Inside Nick Saban's Office - View 2

Prior to the 2010 Alabama-Penn State game in Tuscaloosa, Saban gathered on the field with Joe Paterno, Bobby Bowden and Mal Moore for a picture, which is framed, autographed and prominently displayed in the shelves just to the left of Saban's desk.

All three men touched Saban's life in a profound way, and he speaks reverently when discussing them.

Saban says he will always be indebted to Paterno for his assistance in helping a player at Michigan State, running back Duane Goulbourne, gain a sixth year of eligibility in 1996. Goulbourne had missed two years with injuries and was unable to get into graduate school, which according to Saban, was a player's only hope of getting a sixth year back in those days.

"Joe was the head of the Big Ten committee and saw to it that this kid got another year of eligibility," Saban says. "He didn't care that we were playing Penn State that year. All he cared about was doing what was right for that kid."

As fate would have it, Goulbourne rushed for 111 yards in that game and had a touchdown in the third quarter that put Michigan State ahead, but Penn State kicked a field in the final seconds to win 32-29.

"It was ironic that he did everything he could to make sure that kid had a chance to come back and play, and he almost beat him," Saban said.

Saban also holds a special place in his heart for Bowden and a gesture Bowden made to Saban more than 40 years ago when he was just starting out in coaching and Bowden was the head coach at West Virginia.

Saban's father, Nick Sr., died of a heart attack in 1973 at the age of 46 when Saban was a graduate assistant at Kent State. Saban's parents were living in Fairmont, West Virginia, and the elder Saban was heavily involved in Pop Warner football in that area and had coached some of the players Bowden had recruited to West Virginia.

"When my dad died, I can still remember Bobby calling and telling me, 'If you need to come home and be closer to your mom, I have a job for you,' " says Saban, his eyes gleaming with respect. "I didn't even know him, but he knew my dad. That's the kind of thing you never forget."

Saban's fondest memories of Moore, who died in 2013, revolve around Moore's visits to Saban's office on Sundays after games when Saban would be watching tape. Moore played and coached under Bear Bryant at Alabama and was the Crimson Tide's athletic director when Saban was hired in 2007.

"In this environment where the expectations are so high, as the athletic director, he never made you feel that way. Never," Saban says. "We'd win some games and not play very well, and I'd be upset that we didn't play very well, he'd come in and say, 'That was a hell of a win.' It was always something good."

But on Sundays, Moore would saunter into Saban's office, usually wearing a ball cap, sit down and not say a whole lot. Finally, Saban would say something to Moore to get him talking.

"I remember Mark Ingram used to always carry the ball in his right hand and would never change it over to his left hand," Saban says. "He had just had a fabulous game, too, and I'm watching the tape and say to Mal, 'You know, we can't get this guy to carry the ball in the proper hand.'"

Moore responds by launching into a story about when he was coaching for Bryant and how quarterback Jeff Rutledge had a tendency to drop his head and lower his eyes right before he'd throw the ball, which hurt his accuracy.

"So Mal gave Coach Bryant this long dissertation of how he was going to get him throwing it better," Saban says. "Coach Bryant listened to all he had to say and turned to him and said, 'Don't [mess] with him.'

It was Moore's sage way of telling Saban to leave well enough alone with Ingram, who went on to win the Heisman Trophy.

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