Nick Saban confident in Alabama preparation for Kansas State in Sugar Bowl

Alabama plays a non-College Football Playoff Sugar Bowl against Kansas State Saturday, but that did not change the preparation, according to Nick Saban. The Crimson Tide head coach was confident in his team’s ability to practice throughout the last month, considering the last time Alabama took the field was the Iron Bowl victory over Auburn.

Alabama missed out on the SEC Championship Game due to a head-to-head loss to LSU and eventually missed out on the playoff with two total losses. However, the Sugar Bowl is no ordinary consolation prize.

Saban made it clear that his team had to have its head on a swivel against a hungry Wildcats team.

“Well, I think they have practiced well,” Saban said on College GameDay. “I think they’ve done a really good job of staying focused on the things they need to do to prepare for a game. But you know, when you play these 11 o’clock games, you know, you got to get your mind right. When your feet hit the ground in the morning, you got to be ready to go. So that’s going to be important for us as well.”

Bryce Young and Will Anderson were two huge names that decided to not opt out prior to the game in order to prepare for the NFL Draft. Saban took that as a moment of pride.

“I think those two guys have done a lot for the program here as all of our seniors have,” Saban said. “So I think there was great team chemistry. Those guys were leaders, the captains, they wanted to be with their teammates. So that should rally everybody, I think, a little bit in terms of winning the game and playing a game for each other.”

Kansas State head coach shared those sentiments in general, saying players not opting out should make for a great game.

“I think it’s great,” Klieman said. “It’s great for college football that the best players are going to play in this game. We have a handful of those guys as well that have elected to play in this game. And that’s what it’s about. It’s playing with your brothers one last time for the guys that are going on to the next level. And I think that’s really important for our game in general.”

The Sugar Bowl will also serve as the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

Kickoff between the Crimson Tide and Wildcats in the Sugar Bowl is set for New Year’s Eve at noon ET live from the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on ESPN.