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Tommy Tuberville jokes about how he’s responsible for Alabama hiring Nick Saban
By Adam Spencer
Published:
In a state as divided as Alabama when it comes to college football, former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville has a long road ahead of him if he wants to be elected governor of the state.
However, he reached out to Alabama fans last week on Birmingham radio station WJOX, giving them a reason to vote for him.
During the interview, Tuberville joked that he’s the reason Alabama hired Nick Saban as its head coach in 2007 (via AL.com):
“If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have Nick Saban,” he joked.
Tuberville continued by saying he went through five Alabama coaches during his tenure at Auburn, which lasted from 1999 to 2008 — a time during which he amassed a 7-3 record against the Crimson Tide.
The former Auburn coach explained that he was joking and added that he has a lot of respect for what Saban has accomplished with the Crimson Tide.
“That was in jest,” he said. “Of course, when I was at Auburn, we had a little success over Alabama. That’s a great game. If you are an Alabama coach, you rejoice over winning the Iron Bowl. If you are an Auburn coach, you rejoice over winning that game.
“There were a lot of consequences in the 10 years I was at Auburn in terms of the Alabama program. It wasn’t, obviously, like it is now. Of course, because of me being there and, fortunately, having things going pretty good, Nick Saban ended up there. He’s done a great job. He’s a very good friend.”
Obviously, ties to a rival school shouldn’t be the deciding factor for Alabama residents when it comes time to vote for a new governor, but Tuberville is doing his best to extend an olive branch to Crimson Tide supporters.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
