Saban gets a statue? Is his birthday a holiday now, too?
A "Bear" Bryant statue at Alabama is understandable ...
All hail, Nick Saban.
After only three seasons, Alabama is building a statue for its football coach. Can’t imagine what he gets if the Crimson Tide wins another championship. Does the school attempt a hostile takeover of neighboring states and give him parts of Mississippi and south Georgia? Maybe some coastline, between Pensacola and Panama City? Or was that already included in his original contract?
Alabama, coming off its BCS title in Saban’s third season, confirmed that a bronze statue of the coach already is in the works. It is expected to be completed by April 17, the day of the annual “A Day” spring game, when all banks and Walmarts will be closed.
Plans are for Saban to be carried into the stadium that day by servants, with
... But isn't it a little early for a statue of Nick Saban?
trumpets blaring and angels singing. OK. Might’ve made that part up.
Three years and you get a statue? Most jobs, you don’t even get vested for 10.
“We are sculpting clay right now and we have pretty good direction on what they want for the look of it,” project manager Corey Beltz said. “Coach Saban’s love of student-athletes, his love of being a teacher, that is what we have been asked to emphasize. He won’t be in a suit and tie — that’s not his style. It will reflect more of his role as an encourager, a director, that’s the general direction. They’re sculpting the face right now.”
The eyes. There’s something about those haunting eyes . . .
The 12-foot statue will stand outside of Bryant-Denny Stadium, along with those of four other coaches who won championships: Paul “Bear” Bryant, Wallace Wade, Frank Thomas and Gene Stallings.
Alabama moves quickly to celebrate its football coaches. I don’t believe alumnus Harper Lee has a statue outside the stadium. But all she did was win a Pulitzer Prize for writing, “To Kill A Mockingbird” and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Bernard Madoff attended Alabama for a while. He never got a statue, either.
It took 31 years (28 years as a head coach) before Bobby Bowden received a statue at Florida State.
Urban Meyer is still waiting. Maybe Florida just wants to see if he coaches the spring game first.
Georgia erected a statue for Vince Dooley in 2008 — 28 years after the Bulldogs’ national championship.
I think Bobby Ross is still waiting for his at Georgia Tech.
Come to think of it, so is Bobby Dodd.
Silly other schools. They must have other priorities.
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394 comments Add your comment
#1 BAMA FAN
January 29th, 2010
3:19 pm
Hey 16 and counting and Shultz…you will always be our B@#CH!
johnny bravo
January 29th, 2010
3:19 pm
I honestly find it pathetic that people from Georgia (Im from Atlanta) think they can belittle Alabama. What has Alabama done, besides kick Georgia’s butt, that irritates Georgians so bad? Are Georgia fans jealous that they will never win like Alabama has prided itself on? I’ll bet if Mark Richt won a National Championship (which he never will because his players control him) Georgia fans would want a way to commemorate his legacy. Nick Saban turned a program that was middle of the SEC into the best program in the nation….in 3 years.
NickHater from Decatur
January 29th, 2010
3:19 pm
With any luck, the statue will be erected “In Memorium”.
puppydawg
January 29th, 2010
3:23 pm
johnny bravo, I’m guessing that you had something to do with Forbes naming Atlanta as the gayest city in America.
Brad
January 29th, 2010
3:25 pm
when does BAMA put up the statue celebrating the 14 consecutive years they have been on probation?
Brad
January 29th, 2010
3:26 pm
quick..every BAMA fan on this blog post the degree you graduated with from the University of Alabama….
bali
January 29th, 2010
3:28 pm
after this article.. maybe the AJC will place a statue of you in front of the building… you have been at the ajc longer than saben has been at alabama and i bet you can write a whole lot better than he does…maybe harper lee will be sitting at your knee ,looking up in amazement
Kathleen
January 29th, 2010
3:29 pm
The funniest thing about that article is that the statue will be 12 feet tall. Saban is going to need a laddertruck to look at his own statue.
How2fish
January 29th, 2010
3:30 pm
johnny bravo I spent 5 years in exile in Bama….the football team and the deer hunting is the only thing going on in the whole benighted state. And puppydawg the city made that “Gayest City in the US due to the influx of gay Bamaites to our fair city….no one Gay lives in Bama they just go home to visit the family.
