re: Where would our program be if these two things happen

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LOL. All during that holiday season he swore and swore he wasn't leaving. Then jumped ship a week after the bowl game. A lot of people didn't blame him for trying the NFL. They just wished he would have been up front about it before the bowl game.

Also, wasn't his last game when we blew the game against Iowa by letting them score a 80 yds+ TD on one of the last plays of the game?

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All this.

People have romanticized Saban's time at LSU over the years and it's been one of the things that made it impossible for Miles even from Day 1. That's not at all to say Miles has not deserved criticism, but for frick's sake...the guy was never given a chance by many in our fan base because he was not Nick Saban. And that was BEFORE Saban became the Saban we know at BAMA, because he was not that guy when he was here.

But people forget...Saban was flirting with the NFL and essentially holding it over LSU's head in contract negotiations from 2002 on. Have people forgotten the run up to the 2003 NC game when he was fielding legit questions about the Bears opening? and as has been said, the guy went on and on about how he preferred the college game to the NFL one. He and Terri were gonna plant Live Oaks all over campus for their long stay, etc. Then...he waited until way past the last minute to make his decision on going to Miami and left LSU in no position to replace him or salvage the recruiting season. In fact, Miles' be coup was coming in and getting Perriloux to stay after he had decided to go to Texas when he was clear Saban was gonna bail.

Oh...did I forget that Saban told LSU that the best hire would be his friend and fellow Jimmy Sexton client, Houston fricking Nutt to replace him? Want to talk about what ifs...how about THAT ONE?? What if we had taken Nick's advice and hired Houston Nutt?

Saban was huge for LSU, but it's also possible to lay some responsibility at his feet for the way he handled his departure in such a shitty way.