Greg Byrne faced the most unenviable task in college football this offseason and arguably one of the toughest tasks in the history of the sport.

That task, of course, was replacing legendary head coach Nick Saban, winner of 7 national titles with 6 of those coming during his time at Alabama. Some would say that task is impossible, and in some sense, it is, but Byrne recently shared some insight to his hiring process.

During an interview with Alex Scarborough of 247 Sports, Byrne reflected on the impact of Nick Saban and his wife, Miss Terry, while admitting Crimson Tide leadership expressed their desire to see Saban continue coaching as long as the coach wanted to. After it was clear Saban would be retiring, he said Alabama wanted to be “open-minded” in the hiring process.

“We obviously were so fortunate for the impact that coach Saban and Miss Terry made on our program and will continue to make. I also thought it would not have been smart to say, ‘Well, we’re only going to hire somebody tied to Coach Saban.’ I think we had to be open-minded to who the candidates were and what their backgrounds were,” said Byrne. “I think if we tried to hire somebody that tried to look like and act like Coach Saban it probably wouldn’t have been good. There’s only one Nick Saban.”

Byrne acknowledged that “mimicking a legend” traditionally does not work out great for anyone. That was a good sign when meeting Kalen DeBoer, someone Byrne described as being “very comfortable” with who he is.

“And I think one of the things that attracted coach DeBoer to us right off the bat was he was very comfortable with who he was as a coach and how he would handle things, but he also had tremendous respect and admiration for coach Saban,” Bryne explained.

As Alabama turns the page from the Saban era to DeBoer’s tenure, the Crimson Tide maintain strong national championship odds entering the first season of the 12-team Playoff. Fans can track all the odds and line movement via SDS’s sports betting apps.

Why Byrne’s process might not matter, even if it was correct

At the end of the day, Byrne made the only decision possible when it comes to replacing Saban. Sure, he has a host of former assistants lighting up the college football world as head coaches, but hiring one of those individuals would be expected to not just win like Saban but also be Saban.

Fans can disagree, and sure, some of Saban’s former assistants would undeniably be different in many ways from the legendary coach. (See, Lane Kiffin) But it’s ultimately human nature.

Any coach with strong ties to Saban would face an even tougher battle to mimic the culture and personality established by Saban himself. That’s why going outside the coaching tree was important.

Will it ultimately matter with DeBoer?

See, that’s the big question, and there’s no easy answer. By going outside of Saban’s coaching tree, Alabama can make a clear picture that things will be abundantly different in Tuscaloosa.

There’s zero concern if DeBoer will look like or act like coach Saban. He won’t, and DeBoer’s made it clear he has no intentions to.

What does that mean for expectations for DeBoer? Well… not much.

There’s no changing the expectations at Alabama which is to win the SEC and the national title every season. And coming from outside of Saban’s tree will not afford DeBoer any extra time to get things right with fans.

If DeBoer stumbles early, it will lead to increased questions about why Byrne opted not to stay within Saban’s coaching tree. That’s not fair, but that’s life at a program such as Alabama.

Byrne made a wise choice, but time will tell if it truly matters for DeBoer and the Crimson Tide.