Ten last-minute thoughts...

JessN · Sep 4, 2015

tidefanbeezer said:
Great read.

Question on point number one: from what I've read, Bateman is much more mobile and athletic than Coker and Morris. Could he be used in a similar manner to Sims, making preparation for Bateman different than for Coker and Morris (I'm assuming Cornwell and Barnett are no-go for starting the opener)? That might explain some of the secrecy.

I understand that he may not be as gifted a runner as Sims, but if he's "Aaron Rogers mobile", that could cause a defense to prepare differently vs. the other two.

I don't think Bateman is similar to Sims. He might have good straight-line speed, but what made Sims what he was, was the ability to make guys miss at close range. Sims had tremendous feet. Look at it this way: He was invited to an NFL camp as a running back. Even "Aaron Rodgers mobile" isn't anywhere close to that level of mobility. It was a quickness issue for him, and Bateman is not what I'd call "quick."

I'm virtually certain you won't see either Cornwell or Barnett in 2015, barring injury to at least two of the guys in front of them.

Bateman would demand slightly different preparation from the other two, but it's not like he needs a spy. And he doesn't have the arm strength of either Coker or Morris, or Sims.

FYI, Morris was behind Coker Wednesday. So the order may have flipped again.

rgw · Sep 4, 2015

Good stuff as always. I think you're hit the nail on the head about the landscape post-Saban. I hope the people who make that hiring decision show some creativity in who they target. I'd love to see us avoid the Dubose or Zook type hire and go straight to the next guy who can lead the program for a decade or more at a high level. Frankly, I think a lot of programs of the same stature as Alabama botch the hire following a legend mostly due to lack of creativity. They end up giving too much credence to the exit interview from the legend where he gives them a list of former players and assistants they should look at for his old job. Certain groups with soft power within the program start touting their favorite sons for the reasons you mention. And when it is all said and done we end up with a Mike Dubose or Ray Perkins instead of the next Urban Meyer coaching at a lower-tier program or the next Nick Saban who is not happy with his big time job and would love the opportunity.

Padreruf · Sep 4, 2015

Add a few:

11. The most improvement is usually between game 1 and 2. (Bryant). I admit to nervousness over the fact that our QB is raw and untested. UW is not a pushover, but we should beat them easily.
12. I am ready for some COLLEGE FOOTBALL!!! Roll Tide Roll!

chris · Sep 4, 2015

Thank you for mentioning Joey Jones. I think he would be an excellent choice as next Bama HC! RTR!!!

TrueCrimson7 · Sep 4, 2015

Great Thoughts Jess! Man, I cannot wait for tomorrow night. This is better than Christmas Eve.

Moro Creek · Sep 4, 2015

Great read Jess. As far as Muschump is concerned, any coach that would go back to the barn knowing how corrupt they are says all you need to know about this liar. My opinion is that Chris Hatcher is a better coach than Dabo. Super Mario will be a head coach again sooner rather than later and would be an excellent consideration in ten years when CNS retires.

RTR91 · Sep 4, 2015

chris said:
Thank you for mentioning Joey Jones. I think he would be an excellent choice as next Bama HC! RTR!!!

If Joey wants to get in the SEC, he needs to leave South Alabama soon to get more experience. Folks will question his recruiting ability along with his name recognition.

tattooguy21 · Sep 4, 2015

Regarding getting unc/duke out of the acc......No. Not possible. Not even a slight possibility. Those two teams are the backbone of the ACC in profits for gear alone. Don't forget, the ACC is at heart a basketball conference. I don't believe that there's right money in the world to make that move happen.

sent from my big ol' note 4

TideEngineer08 · Sep 4, 2015

JessN said:
Before I answer a couple of the responses, no, I don't think Nick Saban is leaving anytime soon. Like I said up top, this was a collection of scattered topics which is why it became a board post rather than an article. What it boils down to with replacement coaches is that the UA fan base is made up of pockets of people who have a vested interest in certain coaches getting jobs here, whether as assistants or the head coach, whether now or down the road. It can be people they know personally or folks they believe will allow them as fans to become insiders because of prior connections.

This is maddeningly frustrating for me. Folks like this should butt the hell out, IMO. They do far more harm than good. They would rather have insider access than to have a great program. That's not a fan at all.

tattooguy21 · Sep 4, 2015

And quick question, which maybe I'm stupid for asking, but why does no one consider lane Kiffin for the HC job? Do you think they even offer him the slot?

sent from my big ol' note 4

BigEasyTider · Sep 4, 2015

tattooguy21 said:
And quick question, which maybe I'm stupid for asking, but why does no one consider lane Kiffin for the HC job? Do you think they even offer him the slot?

