Petersen, who carries himself almost identically to Saban and the late Don James, thanked Saban for the pleasantry. But the Washington coach did acknowledge that after realizing his team would face Alabama, there was a moment for pause.
"Appreciate that," Petersen replied, "and I thought the same thing until we got matched up, and I actually had to now, all of a sudden, have to deal with this."
