In his last availability before the Iron Bowl, Alabama coach Nick Saban spent some time talking about Thanksgiving, one of his favorite holidays.

“We spend a lot of time thinking about what we don’t have, but this is the one time that we ought to be thinking about all the good things that we do have, the great relationships that we have, appreciate all the things that we have,” Saban said. “I just think this is a wonderful time for everybody to say to yourself, ‘I’m happy to be here,’ and look at all the things that you do have that we all should be thankful for.”

He wished the fans and their families a happy Thanksgiving.

On Saturday, No. 2 Alabama will face Auburn in the annual rivalry game. The next two days will be key for Alabama preparing for some of the trick plays Auburn runs on offense.

“They’re well-designed,” Saban said. “They’re difficult to defend. Every player has got to be focused on keying and reading the right things and do his job, and as soon as a player doesn’t do his job, they can take advantage of it, and they have a lot of multiples and it’s a lot to try to practice, but what it comes down to in the game is the players have to recognize it and be aware of what can happen.”

Saban also updated the status of some of the injured players. Minkah Fitzpatrick and Dominick Jackson practiced the whole time, Saban said. He said he thinks they are ready to play.

Kenyan Drake is day-to-day. He said he’s anxious to get back there, but doesn’t know if he’s done enough in practice.

“I always ask the player when we get to the game if he thinks he’s capable of doing his job well, and I’ll certainly have that conversation with him sometime between now and then,” Saban said.