Deaderick earns chest bump from Saban at Tennessee game

By Ken Rogers

Published: October 28, 2008

Forget an ESPN helmet sticker.
Brandon Deaderick earned something he never imagined at the close of Alabama’s victory over Tennessee last Saturday night—a chest bump from Tide coach Nick Saban.
“It was right at the end of the game with about 20-some seconds left,“ Deaderick recalled Tuesday after practice. “I saw him jump up there and didn’t want to crack his sternum or anything. I was shocked he did that. It surprised me. I was jumping around the sideline he turned around and was real excited. He jumped up and gave me a chest bump. It was kind of exciting. I don’t think many people get those.“
The smile never left Deaderick’s face as he went through the play.
“He came to me with it. I was down,“ the defensive end said. “He can jump. He can get up there.“
With an 8-0 record, a No. 2 national ranking and a second straight victory over Tennessee, Deaderick knew his coach was happy.
“Well, I mean, you know, you go out there and win, you play hard, you play like you’re supposed to, that’ll put any coach in a good mood,“ Deaderick noted. “And winning how we won—it was a rough game, physical game. Things weren’t going exactly how we wanted them to. We just kept pressing, pressing, pressing. I think he was proud of how we stayed committed to the plan and didn’t let up. You saw the final result.“