I think quite a few people have, in fact, considered him as a possibility, but for now his potential candidacy simply has to be considered a longshot. He's only been in Tuscaloosa a year, he may be on his way out (notable, of course, that his family remains on the west coast and that he flirted with returning to the NFL last winter), and while there were a lot of mitigating circumstances in his flameouts in Oakland and LA -- not to mention his hurried departure from Knoxville -- a lot of people will very much hold those things against him, and that alone may be enough to doom his potential candidacy.

FWIW, if Kiffin spends another couple of years in Tuscaloosa and continues to have real success as OC, then I imagine the drumbeat for his hiring would grow significantly louder.

Matt0424 · Sep 4, 2015

tattooguy21 said:
And quick question, which maybe I'm stupid for asking, but why does no one consider lane Kiffin for the HC job? Do you think they even offer him the slot?

sent from my big ol' note 4

I can only speak for myself, but feel like there are two camps on this (correct me if I'm wrong).

Camp 1: They still don't like Kiffin, and never truly will. That makes him not be a candidate.

Camp 2: They like Kiffin but don't expect him to be here long enough to take over for Saban. Therefore he's not a candidate.

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BigEasyTider · Sep 4, 2015

chris said:
Thank you for mentioning Joey Jones. I think he would be an excellent choice as next Bama HC! RTR!!!

Jones will turn 53 this year and he has spent his entire career coaching at the high school level and at the lower levels of CFB. He's done well in building up the program at South Alabama, but until he gets out of Mobile and into at least a decent mid-major job, he's just not a viable HC candidate for 'Bama, unless we plan on running this thing off the rails.

If Jones is ever going to get a top job -- and I doubt he does, FWIW -- he needs to land a solid job in a P5 conference ASAP, and then have a nice three or four year run of success there, and use that as a stepping stone to a top CFB job. And even that is going to be really tough, because that puts him in his late 50s, and the market for CFB coaches in their first big job at that age is quite limited. I think he has a far better chance of being a USA lifer than he does at landing a top job, much less the 'Bama job.

TideEngineer08 · Sep 4, 2015

Kiffin is similar to Muschamp, IMO, just an offensive guy as opposed to defensive. Although I will say that his resume as a HC is a mixed bag, where Muschamp's is decidedly worse than that.

They're both really good coordinators and position coaches, but when it comes to running a program the jury is still very much out. More so with Kiffin, as I feel Muschamp's failure is pretty much nailed the coffin shut.

I would be happier with Kirby Smart, without the HC experience, just because he is so well versed in what Saban has done to make the program great. Long time assistants don't always work out though. We should probably hire the best candidate possible, and there would be many possibilities. But I'd hate to hire someone that would essentially blow up everything Coach Saban has built here.

tattooguy21 · Sep 4, 2015

I actually don't have any thoughts on him except they I like what he's done on offense.

I just wanted to know if there were any rumblings I missed in the past year or so. I think Saban is gonna be here for the next decade or so, we've got time.

sent from my big ol' note 4

BigEasyTider · Sep 4, 2015

TideEngineer08 said:
Kiffin is similar to Muschamp, IMO, just an offensive guy as opposed to defensive.

I think that's the wrong analogy, because Kiffin at least showed some real promise at his prior stops, and none of the mitigating factors that can be considered with Kiffin's failures -- senile ownership, draconian NCAA sanctions, cratered program with little talent, a conference (Pac-12) that turned out to be much stronger than anticipated, etc. -- at all apply to possibly explain why Muschamp flamed out in Gainesville. Muschamp, frankly, just looked like a one-sided coordinator who was completely lost in the CEO role of being a head coach and who let his temper affect his performance. Kiffin certainly had his flaws and shortcomings as a HC, but in general he showed far more promise in his prior stops than Muschamp ever did.

Frankly, in a lot of ways, the best comparison for Muschamp at Florida might actually be Ed Orgeron at Ole Miss. Fiery guy, fine recruiter, players wanted to play hard for him, and certainly skilled at his relatively limited area of expertise, but too hot-headed, no clue on the offensive side of the ball, couldn't maintain team discipline, and ultimately defined by being unable to have the talent on-hand play to their potential.

TideEngineer08 said:
I would be happier with Kirby Smart, without the HC experience, just because he is so well versed in what Saban has done to make the program great.

I'm sure Kirby will have his share of supporters, but frankly I can't see him ever getting the job unless the program experiences some post-Stallings-style internal fractures (which it might, because that is unfortunately always a possibility). Kirby has done really well, and is a fine DC, but big-time CFB isn't very friendly to first-time coaches and 'Bama would have to turn down a slew of coaches with proven records as head coaches to ever hire someone like Kirby. I just can't see us doing it, frankly.

