LOS ANGELES — ‘Twas the night before the Rose Bowl, and all through LA, the coaches were prepping their team for the big game.
Sunday marked 24 hours before Michigan football and Alabama set to kick off in the granddaddy of them all with the winner getting the rights to play in the national championship game. Certainly, it’s no time to relax, especially if you’re Jim Harbaugh or Nick Saban, the respective head coaches.
At their Sunday morning joint press conference, both had their minds on final preparations for their teams. Even though there would be some leisure time for Michigan, Harbaugh stressed the importance of getting both the mind and body right on the eve of the big game.
“The hay is never in the barn for us. We never think of it that way. Things to clean up, polishing the diamond as we like to say, make the most of this day,” Harbaugh said. “Tonight we’ll get together, watch a movie, talk to the team, different things like that. Kind of get the red blood pumping a little bit so you can visualize it. Then go to sleep and see how good of a night’s sleep you can get.
“Sometimes you do, sometimes you don’t. We really stressed a good night’s sleep last night. Kind of feel like that’s the sleep you play on. Got a darned good one last night. Anything tonight will just be a bonus.”
Unsurprisingly, the best college football coach in the modern era of the sport is a bit more businesslike. Though Harbaugh’s mind is certainly centered on football, he’s giving his players a little bit more of a reprieve the night before the game. Saban’s mind was more on continuing to stress the game plan in order to hone his team’s execution come game day.
“I think trying to create the right mindset in the last 48 hours leading up to the game, to really focus on execution, because we have a plan. Everybody has got an accountability and a responsibility to do a job,” Saban said. “Being able to focus on that, whether it’s in one reel when we watch a film or when we’re in a meeting, and what they think about when they’re on their own leading up to the game based on their ability to focus on what they need to do to execute and have good emotional discipline in how they approach doing their job.
“I think that’s one of the most important things.”
Either way, both coaches are excited, and both feel like their team is ready. And if they aren’t now, they’re assured they will be around 2 p.m. PST when the Rose Bowl kicks off.
“I never worry about our guys once the game starts because I know that they’re going to react and do what they do and do it really well,” Harbaugh said. “Yeah, can’t wait for that moment. Can’t wait to watch our guys compete in this game.”
“If we have to motivate guys to play in this game, it’s probably not a good thing. They should be pretty motivated,” Saban added about his team. “I think channeling the energy in the right direction is really, really important in games like this.”