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To whoever comes to Bama after Nick Saban - best job or most difficult?
Posted on 12/7/13 at 7:20 am
Posted on 12/7/13 at 7:20 am
Is Alabama both the best and most difficult coaching position to take?
Best: decades-long proven winner, outstanding fan support with deep pockets.
Worst: the legacy of the larger than life Bear Bryant and now Saban.
Of course big boy coaches welcome the pressure just like elite athletes do and any coach with confidence would have to believe they could win there... but with the success of Saban the pressure to win is only magnified. What would happen (heaven forbid) if the new coach lost two games? And of course if he is successful he would be "winning with Saban's recruits" for the first four years of his tenure.
Best: decades-long proven winner, outstanding fan support with deep pockets.
Worst: the legacy of the larger than life Bear Bryant and now Saban.
Of course big boy coaches welcome the pressure just like elite athletes do and any coach with confidence would have to believe they could win there... but with the success of Saban the pressure to win is only magnified. What would happen (heaven forbid) if the new coach lost two games? And of course if he is successful he would be "winning with Saban's recruits" for the first four years of his tenure.
9
Posted on 12/7/13 at 7:32 am to NorthTiger
Most difficult if he keeps winning.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 7:35 am to NorthTiger
Did you miss 2007, 2008, and 2010?
Posted on 12/7/13 at 8:02 am to NorthTiger
Both. The infrastructure is in place to be successful for the immediate future and beyond, if the right hire is made.
Ray Perkins did not have near the team nor the facilities after the Bear retired that our next HC will have. Of course, Perkins also did not have the media and the social media scrutiny that the next coach will have to face.
Totally different times, but fan expectations will remain the same, for good or bad.
Ray Perkins did not have near the team nor the facilities after the Bear retired that our next HC will have. Of course, Perkins also did not have the media and the social media scrutiny that the next coach will have to face.
Totally different times, but fan expectations will remain the same, for good or bad.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 8:11 am to Sid E Walker
Hopefully Bama learned from the mistakes of the past and won't insist whoever comes next have ties to the university or Saban. Other than Gene Stallings, that logic didn't work out so well last time around. Although I wonder if Perkins wouldn't have ultimately won a title had he not returned to the NFL.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 8:18 am to samson73103
I think Perkins could have done well if he hadn't returned to the NFL. The Bear's recruiting had suffered the last 3-4 years because everyone was using the age factor against him.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 9:39 am to NorthTiger
If a coach came in and didn't change much about saban's gameplay he would easily have 10-win seasons for the first few years.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 10:34 am to NorthTiger
The fans want you fired after a 2 loss season. What do you think?
Posted on 12/7/13 at 10:49 am to Cosmo
Yeah, because fans wanted Shula fired after his first 2 loss season. Shula won 10 games in his first 3 seasons and he STILL got two more years AFTER that. Bama fans being impossible to please is one of the biggest myths in sports.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 11:44 am to NorthTiger
quote:
Is Alabama both the best and most difficult coaching position to take?
Yes. This is a double edged sword for a coach and a win/win for the fans. If you don't produce a championship you will be fired, because frankly there is no excuse not to. Alabama is one of the few schools that will not settle for simply 10 win seasons year in and year out, hardware is required. Bama has never gone more than 20 years without a national title, without looking it up id venture to say no other school can make this claim.
Win it all and we'll immortalize you in bronze and pay you what you're worth.
Eta: this isn't to say a 10 win season will get you fired, bama is willing to give a guy time, but if you haven't produced a title in 5 or 6 years on the job then you're gone at the first sign of decline.
This post was edited on 12/7/13 at 11:46 am
Posted on 12/7/13 at 11:53 am to Cosmo
quote:
The fans want you fired after a 2 loss season. What do you think?
We are talking about Alabama, not LSU.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 11:59 am to NorthTiger
It would depend on who is hired. If Bama landed a big name coach with a proven pedigree, such as Jim Mora, Jimbo Fisher, Bob Stoops, etc, I think the fans would be more patient and trusting. If we went the assistant route with a guy like Kirby Smart, that coach would have a lot less rope to cling to during a tough season.
Posted on 12/7/13 at 12:29 pm to Monticello
Well... You've seen what LSU fans have done to the coach post Saban... Gonna be way worse at bama because they had more success...
Posted on 12/7/13 at 12:42 pm to NorthTiger
With Bama fans expectations post-Saban, I feel for anybody taking that job. I actually heard two Bama fans that wanted to fire Saban after that game 
Posted on 12/8/13 at 10:52 am to Monticello
quote:
We are talking about Alabama, not LSU.
Yeah, this past week has shown bama fans are definitely the more rational fanbase
Posted on 12/8/13 at 10:58 am to Weagle25
quote:
I actually heard two Bama fans that wanted to fire Saban after that game
I'm sure you did.
Posted on 12/8/13 at 12:29 pm to NorthTiger
We've seen it a million times. The pattern is that even a bad coach would be good for 10 wins a season for TWO years after the Coach leaves. After that a drop off is imminent if the Coach is not legitimately good.
The other adage is that you NEVER want to be the man who replace The Man. You want to be the guy who replaces the man who replaces The Man. Let somebody else absorb all the arrows, and let the expectations of the fans come back to Earth a little. The next Coach at Alabama will be a transitional figure.
Even if the next Coach at Alabama is a winner, a large percentage of the fan base will despise him simply because he is not Nick Saban. Every difference will be pointed to as a failing and all his achievements will be attributed to Saban. The vast majority of proven, established Coaches will stay the hell away.
The other adage is that you NEVER want to be the man who replace The Man. You want to be the guy who replaces the man who replaces The Man. Let somebody else absorb all the arrows, and let the expectations of the fans come back to Earth a little. The next Coach at Alabama will be a transitional figure.
Even if the next Coach at Alabama is a winner, a large percentage of the fan base will despise him simply because he is not Nick Saban. Every difference will be pointed to as a failing and all his achievements will be attributed to Saban. The vast majority of proven, established Coaches will stay the hell away.
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