TUSCALOOSA — Several Miami Dolphins players sounded off in January that the defense Nick Saban ran as head coach of that team in 2005 and 2006 might have been too complicated for even the NFL.
Saban brought many of those same defensive principles with him to Alabama this season, so it's safe to say he rejects that premise.
"Well, last year we had the fourth-best defense in the NFL," Saban said. "If I thought it was too complicated, we wouldn't do it. We've had a lot of success running the defense. We won't do what players can't do."
Still, several Alabama players said Monday that the transition was difficult to the attacking 3-4 scheme installed by Saban and defensive coordinator Kevin Steele this spring and fall. The defense run under former coordinator Joe Kines was considered intentionally simplistic, though it should be noted the Crimson Tide finished in the Top 20 in the country in total defense in each of the last three seasons.
"During the spring, it was like learning to speak another language," safety Rashad Johnson said. "But we all caught on to it really well, and things came along a lot better during this fall in camp.
"It's all based around the same concepts. Different calls, but if you just know your rules, it applies to everything out there."
Incidentally, as Saban pointed out, the Dolphins retained defensive coordinator Dom Capers this season and plan to run largely the same defensive schemes they did during Saban's tenure.
• TWO QBS?: Starter John Parker Wilson is the only quarterback on Alabama's roster who has taken a snap in a game, but Saturday's season-opener against lowly Western Carolina might give the Crimson Tide a chance to get some others on the field.
The Catamounts are not only a Football Championship Subdivision (formerly I-AA) team, but went 2-9 overall and 0-7 in the Southern Conference in 2006. WCU lost its last three games of the season by a combined score of 114-9.
Nevertheless, Saban said he's not banking on getting redshirt freshman Greg McElroy, the Crimson Tide's No. 2 quarterback entering the season, into the game. Not only is he not assuming the game will be a blowout, but he wants to give Alabama's starters a chance to play together for an extended period regardless of the score.
"I think what we're interested in is getting our best players playing well together, and we're not going to assume anything, and we're not going to plan for anything like that, because I want to see our guys play well," Saban said. "We're going to play for 60 minutes in the game, and we're going to coach the players for 60 minutes in the game, and every player that gets an opportunity to play in the game knows that he's going to get coached to do that. We expect his best performance and best effort, regardless of the circumstances in the game. So, that's how we will go about doing that."
By the way, Saban has a history against Western Carolina. His first game at LSU came against the Catamounts in 2000, with the Tigers scoring a 59-0 victory in Baton Rouge, La.
• FEELING DRAFTY: ESPN NFL draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. has released his first player rankings for 2008, and two Alabama players cracked the list.
Senior wide receiver DJ Hall is ranked No. 5 among senior wide receivers, while Caldwell is rated second among junior centers, behind only Cal's Alex Mack. Caldwell has never given any public indication that he will leave school for pro football after this season.
"That's the first time I'm hearing it, but I appreciate it," Caldwell said. "I'm just blessed being in this position. I just want to lead this football team and win some football games."
The 6-foot-3, 292-pound Caldwell has started 25 consecutive games on the offensive line for the Crimson Tide. The Montgomery native started at left guard as a redshirt freshman in 2005, before moving to center last season.
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