Jimmy
January 29th, 2010
3:31 pm
Ok Jeff, we can tell who set in a corner by themselves during school…and prob. their work too. You know nothing about Alabama football. Every football coach that wins a NC at the UA get a statue after them. It is called tradition. I’m guessing the only tradition you ever had was having your luch taking from you,lol. Do a little bit of research before you go and make a fool of yourself, with some stupid article. Every school has their on traditiion, like I said, do the research!!
bamafan
January 29th, 2010
3:31 pm
Wow – what a bunch of sour grapes and jerks! Saban doesn’t get another statute for the next national title. Bear had 6 titles and still only has one statute. To the guy who said it would be interesting if the Saban statue had a smile – that’s a good one! To Hawkhurrah or WTF your name is: if you like pro football get on a pro football blog and stay away from the lowly college game. Some of us did actually attend the University of Alabama and many of us actually finished high school first. I actually have TWO teeth, married my cousin but not my sister, have a pick up truck but without a gun rack, etc etc. etc. Rather than obsessing over this statue, you guys need to be talking about next year as all of your teams (except Florida) had a “Wait until Next Year” season in 2009.
j.
January 29th, 2010
3:32 pm
Blue – “Eric94; and what about this past season makes it “the most accomplished season””
14-0 BCS Champs
8-0 SEC Champs
Heisman Trophy winner: Mark Ingram
Butkus Award winner: Rolando McClain
First team in NCAA history to produce 6 First-Team All-Americans
Mark Ingram RB
Mike Johnson LG
Rolando McClain ILB
Javier Arenas DB
Terrence “Mount” Cody NT
Leigh Tiffin K
Oklahoma twice (1987, 2003) had five first-team All-Americans, according to STATS. But no team has had more since 1964, when the AP started selecting both an offensive and defensive team.
First SEC team to win 14 games in a single season.
SEC Offensive Player of the Year: Mark Ingram
SEC Defensive Player of the Year: Mark Ingram
SEC Coach of the Year: Nick Saban
Fist team to defeat 10 teams that finished with winning records.
Defeated the last three BCS champions in the same season. (FLA,LSU,TEX)
SEC leader in Total Defense, Rush Defense, Pass Efficiency Defense.
Alabama’s 30th 10+ win season (NCAA Record)
And then there is this http://www.cfrc.com/Archives/Top_200_2009.htm
All against a top 10 SoS (#8)
Maybe not THE best, but defiantly in the discussion.
Ddawgdavis
January 29th, 2010
3:32 pm
Good lord Jeff “Terence Moore” Schultz with another stellar opinion. Who gives a crap if Alabama erects (that’s for you bammeroids) a statue of Saban? That’s a cool Southeastern tradition and more power to them. UNC retires a player’s number if they win player of the year. Jeff, keep writing about how Damon should be in a Braves uniform and how you can be another Terrence Moore.
johnny bravo
January 29th, 2010
3:32 pm
in case yall forgot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xR_wLFJ0Eg
j.
January 29th, 2010
3:33 pm
oops
SEC Defensive Player of the Year: Rolando McClain
Herschal Talker
January 29th, 2010
3:35 pm
You wouldn’t care about that era Brad since Georgia does not have a Championship legacy. That’s like a Braves fan saying I don’t count the era before the 90’s because we sucked…..
Fortunately for everyone else, the Brad scale of carrying doesn’t determine who is recognized as a Champion.
JV
January 29th, 2010
3:36 pm
Bad karma, just like Georgia’s mass endzone celebration against Florida. The football gods will not smile on this premature deification.
Nick Kent
January 29th, 2010
3:40 pm
Is this a surprise to anyone? When the renovations in 2006-2007 was done, they created an empty spot in the Walk of Champions JUST FOR the next coach to win a national championship. Now that UA has another, they’re building one. DUH
Herschal Talker
January 29th, 2010
3:41 pm
We’re just upset because Alabama has defeated Florida more times in the past ten years (two worst blowouts handed to the Gators in Meyer’s tenure), than we have in the last 25 attempts.
Sucks.
Jimmy
January 29th, 2010
3:43 pm
Jeff, I’m sure if Saban wanted a comeback from you, he would just wipe it off your chin,LMAO!!
