re: Tua would've transferred if kept on sidelines for last game

quote:

---

Saban talks about the importance of momentum in a game on a regular basis.

---

Saban has repeatedly said that momentum only exists if you believe it exists.

And my above statement is not contradictory. Human psychological reactions to their environment very much exist. That still isn't momentum as most folks see it.

quote:

---

It is something you can gain, keep, or lose, and I feel like most coaches would agree with that.

---

I wholeheartedly disagree. You can keep playing well, you can stop playing well, you can start playing badly, or you can stop playing badly. That is all.

And the notion that the previously play or series or plays going your way affecting your ability to have a positive outcome of the next play or series of plays is simply not correct, and conversely if things aren't going your way, that has literally no bearing on what comes next.

Your result is tied to your performance, and your performance is a conscious decision.

Having said that, many player/humans in general are weak minded, and believe in the hokum known as momentum. And if you believe in it, it becomes real, just like a placebo pill. But it's simply because you believe your chances of success are lower/higher, you try less hard/harder. That's not momentum - that's being weak-minded and allowing your environment to dictate your mental and physical effort.

As a player and spectator, I have seen way too many games simply turn on a dime over, and over, and over again to believe in "momentum."

And when a coach wants his team to "keep the momentum", what he wants is them to keep playing well. And when he wants his players to "swing the momentum", what he wants is his players to play better.

Simply put, if a player is coached to do his job play in and play out regardless of environmental factors, just like Bama is coached, momentum literally ceases to exist. It only exists in the minds of fans watching the game.