Kirk Herbstreit: Teams âintimidatedâ by Nick Saban, Alabama brand, but Texas wonât be

Kirk Herbstreit believes Texas’ approach to playing Alabama in 2022 was right on.

He expects to see the same approach Saturday when Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns travel to Tuscaloosa for a matchup with No. 3 Alabama.

“Most people – I’m just being honest – when they play Alabama, they see Nick Saban on the other sideline,” the “GameDay” analyst told reporters Wednesday. “They see him in the warmups. Most teams are intimidated by that brand, by that uniform, by that helmet.

“I’ve seen so many teams going into that game, and they’re like, ‘We’ll see. We’ll see.’ And then they see them, and they are almost beat before the game starts. They are easing their way in because they don’t want to make a mistake.”

Herbstreit’s point is that Texas did the opposite of that last year in Austin when they fell to Alabama 20-19.

“It’s probably because of Sark’s time at Alabama,” he explained. “He’s like, ‘We’re not going to be intimidated, and they went in there with the right attitude.

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“They have to match that. That’s the biggest thing. That game gave them a belief that they can stand in the middle of the ring and play Alabama because of the way it unfolded.”

In that game, Alabama won 20-19, but it took two fourth-quarter plays by Bryce Young, including a Young scramble to set up Will Reichard’s 33-yard field goal with 10 seconds left.

The key to Saturday’s game, Herbstreit said, will be the Texas offensive line against the Alabama defensive line.

“The biggest thing is can they take care of Quinn Ewers?” Herbstreit asked. “Can he have time to throw?

“I think on the back end with the receivers they have, they are going to have a chance to make some big plays.”

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.