College Football 2024

[Darrell]

7 hours ago, Garufa said:

I doubt he has to worry about that much longer.  Bama losing three conference games has got to be a sure escort to the door.

He was a good fit at Washington, and I wish he'd shown some loyalty and remained there.  There's an old saying that you never want to follow a legendary coach (Saban), you want to follow the guy who followed the legendary coach.

Edited Sunday at 12:04 PM by Darrell

[Darrell]

The situation at Alabama is interesting. Saban never had to pay the big money for players that a lot of other schools did. Top-tier players saw how many Bama players went on the the NFL and quite a few were willing to leave aside the immediate money for the benefit of Saban's coaching. As a result, Alabama wasn't in the right position when the NIL rulings came down. (although they DO have one of the highest "payrolls right now). Tennessee, on the other hand, was quick to respond with a big-money NIL collective. Saban was disdainful of paying players, while a lot of other coaches (think Jimbo) saw it as the way to go.

When Saban left Alabama a lot of his best players decided to utilize the portal to leave and get paid a LOT more.  39 players left the program after Saban retired. Yeah, they were still loaded, but that's a wholesale change, and the effect is amplified by the coaching change. 

My favorite team, the UW Huskies, lost their entire coaching staff and 20 of their 22 starters from 2023 to the portal, graduation, and the draft.  They went from playing in the national championship game for 23 to just barely becoming bowl-eligible this year.

The teams that are doing best are the teams with the biggest payrolls.  Ohio St., Whoregon, and Texas are all at the top of the heap.  What a surprise, huh?

[Frog4aday]

Great insight @Darrell

Saban left because the NIL money was going to make his life a living hell. He'd accomplished what he set out to achieve and it was time to move on. Any coach that followed him was going to fall short.

Why DeBoer bailed on Washington to take a job he couldn't help but be measured as a failure at, surprised me. Time will tell if he can turn things around but 'Bama fans are not going to wait very long before demanding a coaching change. The bar was set so high by Saban, they are spoiled & impatient. They expect a "W" every week. With NIL money bringing some parity, those years of sustained success may be over, regardless of who the coach is.

[imjustabill1970]

As of this message - Alabama's out and Tennessee is in, so I'm happy with that. 

 

But @Darrell and @Frog4aday - You guys bring up great points about the future of the Alabama program.  Time will tell if they can get themselves back in the thick of things.