Degree of Madness

Crimson Tide Recruiting News...It's all good

Merry Christmas Bama fans!  Rivals.com has the Crimson Tide ranked Number 2 in their college football Recruiting Rankings.  Notre Dame is Number 1. 

More good news.  Julio Jones, Wide Receiver from Foley, Alabama, is ranked the Number 2 overall recruit in the country by Rivals (Number 1 at ESPN), and Bama is on his short list.  If we could get him, it would be Happy New Year, too. 

Alabama Coach Nick Saban seems to be living up to the hype when it comes to recruiting. 

On a related note, Rich Rodriguez, former West Virginia coach who pretty much accepted the Alabama job last year then changed his mind, accepted the head coaching job at Michigan.  Why would he take the Michigan job instead of the Alabama job?  John Adams has a thought:

...Why would he say "no" to Alabama and "yes" to Michigan.

Obvious answer: Because it's easier to win in the Big Ten than the SEC.

Coach Bobby Bowden and the Crimson Tide

Florida State coach Bobby Bowden could have been Alabama coach Bobby Bowden.  But it wasn't meant to be.  Things work out the way they're supposed to, my sister always says, and they did for Coach Bowden.  Tomorrow Coach Bowden's Florida State team will be on the field against the University of Alabama, the team he loved so much as a child growing up in Birmingham. 

Ivan  Maisel has written a wonderful story about Coach Bowden and Alabama.  "The Tide That Binds".  This is the end:

"One of my goals in life is to go back to Tuscaloosa and attend a football game," Bowden said. "You know, just for old times. Sit up in the stands. Of course, it looks so different now. One of these days, I hope I can do that."

He gazed up at his office ceiling, lost in the reverie.

"I hope we ain't playing Florida State."

We?

We.  I guess you have to be a Bama fan to understand it.  Good luck, Coach Bowden and Yea, Alabama!

"from Lexington to Tuscaloosa, from Fayetteville to Baton Rouge"

It's time.  ESPN's Wright Thompson writes A Love Letter to Southern Football.

It started last night, LSU 45, Mississippi State 0.  Ouch. 

Roll Tide!

Alabama A Day Game

All I can say is unbelievable.  Announced attendance was 92,000 plus.  The gates opened at 11:30 and if you messed around and didn't go in until 12:30 or so, you were pretty much out of luck getting a seat, which means we had to stand up until the middle of the third quarter.  (The game is free and there are no tickets with assigned seats.)  They ended up opening all sections of the stadium and it wasn't enough.  Although Alabama officials were expecting a record crowd for a spring game, they obviously didn't expect a "sell-out".  They had to close the gates in the second quarter or the total would have been higher.  For comparison:

 Alabama’s capacity crowd is well over the previous best for a Southeastern Conference Spring Day game, which is believed to have been set by Tennessee in 1986, with 73,000. It also nearly doubles this season’s previous best set by Florida at 47,500.

First year Head Coach Nick Saban, who was wearing a suit, was on the field the entire game.  I don't recall seeing a Head Coach do that in previous A Day games.  Talk about hands on coaching.  I kept waiting for him to get tackled.

The Final Score:  White beat Crimson 20-13.

ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!

Nicki at The Birthplace of the Process of Illogical Logic was headed to T-town for the game today too.   What a great day for Bama fans....

Bama has a coach

Nick Saban is coming to Alabama.

The Nick Saban coaching era with the Dolphins has ended.

A source said Wednesday morning that Saban has agreed to become the new head coach at the University of Alabama, ending his two-year tenure with the Dolphins.

A source said Saban failed to show this morning for a scheduling meeting at team headquarters in Davie with Dolphins owner H. Wayne Huizenga. Saban told Huizenga of his intentions via telephone and then informed all of his coaches by speakerphone that he was leaving to accept the Alabama position, the source said.

Speakerphone?  Gotta love that personal touch.  According to radio reports Saban is on his way to Tuscaloosa with Alabama Athletic Director Mal Moore.

This Bama fan is happy.  Woo Hoo!

***Update 10:30 CT***  Miami Dolphin owner Wayne Huizenga is speaking now and said Saban would be leaving Miami this afternoon to come to Alabama, so it may be tonight or tomorrow before we hear from Saban.

***Update 10:50CT***  OK, according to this report:

Saban is en route to a private airport to fly to Tuscaloosa on Wednesday morning, where he is expected to formally accept the job to become the Crimson Tide's 27th head football coach, ending a month-long wait by Tide fans and nationwide media frenzy to see who would replace Mike Shula.

Saban will fly to Tuscaloosa today with University of Alabama athletics director Mal Moore via private jet, and would be formally introduced at a news conference either later today or Thursday.

I guess he will get to T-town when he gets there.

***Update 11:23 CT***  ESPN is reporting a press conference 3:00CT Hell, I don't know.

Alabama coach Mike Shula fired

***Update and Bumped 12-10***   New posts below.

The search continues.  Officials at Alabama apparently believed they had an agreement in principle with West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez.  That fell apart last Friday when Rodriguez, under pressure from the Governor of West Virginia, prominent boosters, and wife Rita no doubt, announced he would remain in West Virginia.  During his talk at the press conference Rodriguez seemed to fumble for words, leading me to conclude his agent was acting in good faith in the negotiations with Bama and a deal had been agreed upon but Rodriguez backed out.  That's just how it sounded to me.  And although it would have been great to have Rodriguez at Alabama, if there is any hesitation, we're better off finding out now rather that later.  At any rate we're back to square one.