Bill
January 29th, 2010
3:43 pm
What’s so hard to understand. You win a national championship, you get a statue. Pretty cut and dried. Don’t hate because you’re jealous.
Dawg stuck in Bham
January 29th, 2010
3:49 pm
Hey Fleischman in Chi Towns Bed…why am I not surprised you would respond using a one syllable word? Don’t get to the 2 syllable words till grad school at UA huh? Go back to hanging out with the rest of your “10th grade educated Bammers”. It’s Bammers that make the rest of the south look like idiots…
Hawk n the Ham
January 29th, 2010
3:50 pm
True story.
Bama brought the BCS trophy around to different Walmarts, so people could get their picture with it. WALMART!! HaHaHa!!
Old man Schwump
January 29th, 2010
3:52 pm
Building the statue now is like a guy giving a girl a ring if she gives it up on the first date. Whole lot more to know about him Alabama
j.
January 29th, 2010
3:55 pm
“Bama brought the BCS trophy around to different Walmarts, so people could get their picture with it. WALMART!! HaHaHa!!”
So did Texas in ‘05
LSU displayed theirs at some car dealerships
FLA showed theirs off a some ALL-TELL locations
I love how everyone likes to mock Wal-Mart yet they are the most successful retailer in the world. So the law of averages would suggest some of you are hypocrites. Your shocked, I know.
Chris
January 29th, 2010
3:56 pm
Blue – I would be happy to qualify it for you.
First 14-0 team to win NCAA or BCS championship WITH the Heisman trophy winner, WITH six first team All-Americans (record), WITH seven first team All – SEC players (record), WITH four wins against top ten teams (Florida, Texas, VT, and LSU) when played and three other wins against top 25 teams (South Carolina, Ole Miss, and Arkansas) when played, WITH the number two ranked defense, WITH the number one ranked scoring defense ….
Should I go on? It is dolts like you that make life easier for the rest of us.
Nachos Fan
January 29th, 2010
3:57 pm
Saban is building a lethal killing machine over in Tuscaloosa that will be around for years to come.
People just need to accept it and prepare for the a** beating that will come with it when you play Bama.
Cant wait for UGAY to come back to Tuscaloosa in a few years. Gonna get ugly.
Jimmy
January 29th, 2010
3:58 pm
Hawk n the Ham- You are an idiot. The trophy went to wal-mart because wal-mart was one of the sponsors, and it was part of the deal. If texas would have won, they would have had to let the trophy go to the walmart closest to their campus….UA had no say so over that issue. You just like Jeff, need to do some research before popping off at the mouth, and looking like a fool. On second thought, just keep doing what you do, because you and jeff, have made this one hilarious day for us Bama fans, lol.
Weegle
January 29th, 2010
3:59 pm
Jackie:
“It isn’t the University doing it. . . .it is the athletic department.”
Boy, that says it all. Last time I checked the athletic department was part of the University.
BamaFan
January 29th, 2010
4:01 pm
I guess you’re only a critic of Bama when (overated) UGA doesn’t when Championships. Oh, wait i guess that’s every year. Who else can be called national champs in the SEC other than Tennesse, Florida, and ALABAMA?! To the PuppyDawgs fans: SIT!
RxDawg
January 29th, 2010
4:01 pm
Whats funny is this sounds like something Auburn or Ga Tech would do. Youd think Bama would act like they’ve been there before. If this was UGA I’d be kind of ticked that my school and administration would stoop to something like this. But since it’s Bama I just grin and snicker.
BamaFan
January 29th, 2010
4:02 pm
FYI: Mark “Heisman Trophy Winner” Ingram is like an offensive linebacker…he bruises those in his path.
Tracey
January 29th, 2010
4:03 pm
Every coach that wins a national title in football gets a statue. It happened when the University expanded. They made a champions walk and all the coaches had a statue.
No big deal for this Alabama Fan. If the next coach (whoever that may be) wins one, he can have one to!
Dawg Fud
January 29th, 2010
4:03 pm
bruce mac,
i believe you mean the ‘72 Dolphins
1eyedJack
January 29th, 2010
4:05 pm
There is absolutely no doubt that the 85 players Alabammer put on the field for the varsity team were the best in the land this year and I hate to say it…against the Dawgs year before last.
It is harder to judge the 37 Alabama players who made up the JV team however since they were spread among multiple junior colleges and prep schools throughout the Southeast.