I also think that, fair or not, Muschamp's flameout at Florida has serious hindered Smart's attractiveness as a HC candidate, both in recent years and on into the future. Again, that doesn't make it fair and it doesn't necessarily make it right, but I do think that is very much a real headwind that he is sailing into, and it also doesn't help that, in general, most programs now tend to be biased towards head coaching candidates with offensive backgrounds. Combined, I would even say that those are two of the biggest reasons that Kirby is still in Tuscaloosa, in fact. He's had some looks over the years, but honestly it's not like he's had to turn down a lot of P5 jobs to stay in T'town.

TideEngineer08 · Sep 4, 2015

BigEasyTider said:
I think that's the wrong analogy, because Kiffin at least showed some real promise at his prior stops, and none of the mitigating factors that can be considered with Kiffin's failures -- senile ownership, draconian NCAA sanctions, cratered program with little talent, a conference (Pac-12) that turned out to be much stronger than anticipated, etc. -- at all apply to possibly explain why Muschamp flamed out in Gainesville. Muschamp, frankly, just looked like a one-sided coordinator who was completely lost in the CEO role of being a head coach and who let his temper affect his performance. Kiffin certainly had his flaws and shortcomings as a HC, but in general he showed far more promise in his prior stops than Muschamp ever did.

Frankly, in a lot of ways, the best comparison for Muschamp at Florida might actually be Ed Orgeron at Ole Miss. Fiery guy, fine recruiter, players wanted to play hard for him, and certainly skilled at his relatively limited area of expertise, but too hot-headed, no clue on the offensive side of the ball, couldn't maintain team discipline, and ultimately defined by being unable to have the talent on-hand play to their potential.

I'm sure Kirby will have his share of supporters, but frankly I can't see him ever getting the job unless the program experiences some post-Stallings-style internal fractures (which it might, because that is unfortunately always a possibility). Kirby has done really well, and is a fine DC, but big-time CFB isn't very friendly to first-time coaches and 'Bama would have to turn down a slew of coaches with proven records as head coaches to ever hire someone like Kirby. I just can't see us doing it, frankly.

I also think that, fair or not, Muschamp's flameout at Florida has serious hindered Smart's attractiveness as a HC candidate, both in recent years and on into the future. Again, that doesn't make it fair and it doesn't necessarily make it right, but I do think that is very much a real headwind that he is sailing into, and it also doesn't help that, in general, most programs now tend to be biased towards head coaching candidates with offensive backgrounds. Combined, I would even say that those are two of the biggest reasons that Kirby is still in Tuscaloosa, in fact. He's had some looks over the years, but honestly it's not like he's had to turn down a lot of P5 jobs to stay in T'town.

All good thoughts and true. I didn't like my comparison mid post and attempted to walk it back some but you are really right on the Muschamp = Orgeron comparison.

twofbyc · Sep 4, 2015

BigEasyTider said:
I think quite a few people have, in fact, considered him as a possibility, but for now his potential candidacy simply has to be considered a longshot. He's only been in Tuscaloosa a year, he may be on his way out (notable, of course, that his family remains on the west coast and that he flirted with returning to the NFL last winter), and while there were a lot of mitigating circumstances in his flameouts in Oakland and LA -- not to mention his hurried departure from Knoxville -- a lot of people will very much hold those things against him, and that alone may be enough to doom his potential candidacy.

FWIW, if Kiffin spends another couple of years in Tuscaloosa and continues to have real success as OC, then I imagine the drumbeat for his hiring would grow significantly louder.

JMO, but if Bama's offense explodes and Bama either wins the playoff or gets to the title game, he's gone. I'm not sure which schools are going to have vacancies so I might qualify that if there are no quality P5 positions open. What he continues to do with QB's is impressive and if he does it again this year (granted, he's not making gold from manure this year - and that's not a slam against BS, more a JC thing) successfully (meaning title game due as much to the offense as the defense) then if a quality job opens he's gone. Not sure about his family situation though - his wife did live in Knoxville, right? But won't live in Tuscaloosa? Hmmmmm.

TIDE-HSV · Sep 4, 2015

BamaMoon said:
I freely admit "I know nothing" about some things you are referring to when CDS was at UA. I'm sure what you are referring to would come into play when the time to replace CNS comes to pass.

However, I stand beside the comments that CDS is miles ahead of CWM on results. Dabo's got some good numbers.

The NCAA investigation, irregular as it was, didn't really turn up a fraction of what really went on during Dubose's three ring circus. For CDS to be the religious man he claims to be now, there would have had to be a true religious conversion, or he couldn't have done the things he did. The other possibility - and any rational man has to consider it - is that the current religiosity is window dressing and he is a complete hypocrite. Can we take that risk?

centerstar · Sep 4, 2015

BigEasyTider said:
Kirby has done really well, and is a fine DC, but big-time CFB isn't very friendly to first-time coaches

There are exceptions, you have to admit. Jimbo Fisher comes to mind.

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