"That's kind of like Nick Saban, what made him so great": Connor Stalions turns spotlight on real X-factor under Jim Harbaugh

Nick Saban is regarded among the greatest college coaches of all time. The former Alabama Crimson Tide coach dominated the sport during his tenure in Tuscaloosa. The Michigan Wolverines handed him his final career loss, and former assistant coach Connor Stalions closely studied Saban's program for a specific purpose.

On Friday, Stalions joined On3's J.D. PicKell for an interview, and the controversial coach talked about the importance of mindset on the gridiron, a practice Nick Saban mastered during his legendary coaching career.

"Your mind fogs up." Stalions said. "That's why they call it the fog of war, its your mind, there's no way to get around it, your mind will automatically fog up. Whether you're dog-tired in the fourth quarter of the Ohio State game or you're in a literal war, right? When your mind fogs up, it's impossible to rise to the occasion because you can't think. You always fall back to your habits, right?

"Why is Michigan football so good?' The improvement of the daily habits and attention to detail that starts in the weight room. You don't really get that edge anywhere else unless you have something like that, Where is that attention to detail? That's kind of like Nick Saban, what made him so great."

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Stalions clarified that he isn't close to Saban, but rather is just an admirer of how he operated while in charge of the Crimson Tide.

"I mean, I don't know him personally," Stalions said. "I haven't been to a practice — but any video you see from his era, it's like everyone's wearing the same socks. Everyone's wearing the same thing, with shirts tucked in. Very good attention to detail. Everyone's touching the line. There are no shortcuts to anything."

What does Nick Saban think of Jim Harbaugh?

Connor Stalions' former boss, Jim Harbaugh, coached against Nick Saban multiple times, including the 2020 Citrus Bowl. Before that contest, the two coaches had a press conference together.

"You know, I've had the good fortune of having a lot of good mentors through the years," Saban said. "Whether it was my college coach, Don James, or George Perles at Michigan State in the time that I spent there with him or, you know, Bill Belichick.

"But I've always had a tremendous respect for Jim and his family as coaches. You know, his dad, Jack, kinda came up with me. I was a little younger. He was one of the most respected secondary coaches. That's what I coached. I used to try to visit with him as much as I could."

Saban was selected for this year's College Football Hall of Fame class. He currently broadcasts for ESPN.