"Chasing the dream that you were": When Plaxico Burress accused Nick Saban of being hypocritical after his comments on Draft projections

Former Alabama Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban had a legendary college football career winning seven national championships, but not without controversy. In 2014, the Crimson Tide lost 42-35 to the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Sugar Bowl, despite being favorites. Saban blamed his players' divided focus for the loss.

During the 2015 SEC media days, Saban indicated that the NFL handing out grades to juniors by December 15 affected his players' focus before the crucial loss to the Buckeyes.

"I just felt like, in our experience last year, our team chemistry from the SEC championship game to the playoff game was affected by something," Saban said.

"I think that to have a December 15th deadline from when a junior can submit for a draft grade, and then you get that assessment back sometime right before or right after Christmas, and then you have a playoff game coming up on January 1st or 2nd, and I think it's my obligation as a coach to inform that young man when I get that information because it's his information, it's not my information, to make him aware of that."

Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Plaxico Burress, who played for Saban during his tenure as coach of the Michigan State Spartans, posted a tweet accusing the Alabama coach of hypocrisy after his comments about his players. Burress further accused the legendary coach of taking the LSU Tigers job despite promising his players that he would stay with the Spartans.

"Now Nick Saban players are being distracted by the NFL and chasing a dream, haha tell your story Nick. LSU showed you $$, you was GONE! Ha" Burress tweeted.

How Nick Saban responded to Plaxico Burress

Nick Saban held the Michigan State Spartans job between 1995 and 1999 after working in the NFL as coach Bill Belichick's Cleveland Browns' defensive coordinator (1991-1994). Saban then took the LSU Tigers in 2000 and won his first national championship in 2004.

In a 2015 X rant (known then as Twitter), Plaxico Burress accused Saban of leaving the Michigan State job for the LSU job after advising him to stay with the Spartans instead of declaring for the NFL Draft.

During an interview with ESPN, Saban addressed Burress's accusations denying any wrongdoing in the matter.

"I've never knowingly told a player any information that I get, I get from someone else. And I can't even remember the conversation," Nick Saban said. "I actually left Michigan State right after the Penn State game. I didn't stay for the bowl game when I went to LSU and that (would have been) Plax's senior year. We're proud of what he's been able to do and we're happy to see him have as much success as he's had."

Plaxico Burress revealed that Nick Saban told him that he would be a second-round draft pick but after the legendary coach left in 1999, he declared for the draft and was selected No. 8 overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers.