Ball Durham
Fansided

Nick Saban praises David Cutcliffe at SEC Media Day before Week 1 battle

By Kevin Connelly

SAN JOSE, CA - JANUARY 05: Head Coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide speaks to the media during the College Football Playoff National Championship Media Day at SAP Center on January 5, 2019 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SAN JOSE, CA - JANUARY 05: Head Coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide speaks to the media during the College Football Playoff National Championship Media Day at SAP Center on January 5, 2019 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

At SEC Media Day, Nick Saban had some high praise for the Duke Football coach David Cutcliffe, before the teams meet to open the season.

Nick Saban is a man of few words and it certainly takes a lot to impress the six-time National Champion.

However, at SEC Media Day on Wednesday Saban was surely to get many questions about an ACC coach that caused his team fits on one night in January, but it was another ACC coach that Saban was very impressed about, David Cutcliffe.

More from Ball Durham

Dabo Swinney and the Clemson Tigers routed the Crimson Tide in the National Championship Game a year ago, but Saban and the Tide are looking ahead to its Week 1 opponent, the Duke Blue Devils.

Saban said that he thinks Cutcliffe is one of the best minds in the game and the way he’s able to change the culture of a program, develop a team, and create long term success is very impressive.

The two time Walter Camp Coach of the Year has faced off against David Cutcliffe before when Saban was the Head Coach of LSU and Cutcliffe was the Head Coach at Ole Miss.

Saban and the Tigers won four of the five meetings the two teams had and once the two coaches reached their current schools the Crimson Tide and the Blue Devils took the field in 2010 in Durham, en route to a 62-13 Alabama victory.

Nick Saban admired what Cutcliffe has done in his time at Ole Miss and Duke as a head coach saying;

"“We have a tremendous amount of respect for David, what he was able to do when he was at Ole Miss and we played all the time and what he’s done at Duke with that program and the success they’ve had there.”"

David Cutcliffe has a 111-101 overall record as a head coach with a 7-4 record in Bowl Games. Cutcliffe went 44-29 at Ole Miss and he is 67-72 at Duke, with winning seasons in four of the last five seasons and three straight bowl victories.

From the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia the Duke Blue Devils and the Alabama Crimson Tide will kickoff the 2019 season in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff on August 31 at 3:30pm EST on ESPN.

Home/Duke Football