There are many good coaches out there who would love a chance to coach at Alabama, but Mal Moore backed himself into a corner with this statement on November 27:

"We will immediately begin a national search for a new head football coach. I am seeking a proven head coach with a proven record of achievement who can reach the level of excellence that all of us desire.'' (my emphasis)

That would rule out proven assistant coaches with no head coaching experience.  (It would not necessarily rule out Hoover High School coach Rush Propst whose name has been tossed out on local sports call in shows. I don't think Mal Moore would seriously consider Propst but he has been successful, although he missed out on a fifth straight state championship, thanks to Prattville.   And in the real, non MTV world, Rush Propst can't be considered a credible candidate for the Bama job.)

Alabama is getting slammed on message boards and web-sites:

What do you 'Bama fans think about all the A list coaches including Spurrier, Saban and now Rodriguez giving your school the Heisman. Maybe after some of you ran Shula out of town and 'Bama's struggles for the past decade this program is not what it used to be. You are the Oakland Raiders of college football

I think 'Bama boosters will not be happy until cloning technology becomes available and then they can clone a new Bear Bryant. [see my thoughts on this below --ed]

I take that as a compliment.  While Bama may be going through a rough time, we are still BAMA, and as the old saying goes, the bigger they are the harder they fall.  Alabama was BIG and we fell pretty hard, but we will be back.

Maybe Moore will take a look at some of the smaller colleges.  I'm sure there are some great coaches who would jump at the chance to coach at Alabama.  And if he has to back down on his "proven head coach" and go after a "proven" assistant coach, that would be fine too.  You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you just might find, you get what you need. (h/t The Rolling Stones)

As as afterthought on Rodriguez, I wonder how his assistant coaches feel about losing an opportunity to be among the highest paid assistants in the Southeastern Conference?  A move to Alabama would have been a step up for them, no doubt.  Not to mention coaching at a school with some of the finest facilities in the country.

***End Update***

 

***Update 11-28***  For the record I really hate the way this was handled.  Mike Shula came to Alabama under difficult circumstances and did a good job keeping the program on the right track, especially that extremely difficult first season.  Whether he should have been fired or not is a decision for someone else to make, but Shula behaved with dignity and class throughout his four years and deserved the same from the University.  He was (and is) a credit to Alabama and I wish the best for him. 

And another thing, I'm sick to death of hearing people talk about how Alabama fans keep looking for Bear Bryant.  Yes we know he is dead.  And we don't expect every coach to "BE" Coach Bryant.  We do want a winning football team as do, I assume, fans of most other teams.  In fact about the only people I ever hear mention Coach Bryant are the fans of those "other" teams.   He is a legend and we love him and always will.  But we know he was a once in a lifetime coach.  And we are glad he was ours. We don't expect him to come back, although I'm sure he can still walk on water.

Finally, from the rumor mill.  10 year contract, $30 million, but the offer has not yet been presented (to Spurrier).

And another rumor from TideSports forum, Humphrey26 says Bama has it's coach:

It is a BIG name and will probably be announced
Thursday or Friday. I will not say who it is
for fear of getting some people in trouble.
Something really bad would have to happen for
us not to get this guy.

***End Update***

Coach Mike Shula has been fired as head football coach at Alabama.  Shula has been at Bama four years with a 26-23 record.  Speculation about a possible new coach is all over the place but here's my theory, for what it's worth:

I heard last week that Shula had been fired before the Auburn game and that a new coach had been hired.  Based on that info, my sister (who is living in exile in Knoxville) and I came to the conclusion that South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier would be the Bama coach.  Word is there is no coach waiting in the wings but if last week's rumor is true, the best guess would be Spurrier. He would not want the announcement made before his game against Clemson last Saturday.

With all the coaching problems Bama has had, I would hope (Athletic Director) Mal Moore would not fire Shula unless he had another coach lined up.  Spurrier has not flat out denied rumors he would leave for Alabama:

"Mike Coster and Harold Diggs with Coach Spurrier from Columbia S.C. In a nutshell. Coach Spurrier just told Mike and Harold he has no interest in the Hurricanes whatsoever. When ask if he would consider a school like Alabama Coach Spurrier said "As far as I know Coach Shula is still coaching there". Again Mike Coster ask Coach Spurrier if the job were open would you take it? Coach Spurrier said "I am currently getting my team ready for Clemson and need to focus on the Bowl game."

I don't know if there's a news source for the above, but if it's accurate, sounds like a non-denial.  Here is a quoted from Gator Country:

On Monday, another rumor began making the rounds. This time, Spurrier is said to be taking over the job at Alabama. Like Miami, Alabama currently has a head coach, Mike Shula. However, Shula is not likely to be fired, since he just signed an extension last year. After practice, all Spurrier could do was laugh about the rumors. "Miami yesterday, Alabama today. It's always flattering that somebody would throw the South Carolina coach's name out there. Obviously, I'm very, very happy here, and we're going to try to win us an SEC [Championship]. That's the goal. That's my mission."

Nick Saban has also been mentioned.  If it's Spurrier or Saban, we'll probably find out today.  If not, we're in for another messy, embarrassing search.

The Kiss of Death

It's the biggest day of the year here in Alabama.  The Iron Bowl, Alabama vs. Auburn. (Ohio State, Michigan??  who's watching that?) And Lee Corso has already blown the kiss of death to Bama fans.  He picked Bama.  Alabama will have to have a monumental effort to overcome the dreaded Corso curse.

I believe we can do it.

Roll Tide

***Update***  We lost.