Crimson Red Sports

Saban also used his platform Wednesday to take a shot at the media for its role in creating "unrealistic expectations" for 17- and 18-year-old prospects. There were certainly a few players who fell victim to those in 2013, Saban admitted, but it was no different than any other year.

"(The recruit) comes to college with these unrealistic expectations with the kind of success he's going to have immediately before he has the opportunity to learn and develop in whatever position he plays so he can be a confident, knowledgeable guy who can go out and play winning football at his position," Saban said. "It's natural for some of these guys to be a little frustrated. We've had it every year we've been here.

"We want everybody to have goals and aspirations for everything they want to accomplish here. We just want to them to be realistic about what they have to do to accomplish those goals, and to understand the competition here is actually going to help them be successful and help them to be better."

It was at that point in his answer when Saban started to again disagree with McCarron, who said he, C.J. (Mosley) and Kevin (Norwood) were "probably the best examples of buying in to the system."

"When they were freshmen they had the same issues," Saban said, not specifically referring to Alabama's 2013 team captains. "I remember when AJ came up in my office all upset because he was the third-string quarterback after the first scrimmage. So, you know, sometimes we forget what it's like to be a teenager."