Former Alabama star Mark Ingram II once recalled a time when Nick Saban “tried to quit on him" at a golf tournament

Mark Ingram was one of the most successful players under Nick Saban at Alabama. The now-retired running back was the first player to win the Heisman Trophy under Saban and helped lead the Crimson Tide to its first conference and national championship under the coach.

In September 2019, Ingram appeared on an episode of “The Rich Eisen Show” to discuss a couple of things on his journey in the NFL. The running back had just started his first season with the Baltimore Ravens after seven years with the New Orleans Saints.

At the tail end of his time on the show, Rich Eisen asked Mark Ingram to tell him an unheard story of his time with Nick Saban. The three-time Pro Bowler narrated a story of a golf tournament he played with the coach where they were both teammates and Saban tried to quit on him:

“My coach, you don't expect this from him, but he tried to quit on me one time,” Ingram said. We were in a golf tournament, doing a little Chick-fil-A golf tournament, and we were in a playoff, and on the last hole, 18. We played the hole like three times versus two other groups, and we kept tying, we kept tying, we kept tying.

"We were driving back to the tee box, he's like ‘If we tie again, I'm going to have to probably get out of here, I've got somewhere to be, I've got a plane to catch.’ I'm like, coach, We're in a playoff, we're about to win this whole tournament, you talking like you're trying to go. I'm like, ‘You ain't teach me that, I don't know what you get that from.’"

Golf: 2013 Chick-fil-A Challenge Golf Tournament - Source: Imagn

Mark Ingram held Nick Saban accountable after losing golf tournament

Mark Ingram continued, explaining that Nick Saban's concerns were unfounded, although he felt Saban was responsible for the loss:

“But anyways, we teed off in the last hole, and we ended up losing that playoff, and I told him, I said, ‘You brought us that negative energy. You were talking about if we tied again that you were going to have to catch the fly and leave early, and we ended up losing on that playoff hole.’”

Believing Nick Saban's bad energy was responsible for the loss in the golf tournament, Mark Ingram noted that he did make the coach take accountability for that with his reaction. Saban is known for making holding players accountable in the best possible way and that was a good clapback from Ingram.

"I'm sure he'll tell you the same story, and he'll justify my story,” Ingram said. “I checked him, and I think that kind of opened his eyes to know that, you got to be accountable. I held him accountable as he's held me accountable a couple of times."

Mark Ingram had an illustrious career under Nick Saban at Alabama. In his tenure with the Crimson Tide, he recorded 3,261 rushing yards and 42 touchdowns in three seasons in Tuscaloosa. Aside from the Heisman Trophy, the running back was a Unanimous All-American and SEC co-offensive player of the year in 2009.