Shortly after losing 33-18 to Georgia in Monday’s College Football Playoff national championship game, a pair of Alabama star players patiently answered questions at a news conference.
They looked like they wanted to be anywhere but sitting at that table in Indianapolis. So when the moderator excused them, quarterback Bryce Young and linebacker Will Anderson Jr. both quickly got out of their seats.
But they were stopped by Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban, who put a hand on each sophomore player’s arm.
Saban then asked a silly question: “Hold on. I’d like to say something. Can I say something?”
Of course he could.
Saban then delivered a classy message for the players.
“You know, these two guys that are sitting up here, they’re not defined by one game. These guys played great for us all year,” Saban said. “They’re great competitors. They were great leaders on this team. And they contributed tremendously to the success of this team. And we would not be here without them, all right?
“And both of them take responsibility for the loss. But both of them contributed in a lot of ways in a positive way to giving us a chance to win and a chance to be here to have an opportunity to win. So I just want to thank them for that and let everybody know how proud I am of these two guys.”
It was a cool moment, and here is the video from WVTM13:
Young was the Heisman Trophy winner this season, while Anderson won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, which goes to the nation’s top defensive player.