Alabama football now has different leadership, but former coach Nick Saban still had a chance to give his thoughts about a preseason scrimmage.

Instead of doing it at the podium, he spoke on College GameDay and shared his thoughts after watching Alabama’s scrimmage from a week ago.

“That team has the same culture they had when I was the coach,” Saban said on ESPN from Ireland. “They play with toughness, they play with great effort. They execute well. They’ve got good discipline. Kalen has done a really good job.”

Saban noted how many players Alabama had to replace because many transferred, but he seems to like where the team sits after watching them scrimmage at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“I really think Alabama, with Jalen Milroe, the two running backs they have … I was worried about the defense, but I think the defense really impressed me in this scrimmage that they have come along. If they can play the kind of defense, especially in the secondary because they lost so many players in the secondary, they’re going to be right up there challenging people.”

Saban is now an analyst for ESPN on College GameDay and is set to appear each week on the Saturday morning preview show.

Nick Kelly is an Alabama beat writer for AL.com and the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X and Instagram.