TideInAtl

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First time in a while that we'll have a returning veteran defensive signal caller in that middle who's not coming off a major injury and who actually embraces the role. Should pay dividends in getting guys lined up correctly earlier in the season.
Agree on the speed, but I was hoping they'd find a role for him. Has that old school no-neck build perfect for a cowboy collar. I always wondered if we just got him for depth after missing on Dean and To'to'o that year because we were clearly transitioning to more speed at MLB. Wish him the best though.
Hate to see Drew Sanders go. He was solid and really only lost his job after getting injured. It's Turner's job now, but given the injuries we've had at OLB over the years, Sanders might have gotten back in the mix next year.
What do you think about Niblack? Will he play TE? Outz looked dynamic in high school too.
Agree with BL. A lot of this is Saban being frustrated. Not saying it was calculated, but Saban is creating a straw man with this rant. He has been doing it all year any time he's been asked about the team not living up to the expectations he established for Bama (including fans) since 2007. And by expectations, I'm not talking about championships. Most Bama fans understand that we can't when it all each year. I'm talking about "the standard" of disciplined play, effort, and focus. This is the root of a lot of the questions he's been fielding this year, and he knows those areas are lacking, and it's most likely due to coaching.
I agree. It's the pot calling the kettle black. He began instilling these expectations the first time he chewed out a reporter for saying something too positive about a player in 2007. He's slowly changed his approach these last few years. Not sure if it's to better appeal to a new generation of players or if he's just getting soft in his old age. Like a lot of 70 year-olds, he seems to have developed a selective memory as well.
What's the scoop on why this guy is transferring? He was a starter on a high profile, competitive team, and it's not like Clemson is a coaching carousel like UT or AU.
I wasn't initially thrilled about it because there's so much criticism coming out of Houston, and most of the recent articles about his hiring at Bama lack any details about his offensive success. I finally found a detailed write up and was pretty impressed with what he was able to do with lesser talent in college and and the role he played with the Pats.
Steele's an alum and had to know what he was getting into when he made the move. Yeah, he sucked as a head coach, but maybe he's learned a thing or two. He can be TN's Mike Shula.
Agree. Not sure why so many TN fans are high on Gus, particularly since they have Kevin Steele. It was Steele's defense that was the consistent draw for recruits and kept AU from really bottoming out. Gus's system was stale, gimmicky, and embarrassing former players at the next level, which is why they stopped being able to recruit good talent on offense.
Agree about Golding. He's improved, but he's still replaceable. Never been a great recruiter either. How about Texas though? This would make five assistants that it's poached from Bama's national championship staff. It's almost like it was an organized sleeper cell waiting for the right time to strike:)
I totally got the Sark move, but I don't get this one. I've looked for an article that explains it or at least outlines O'brien's offensive prowess, but no luck. Everything that I've read criticizes his rapport with the players, even before this last season, and notes his offenses being too confusing for pro players. Maybe it's his time and familiarity with the Patriots offense, but that seems out of date. I also thought there might be something with his work with Watson and Bryce Young's similar style, but I've found nothing that credits him with Watson's development.
As an analyst maybe, but not as OC? Bama just plundered the state of Texas in recruiting this year. Presumably there was a conversation with the recruits that went something like: "Tom Herman and his staff at UT can't develop you like the Crimson Tide." We are then supposed to tell the recruits that we were just kidding and turn their future development over to him as OC?
Highly doubt he gets all of these guys without provoking the wrath of Saban. The best part of this is that Butch Jones is still the forgotten little step brother. He thought he had locked in top talent Milwee for his OC at Ark State, only to have big brother Sark take him with all the other cool kids.
Analysts don't have to know the team. They generally watch film and collect data on opponents, but can offer all kinds of support for the game prep. Also look at the timing, why would Nick have to interview for an OC during NC week? The man hates distractions. Our recruiting is basically done so there's no urgency to have a guy in place immediately after Sark leaves. Neither guy is such a hot commodity that they won't be there next Tuesday.
These sound more like analyst considerations than OC candidates. We lost a few offensive-minded analysts in the post season like Butch and Applewhite. I'm wondering if Saban is just bringing these guys in at the last minute to help support Sark for the NC or just hedge his bets if Sark and/or some other assistants aren't focused on the job at hand and have to be released ahead of schedule like Kiffin.
Agreed. Hate to lose him, but Huff, Scott, and Banks were the primary recruiters on this year's WR haul, not Wiggins.
I think Sark has worked hard to re-establish his rep, so he's got good incentive to keep his word. And somewhat luckily, the players on this team have experience dealing with impromptu coaching changes before. I'm just hoping Sark and Saban came to some agreement about assistants. Flood is probably gone because he's pals with Sark, but Banks and Scott owned Texas in recruiting and both could be promoted to coorinators/co-ordinators at Texas and really cut the Tide's recruiting legs off in the state.