Nick Saban’s retirement from coaching the University of Alabama football program on Jan. 10 shocked the college football world so much that several players for the Crimson Tide wondered what their next move would be.
Many decided to enter the NCAA transfer portal to find new homes, including an electric defensive back.
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Alabama defensive back Caleb Downs (2) catches the ball against Georgia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA on Saturday, Dec 2, 2023.
Caleb Downs, a native Georgian, came to the Tide as a five-star in the 2023 recruiting class. He started on Saban’s final Southeastern Conference Championship as a true freshman. Downs was incredible as he posted 107 tackles (team-high), 3.5 tackles for loss, four pass breakups, a forced fumble, and two interceptions. He earned SEC Freshman of the Year, first-team All-SEC, and second-team All-American honors. The 6-foot, 205-pounder took his talents to Ohio State University and has the Buckeyes at 9-1 in the first year of the 12-team College Football Playoff. Downs does not have robust numbers from his freshman campaign with the Tide, but he has 46 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, three breakups, and a quarterback hurry in 10 games.
He takes on No.5-ranked Indiana on Saturday before Ohio State’s finale with Michigan.
Downs had a conversation with his former head coach this week. Saban detailed the moment with Downs on ESPN’s College GameDay as the former Tide safety highlighted why Alabama was more prepared early than Ohio State.
“I had an interesting conversation yesterday with Caleb Downs,” Saban said. “We were talking about the SEC and how many hard games we had. He said we were more well-prepared for games like that [at Alabama]. When we went to Oregon [at Ohio State], we had four easy games, or five easy games, so we weren’t really well-prepared to have to go play a 60-minute game against a good team, and win a good game and finish the game.”
Ohio State had matchups against Akron, Western Michigan, Marshall, Michigan State, and Iowa before it first marquee test versus Oregon on the road. The Buckeyes handled its first five opponents with ease; however, the Ducks were a challenge.
Ohio State suffered its first loss of the season, 31-32, at the hands of Oregon.
Last year, Downs opened two of his first five games with Alabama against tough competition. The Tide suffered a 24-34 loss to Texas at Bryant-Denny Stadium and earned a 24-10 victory over Ole Miss at home. It was the tough contests that made Downs a better player each week. He takes on an Indiana team that wants an opportunity in the College Football Playoff.
We will see if Downs leans on the training he gathered from Saban for this game.
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Stephen M. Smith is the senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
