Alabama football hits the road this weekend for its first road conference game of the 2023 season. The Crimson Tide will travel to Davis Wade Stadium for a matchup against unranked Mississippi State.

Alabama hasn’t lost in Starkville since Nick Saban’s first season, a 17-12 defeat on Nov. 10, 2007. This year’s contest will be the last until 2025 at the earliest as the Southeastern Conference’s future schedule remains in flux.

Saban previewed the matchup in his final press conference of the week. Here are the key takeaways.

— “I think it’s really important players go in with the right mindset,” Saban said in his opening statement before stressing the challenges of UA visiting an SEC program.

“Attention to detail is going to be really important for us. … When it doesn’t work, why didn’t it work? Most of the time, it has something to do with us.”

–Saban said the way teams try to defend against Jalen Milroe’s speed could provide an opportunity for the offensive line in pass protection. More zone coverage could leave to less pass rushers, more man-to-man calls create opportunities for playmakers.

“You never know how a team is going to approach that,” Saban said.

–Saban said the wide receivers have played well but there is a need for more consistency. Saban said “attention to detail” may be the most overused term within UA’s facility, since it’s importance is stressed to players so often.

–Both Deontae Lawson and Terrence Ferguson II didn’t practice Wednesday and that doesn’t fare well for their availability on Saturday night. Saban listed each as “very questionable.”

–Saban said “we have some really good young players” along the defensive line when asked about the unit’s depth and mentioned how the Tide needs to get them game-ready to start contributing.

–”With other injuries in the offensive line, we’re moving guys around,” Saban said when asked about the Tide’s left tackle decision between Kadyn Proctor and Elijah Pritchett. Both played by design against Ole Miss, Saban said.

–Saban was asked about a statement Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith made to Congress about recruits requesting $5 thousand just to visit a campus. Saban said he hasn’t been asked that at Alabama, but wouldn’t put that out of the question considering the state of NIL.

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Nick Alvarez is a reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @nick_a_alvarez or email him at [email protected].