This article was published with The Red & Black on July 15, 2015 and can be found here.

HOOVER, Ala. — The Alabama Crimson Tide were considered by many to be the favorites to win the inaugural College Football Playoff. The team fell short by one game, losing by a touchdown to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl.

Saban was adamant when it was his turn to speak at SEC Media Days that this Alabama team needed to improve upon last year’s. He pointed specifically towards his secondary, which gave up a 47-yard touchdown pass in the Crimson Tide’s 42-35 loss to the Buckeyes. He also discussed his fast-paced offense and the consequences it has on the defense.

Saban stated his defense faced 170 more plays last season than in the past, which he equated to around 3 extra games for the Crimson Tide. He felt his team faded down the stretch due to the extra workload placed upon them. He also said the evolution of no-huddle offenses has changed his traditional defensive tactics.

“The way you play defense in the NFL is you play a lot of specialty defense because everything is based on situations,” Saban said. “What pace of play has done to the college game does not allow you to do that. So you have to basically play the same players in every situation because, if you do play situational defense and you’re allowed to sub in that particular situation, you can’t get the players out of the game.”

Domestic Issues:

Saban fielded questions about players with domestic violence issues centered around the dismissal of Crimson Tide defensive lineman Jonathan Taylor this spring. He made his thoughts clear that he is against the mistreatment of women, but he reiterated he had no regrets about giving Taylor a chance.

The topic came up three months after Taylor’s incident and over a week since Florida State’s scandal involving now-dismissed quarterback De’Andre Johnson. The Southeastern Conference’s strengthened stance against offenders like Taylor and Johnson is something Saban supports.

“We don’t at all condone any kind of domestic violence or any kind of violent behavior toward women,” Saban said. “But I do think that this is an emotional issue that’s very, very complicated. It’s against the law, and we respect the law, and we will continue to do things that respect the law and our organization.”

Best is the West:

Several coaches at Media Days have fielded questions about the West division’s dominance, and Saban was no different. Saban explained all teams in the conference were among the best in the nation but pointed at the coaches in his division as a factor in the dominance.

“We just happen to have in the last few years a lot of really, really good programs in our division in the West,” Saban said. “I just know that there’s a lot of good football players and a lot of good football coaches in our division. I have a tremendous amount of respect for the people who have accomplished what they’ve accomplished in our division.”

The West division has captured six straight SEC championships, and if Saban has anything to say about it, the number will grow to seven come December.

Issue with NFL Draft process:

The Alabama Crimson Tide have produced numerous drafted players since Saban took over, including 17 in the last two years. Saban took aim at the process all potential draft prospects have to go through in order to get their draft grades.The current deadline is Dec. 15 with the results being returned around Christmas, right in the middle of bowl season.

Saban felt the grades were a distraction for some of his players in 2014. He explained the problem lies in the fact the championship game has moved back over the years while the deadline for declaring for the NFL Draft has not.

“A guy finds out he’s a first-round draft pick or a guy that thought he was a first-round draft pick finds out he’s not a first-round draft pick, and we’re trying to get ready to play a playoff game,” Saban said. “I think that it would be better not to submit that information to a player until he was finished competing in college. I think [moving the declaration date back] a week, 10 days would be beneficial.”