Nick Saban Addresses the Behavior of Alabama Captain Malachi Moore After Vanderbilt Loss
By J.C. Shelton,
4 hours ago
The Alabama Crimson Tide's historic upset loss to the unranked Vanderbilt Commodores last week sent shockwaves through the college football world. The loss was also compounded by the "unacceptable" behavior by Alabama defensive back and team captain, Malachi Moore.
The fifth-year senior lost his composure during Vanderbilt's game-winning drive when he kicked the football after officials made the spot. He also gave an unnecessary shove to Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia on the game's final play. The 40-35 loss was already imminent by that point, but Moore's antics created more controversy during what was already a tough day for Kalen DeBoer and the Tide.
"I want to apologize to my teammates, our coaches, the fans, our alumni and my family for the way I acted on Saturday," Moore wrote . "I was completely out of line. I let the emotions of the game get the best of me and put myself before the team. As a two-time captain and a fifth-year player, I understand the standard that we are expected to live up to at Alabama, and I failed to do so by acting in a selfish and unacceptable manner..."
Former Alabama national champion head coach Nick Saban addressed Moore's behavior in an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Friday. Saban recruited Moore out of Trussville, Alabama, in the 2020 class.
“Malachi Moore is a great young man,” he said . “He’s going to be very successful in life. This was totally uncharacteristic for him. But I think this is an example of when you get frustrated and you get emotional, you make bad choices and decisions and do things that you normally wouldn’t do from a character standpoint. And I think that was obviously what happened. And I know he’s very sorry for the way he represented himself, his family, his team, the university and all that. The thing about it is you can’t take those things back.”
Malachi Moore of the Alabama Crimson Tide and AJ Newberry of the Vanderbilt Commodores
The challenge for the Alabama safety is making up for his antics in the coming weeks. The Crimson Tide, who fell from No. 1 to No. 7 in the AP Poll after the loss, still have a long season ahead. The SEC Championship Game and the College Football Playoff are still within reach.
Moore also has a responsibility to show NFL teams that his outburst was not who he is as a player. DeBoer's comments about the situation seemingly point to as much.
“The guy pours everything into what he does,” DeBoer said. “Doesn’t make it OK. We want to be first class in everything we do."
Alabama (4-1) will take on South Carolina (3-2) this Saturday in Tuscaloosa. Kickoff is set for noon ET (ABC). It's unclear whether DeBoer and the Alabama staff will levy any type of suspension to Moore for the SEC matchup.
you kick off the problem players because they can affect the rest of the team! if he can get away with it, why can't i? maybe Bama needs a coaching change!
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