Nick Saban weighs in on universal injury reports in college football (LSU)

Late last month, the Big Ten Conference formally adopted policy to have each of its member institutions' football programs submit a uniform, player availability chart at minimum two hours prior to each kickoff -- a move very similar to the NFL.

Additionally, LSU coach Brian Kelly last month also said his Tigers, the reigning Southeastern Conference Western Division champions, would provide a gameday player-status report.

During Wednesday's SEC coaches' teleconference, Alabama coach Nick Saban was asked his thoughts about the trend -- which has become a more pressing topic in the wake of athlete-gambling scandals in college athletics, particularly the focus of investigations at the University of Iowa and Iowa State.

"I respect the fact the media has a job to do and wants to get as much information as they can," Saban said. "We try to do that on a timely basis, but we also don’t want to create a disadvantage to ourselves when a situation with players is relatively unknown or day-to-day and we don’t know how they're going to be by gametime. 

"It's a tough situation to be in."

Along those lines, Saban provided his latest on Tide defensive backs Jaylen Key and Malachi Moore ahead of Saturday night's prime-time showdown at home against No. 11 Texas. 

"They’re able to practice," Saban said, "and how close to 100-percent they can get by gametime will be the big question we have to answer. 

"Probably not something I can comment on till we get to that point."

A year after squeezing out an 20-19 win at Texas, the third-ranked Crimson Tide are 7.5-point favorites moving into this week's clash. 

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