Saban won?t turn ?Tide? at Alabama
Here we go with the coaching carrousel again, although this year likely won?t be a bumper crop like last year.
Of course, most notable on the list is Pittsburgh Steeler Coach Bill Cowher, who stepped down this past week from the job he held for 15 years, just one year from winning the first Super Bowl ring the city has won since the days of Bradshaw and Swann.
His move came as a surprise to no one as the steel-jawed field general had basically proven all he needed to prove in Pittsburgh, returning them to winning form during most of his years with a franchise which had fallen into disorder since its glory days of the 1970s.
The ?retirement? is likely a great career move in a day when folks like Nick Saban are earning upwards of $6 million a year as head coaches, Saban to coach the Alabama Crimson Tide back to the yester-years of Bear Bryant. Cowher can likely return next season, if he gets tired of the broadcast booth that quickly, and name his price with franchises like the Cleveland Browns.
As for Saban, the desperation of the Bama hopeful is getting to the point where intervention or hospitalization may be needed. Bear Bryant is dead. Those days are gone. The rest of the football world has advanced while Bama failed to move forward. Now they are looking for someone to show up, wave a magic wand and make everything all right, even giving the hallowed job to a former Bijou Tiger. The way things are right now, I wouldn?t hold my breath.
Alabama, aside from some decent years, now has to take a back seat to the Florida teams and even LSU. Nick Saban is not the answer there. Just look at his dismal record with the Dolphins, who I think were ready to say good riddance to the former LSU coach anyway. Saban was supposed to be their knight in shining armor, too, but all he gave the Dolphins were more losers.
Give Suitcase Saban about three years, if he will even stay in one place that long. If he isn?t in it for a national title run, they?ll be calling for his head. It?s hard walking past a statue of the Bear on your way to work every morning and it?s even harder working in the shadow of it. He should have stayed at LSU, and I think he realizes that now. If the old ball coach couldn?t make the transition from Florida to the Redskins then I doubt a five-year head coach from LSU could do it either.
These two pro failures, Saban and Spurrier, should serve as a warning to other college coaches, who are flavors of the month now, to stay where they are at. There is absolutely no loyalty at the pro level. Hey, in college you can be someone like Joe Paterno, have several losing seasons, and still be welcomed back with open arms. Try that in Oakland where yet another coach has bit the dust.
Frankly, Art Shell wasn?t that good the first time he coached the silver and black, and given Al Davis? reluctance to drop some cash in a time where coaches are getting the big bucks, I doubt they are much improved next year. The Raiders were dismal and will stay dismal for the foreseeable future as their ?Commitment to Excellence? is now a joke. The Raiders? best chance of being a contender is a Davis retirement since he?s still playing in the days of Stabler.