Main attraction

HOOVER - Moving from one interview room to the next, the SEC's newest and most notorious coach - its brightest rock star - was surrounded by a dozen TV cameras every step of the way.

No move was too insignificant to not warrant some kind of coverage.

Make no mistake, the paparazzi does exist in college football and Nick Saban is its favorite subject - its Britney Spears or Paris Hilton. Like nobody else, at least in this part of the country, Saban draws an endless amount of attention and interest from an insatiable fan base and a relentless media.

The only new coach in the SEC this fall, Saban got a warm reception from a small-but-spirited contingent of Alabama fans staked out in the lobby of the Wynfrey Hotel early Thursday morning. He was definitely the belle of the ball on day two of SEC Media Days, where his every move was chronicled, his every word taken as gospel.

"We certainly appreciate the passion and support that our fans have and the excitement that they have for the program," Saban said. "That's the kind of positive energy that I think is important for us to sustain as a program."

Since he took over for the fired Mike Shula in early January, Saban has been the most important man in any room he's entered - whether he likes it or not. One thing he doesn't like is the Alabama media guide, which features a picture of Saban on the cover (standing alone in front of a black background), and another on the back.

No players were featured, something Saban, who said he saw the media guide for the first time Wednesday, said wouldn't happen again.

"I didn't make that decision and I'd rather have the players on there," he said. "It's not a philosophical decision on my part."

After nearly eight months of all eyes on him, Saban said he's ready for the attention to shift to his team, which went 6-7 a year ago and opens its season on Sept. 1 at home against Western Carolina

After enjoying relative anonymity since January, junior offensive lineman Antoine Caldwell, for one, said he wouldn't mind the focus staying on the coach.

"(The attention) has been bad for him, but good for us," Caldwell said. "All the attention on him has enabled us to focus just on us."

Strangely, Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said the same thing Wednesday.

"It's been good for us because we've been kind of under the radar," said Tuberville, whose Tigers have won five straight games against their archrivals. "People pretty much know us, know our program. We've had success, won games. I think people for the most part think we know what we're doing.

"If you've got that going for you, you really don't need a lot of publicity."

Now, as the Crimson Tide head into fall camp in preparation for what should be a daunting schedule, Saban will finally start to be judged by what happens on the field. By the end of the day on Sept. 1, which should include an easy win over the Catamounts, college football's first $4 million man will be judged on something counts - wins and losses.

"It's our job to go and make him look like he's worth $4 million a year," Caldwell said. "We're going to focus on doing our job and he's going to focus on his."

John C. Frierson can be reached at 740-5730 or john.frierson@timesdaily.com.