ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low

A big part of the Nick Saban persona is educating his players, and even the fans, through the media.

Ever hear him light up a reporter at a press conference? Usually, he's trying to send a message.

His message coming out of Alabama's convincing 34-10 demolition of Clemson to open the season is simple: Don't make too much out of one game.

That may be easier said than done. Alabama's on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week, and the fans are salivating at the thought of what comes next.

And that's not necessarily Tulane this Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

"The challenge is to build on it, to not be satisfied, to not get complacent about where you are or what you've accomplished," Saban said Wednesday. "It's to continue to focus on the future, what you have to do to improve as a team, individually and collectively as units. That's a part of your competitive character."

Saban said Jamaican Olympic sprint champion Usain Bolt was a perfect example of what he's trying to sell to his team and the Crimson Tide Nation.

"Bolt said it best when he said, 'I don't compete against the other runners. I compete against myself. I'm trying to do the best I can do all the time to run as well as I can run,' " Saban said. "If we thought of it that way and everybody could look at it that way, we might have a better opportunity to continue to make progress."

Saban, almost stoic at times after a victory, has been down this road before. During his first season at LSU in 2000, the Tigers upset No. 11-ranked Tennessee 38-31 midway through the season, setting off a wild celebration at Tiger Stadium.

"I get tore up a lot for stuff like that, but we tore up the field and damn near tore down the stadium when we beat Tennessee (the first year) I was there," Saban said. "I said, 'These kind of celebrations are for when you win a championship.' That should be the goal. That should be the focus, and that should be what you're working for. It's the standard of excellence you aspire to and knowing what it takes to get there, and it's not easy.

"That's what people have to realize, what players have to realize, what coaches have to realize, what everybody in the organization has to realize. It's the standard of excellence we try to do our job to."