Nick Saban Appears To Take A Shot At Former Alabama Assistant
ATLANTA, GA - DECEMBER 01: Head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide looks on before the 2018 SEC Championship Game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 1, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
In late February, longtime Alabama strength coach Scott Cochran decided to leave the Crimson Tide for a rival program.
Cochran took a job on Kirby Smart's staff at Georgia, serving as the team's new special teams coordinator. Alabama then hired David Ballou as the Director of Sports Performance and Dr. Matt Rhea as the Director of Performance Science.
Both Ballou and Rhea came from Indiana, where they had been for two years. Ballou previously worked for IMG Academy, a premier high school in Florida where he worked with former Alabama star Dylan Moses.
On Saturday afternoon, head coach Nick Saban spoke about the team's newest additions to the coaching staff. He raved about their approach heading into the 2020 season.
"Light years in advance of what people had been doing for a long, long time," Saban said. "Everyone else we interviewed (was) like strength coaches from the past. These guys are way ahead of that."
Some on social media thought Saban was taking a shot at his former strength and conditioning coach.
A "rift" reportedly grew between Saban and Cochran after the latter allegedly tried to join Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss. That eventually led Cochran to leave the program for Georgia.
Now they'll be in opposition when the college football season kicks off - hopefully - in 2020.
