Nick Saban rarely shows his light-hearted side to the media, but his players on the team know just how silly he can be.
During the Crimson Tide’s media availability today, Alabama defensive back Jordan Battle was asked by a reporter if he has any favorite sayings or “coaching quips” that Saban uses.
The safety them confirmed that Saban talks about “touch deez” or “suck on deez.”
“He has so many, but there are a few I like,” Battle started innocently enough. “He’s always talking about ‘touch deez’ or, you know, ‘suck on deez,’ all that.”
Two years ago, Tua Tagovailoa went on The Dan Patrick Show to also state that Nick Saban is the type of person who makes “deez nuts” jokes.
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In 2019, former Alabama running back Josh Jacobs revealed that the head coach commonly used the joke.
“He likes to do a lot of ‘deez nuts’ jokes,” Jacobs said during the interview. “It’s funny because I haven’t heard one of them since like middle school, but when I went to college Saban used to do it a lot.”
“One day I caught like five passes in a row,” Jacobs recalled. “He was like, ‘Hey Josh, if you want to hold all them balls, hold deez.’ I said, ‘What, Coach?’ I sat there for a second and I was like, ‘Did he really just say that?’”
Saban later confirmed Jacobs’ story during his own appearance on the Dan Patrick Show.
“Well, I like to have fun with the players. I think it’s probably good that they see you every now and then in a little bit different light,” Saban said at the time. “Since I’m a defensive coach and I probably get on the defensive players a little bit more ferociously. It’s a little easier for me to be light-hearted with the offensive players.
“And, you know, there’s some guys on your team you just love, like Josh Jacobs, Tua, Henry Ruggs. We’ve had a lot of really good players on offense that have great personalities and great work ethic and you just love them – and those are the kind of guys I usually pick out, do all the teasing stuff.”
