Alambama's Crimson Tide, #3 in the nation faces the Oklahoma Sooners in the Sugar Bowl, a matchup between two of the most storied college football programs in the history of the sport. The game will be live streamed on espn.com, starting at 8:30 PM ET.
It's hard to say just how focused Alabama will be after its BCS championship hopes slipped away in agonizing fashion.
The third-ranked Crimson Tide has had a month to get over a shocking loss in its regular-season finale that's left it seeking consolation in this Sugar Bowl showdown with No. 11 Oklahoma on Thursday night.
Saban has made promises he hasn't kept before in his coaching career, but he says he plans to retire in Tuscaloosa after agreeing to a contract extension Dec. 13 that will pay him a reported $7 million a year.
That followed months of speculation that he would jump ship for Texas, which is in the market for a high-profile coach after Mack Brown's resignation.
"I don't have any more reactions to it. I think it's kind of over so why do we want to talk about that?" Saban said. "We look forward. I'm looking forward. I made a commitment to our players that are here and I'm happy to be committed to them and I want them to make the same kind of commitment to the program and to their future success."
While a chance to face Oklahoma (10-2) in a BCS bowl would be the culmination of a successful season for most programs, it's hardly the end the Crimson Tide envisioned.
Alabama was on the cusp of punching its SEC championship game ticket before giving up 13 points in the final 32 seconds and losing 34-28 at Auburn on Nov. 30 on Chris Davis' 100-yard return of Alabama's missed 57-yard field goal attempt.
Now, the rival Tigers will play for the national championship in Pasadena instead of Alabama chasing its third straight BCS title and fourth in five years.
This is Oklahoma's first trip to the Sugar Bowl since 2004, when it lost to Saban's LSU team that earned a split of the national title.
The game will mark the college finale for Alabama quarterback, AJ McCarron, who threw for 20 touchdowns and just two interceptions after September in winning the Maxwell Award and finishing as the Heisman Trophy runner-up.
"I think AJ McCarron is the best player in the country, I really do," Sooners coach Bob Stoops said Dec. 8. "If I had a vote, that's who I'd vote for. On and on, just fundamental, sound, great players, force great schemes. ... I appreciate good football, and (the Crimson Tide) play it, and they play it the right way."
Whether it's Blake Bell or Trevor Knight who gets the call to play quarterback for the Sooners in New Orleans, Oklahoma will have its hands full. Alabama has the nation's fifth-ranked defense overall and second-ranked scoring defense (11.3 points per game). It also is fifth against the pass (166.3 yards per game) and 11th against the run (108.3 ypg).
Both QBs are capable of providing a running threat, particularly Bell, who averaged 7.1 yards on his 62 carries.
The Sooners will be tested by McCarron's corps of receivers, including four who caught at least 29 passes, led by sophomore standout Amari Cooper. T.J. Yeldon ran for 1,163 yards and 13 touchdowns.
If Oklahoma wants to have a realistic chance, it needs to concentrate on slowing Yeldon and that rushing attack. Alabama is 42-1 with McCarron as the starter when it runs for at least 125 yards, and 4-5 when it doesn't.
"We are going to have to attack, just like we did before. It's no mystery," Sooners linebacker Eric Striker said. "Everyone knows this is the best team, even though they did lose. Even though they lost, I don't see it.
"I think they are still one of the best teams. It is a great opportunity for us to show what we can do."
This is only the fifth meeting for these storied programs, and first since a 20-13 Oklahoma win at Tuscaloosa in 2003. They've met twice in the postseason -- a 24-all tie in the 1970 Bluebonnet Bowl and a 17-0 Crimson Tide victory in the 1963 Orange Bowl.
