Nick Saban retiring?
- Thread starter CappyNU
- Start date
ticker tape parades in 15 other southeastern cities right now...
Eh. Dabo is a native, well-loved former Tide walk-on who parlayed two titles as a player directly into a coaching gig. Bama is the only other school he’s ever known besides Clemson as either player or coach. Plus jumping from the ACC to the SEC would be a huge boon.
Bama will hire whoever they want. Dan Lanning, Mario Cristobal, Lane Kiffin, whomever.
I agree with you that Bama will hire whoever they want, and it isn't gonna be Dabo on the heels of a 9-4 season.
On one hand, he has put in his time and certainly has earned it. On the other hand, my guess is-for better or for worse, he doesn't want any part of what's coming. For starters, scrambling for a new team every year.
Says a lot that 9-4(4-4) with a bowl win and top-20 finish is a “down year,” no?
Yep!
In the meeting, Saban thanked his players for the way they bought in and told them that he'd thought out his decision carefully. But with the way college football has changed in terms of the transfer portal and tampering, NIL being used as a guise for bidding for high school players and transfers, and the recruiting calendar being extended, he told his players that the time was right for him to retire.
Sources told Low that Saban had grown increasingly frustrated with "what college football had turned into. He's all about team and building a team and developing players, and now the only thing that seems to matter is who can get what in the NIL and who can get the biggest deal."
Absolutely, but I think Bama fans and the most powerful boosters look at him as no longer being the flavor of the month. I could easily see DeBoer, Lanning, Sark, or Norvell getting the nod right now before Dabo.
Second best-case scenario: Their fans/boosters become a liability in the same way Nebraka's have, post Tom Osborne. e.g. Expecting natty every year - not getting it because the landscape has changed. In the process, they continually change coaches in search of a promised land that only exists in the rearview mirror. Best-case scenario: They hire Beckman.
It’s been great almost having you in the B1G, Kaleb. You’re lucky to be avoiding a purple pounding 8 months from now. It’s always smart to dodge the Cats.
The big difference is that Alabama is located in the heart of the South and has by far the shiniest championship pedigree in the sport.
I do agree with you that the biggest problem there is expectations are insane. If DeBoer doesn't win a national championship in the next 4-5 years, he's gone.
Saban made the standard completely crazy there.
It'll be no different from when they replaced Bear Bryant. A real poisoned chalice. I wish DeBoer luck!
Yeah and the 25 years between Bryant and Saban included 1 national championship but also a lot of seasons that would be mediocre/fireable by their current standards.
Wouldn't be much of a surprise if the next 25 look like that too; maybe DeBoer hits it out of the park as a successor, but the odds in a 12 team CFP world with Texas/OU also in the SEC don't make that likely.
DeBoer might be a genius.
His career record is 104-12. Exclude his first year with a program, and his career record is 79-4.
(When he went 11-2 in his first year at Washington, it decreased his lifetime winning percentage.)
He’s never won in the SEC but he has always been better than his competitors.
His career record is 104-12. Exclude his first year with a program, and his career record is 79-4.
(When he went 11-2 in his first year at Washington, it decreased his lifetime winning percentage.)
He’s never won in the SEC but he has always been better than his competitors.
Going to be fascinating to see, usually following a legendary coach doesn't work out that well, but who knows. Maybe he can make it work.
Funny, the guy that can't win the big one, then can't win a bowl game against supposedly a weaker opponent. If Day couldn't fill Meyer's shoes, do you think he could fill Saban's? Day has just been coasting off of the residual vapors of Meyer's aura that still lingers in Columbus and I think those in Tuscaloosa know that. Day hasn't built anything on his own. My uncle was 100 times better than Day, as is Saban.
Dabo is loathed by the Alabama fanbase. I'm not completely sure why, but despite his alumni status, he doesn't seem to match the culture. He was never a candidate, especially because of his views on NIL/transfers (even more strictly opposed than Fitz).
From what I father, DeBoer either topped the list or followed Smart and Sark. But they both had good options to stay. Norvell was probably #4 behind DeBoer. Lanning may also have been a candidate, but he's lost three times to DeBoer already.
Biggest problem with Dabo is his approach to NIL and portal which I think made Alabama very hesitant to even consider him.
If it was 2020, Dabo would get the job ASAP.
But he has the reputation for not playing the transfer game as hard as the SEC schools or chasing lesser players off.
It's a different world now, a coach that won't try to win at any cost regardless of method won't cut it at Alabama.
Even with his losses to UW the past 2 years, I think Lanning would have been the #1 choice because of recruiting. Top 5 recruiting/transfer classes at Oregon is extremely hard to pull off even with Nike/Knight NIL behind the program.
They're absolutely cleaning up in CA and then getting some top SEC type prospects to Eugene. That isn't easy to do from 1000-2000+ miles away.
I think him as a more known recruiting quantity was his edge over DeBoer.
But once Lanning said no, it comes to Sark, Norvell, and DeBoer. Sark probably 2nd but Texas is as strong as Bama so he wasn't going to leave.
I'd have DeBoer 3rd. Only thing is he's an unknown quantity in recruiting but Alabama is a recruiting/NIL machine so even if he isn't a great recruiter, he probably gets top 10 classes by default.
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The bigger issue today is evaluation over recruiting (after NIL cash), and DeBoer will have an advantage. Lanning's in-game coaching has been a notable issue.
Agreed, and I think Lanning is a better long-term fit for programs like Oregon/Washington whereas DeBoer is the better fit for a program like Alabama.
I don't think what DeBoer had at Washington was sustainable; he was doing well in the portal but not quite as well with recruits and that was an old 5-6 year senior team (Covid extra eligibility being a key factor).
Where did Fitz rank? Can anyone confirm if he was legitimately a candidate for Bama or if Washington is considering him?
I’m wondering what opportunities he’s open to for his next move.
My guess is still NFL LB coach somewhere. Timing TBD. May wanna just hang out for Ryan’s senior year and volunteer at Loyola again. Brendan is a 2027/freshman at Loyola, so maybe that’s just what he does until his lawsuit is settled?
Yeah I think the lawsuit/settlement timing matters a lot for this discussion.
Half the damages that his lawyers are seeking are based on the theory of lost future earnings past his cancelled contract, so I don't think he can take any "serious" job until this settled so that can't be held against him.
Maybe not to the same degree (also, going to a 12 team playoff makes the road to a natty more difficult), but if anyone can continue having success at Bama, it's DeBoer.
Top (passing) QBs and WRs will be even more drawn to Tuscaloosa (Bama may now leap ahead of USC, UT and dOSU for those recruits) and the D should remain pretty good with a Saban disciple (plus, Saban is still going to hang around on some level).
Was not entirely surprised by Saban's retirement - he seemed more sentimental than usual leading up to the Rose Bowl and after the loss.
Yep, a huge segment of the Bama fanbase/boosters despise Dabo.