All indications are that Coach Bear…er, Saban is still stockpiling players with 24 new commitments and counting.
The thing about the statue is great. It’ll get rolled the first time he loses to Auburn.
Since he is such a great “teacher” maybe they should pose him like Emil Faber with the inscription…”Nah’lege is Gud”.
Tracey
January 29th, 2010
4:05 pm
Paul H
January 29th, 2010
12:51 pm
Oh Bama fans… what would we do without you…
*************************
Have nothing to aspire to actually!
Tracey
January 29th, 2010
4:08 pm
Hawk n the Ham
January 29th, 2010
3:50 pm
True story.
Bama brought the BCS trophy around to different Walmarts, so people could get their picture with it. WALMART!! HaHaHa!!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Corporate sponsorship with Dr. Pepper caused that.
And I guess is you ever win another championship you can do what you want with your trophy!
TheAntiMe
January 29th, 2010
4:13 pm
Don’t sweat it, Jeff. I have a feeling the AJC is already working on a statue of you to be displayed at the entrance of your building. This will likely be unveiled on the Braves first home game this season. Just before you throw out the first pitch at The Ted. Congrats.
Catch 5
January 29th, 2010
4:13 pm
Hawk,
That is not true. While the trophy was exhibited at Wal Mart, it was not Bama that did it. It was Dr Pepper, who had a deal with the NCAA to do a tour with the trophy, regardless of the winner. Since Wal Mart has the best parking and other infrastructure to accomodate the large number of people wanting to see it, it made sense.
It makes for an easy joke, but it is not true in the sense that you present it.
djs
LOL
January 29th, 2010
4:14 pm
Wow Georgia fans. Before you start throwing your negative comments about a statue of a national championship winning coach, why don’t you take a look at that pet cemetery you have next to your field. Bama’s tradition is no more warped than your own.
dcope
January 29th, 2010
4:14 pm
your just jealous jeff that the ajc hasn’t made ur statue! rollll tide
Tracey
January 29th, 2010
4:16 pm
Johnny Bravo: Yeah we know about the “mistake” coaches. That’s what makes this a special team and great year.
Our team and our tradition! Personally I love SEC football and all the traditions the teams have. I live in Atlanta now and have never been to Athens to see the UGA graveyard which I think is such a cool idea.
I don’t have to talk trash to you because it doesn’t really matter what you think.
Alabama won, Saban gets a statue and apparently a great many people in Georgia really don’t like that!
Roll Tide!
NoLoyaltyInSaban
January 29th, 2010
4:16 pm
The decision to put the statue up so soon was based on his past history. They know he flies the coop before he’s stayed somewhere for 5 years.
bama in the atl
January 29th, 2010
4:16 pm
I love how Georgia folks are cracking on the education system in Alabama. Isn’t Georgia ranked lower than Bama in public education???
Keep hatin’
Doesn’t change the fact that Bama won the National Championship last year and is in a prime position to repeat while UGA keeps waiting…and waiting…and waiting…
Chess
January 29th, 2010
4:18 pm
Tradition
cole
January 29th, 2010
4:19 pm
Great article, but next time you might want to check in to where Harper Lee went to school. Hint: not Alabama.
Byron Mathison Kerr
January 29th, 2010
4:19 pm
As pointed out several times already, any coach who wins a National Championship for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide football team gets a statue that is displayed along with other coaches in a large plaza area on the north side of Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. Here is a photo with a better perspective than the one provided for this article: http://www.locustfork.net/blog/coach2.jpg
Prominent players are honored by having their hand and foot prints cast in cement around the base of the Denny Chimes. It is a carillon tower built in the 1920s on the south end of “The Quad” just opposite the university president’s mansion which was built in the 1820s.
Roll Tide!
Alabama Jack
January 29th, 2010
4:21 pm
One thing for sure, dawgs don’t have to worry about what to do if they win a national, uh SEC, uh SEC East, uh any kind of championship.
chuck allison
January 29th, 2010
4:21 pm
What about Gene Stallings? Didn’t he win a NC at Bammer?
Gerald Tinnon
January 29th, 2010
4:27 pm
What a dumb article!… Will you ever have a statue dumbazz? Do they erect statues for jealousy? I doubt it. Feed your followers the kool aid and look stupid..