Why is Bama so feared? Because its coach scares us to death
The cult of Nick congregates in the lobby of the Wynfrey Hotel. (Photo by M. Bradley)
Hoover, Ala. – Alabama was the choice of the assembled media here to win the 2011 SEC championship, which was no shock. Everybody exalts Alabama nowadays. It was in January 2010, after the Crimson Tide won the first of what would be one consecutive BCS title, that Sports Illustrated proclaimed it “a dynasty,” and it was only last fall we were wondering if Bama was unbeatable.
Then it lost to South Carolina, to LSU and to Auburn (after leading 24-0 in Tuscaloosa), and suddenly we media folks were grasping: How did the program newly seen as the nation’s flagship finish in the bottom half of the SEC West? Didn’t another school from Alabama take the BCS title? Was it possible the dynastic Tide had been overblown?
Guess not. Because we media types are doing it again. The Tide figures to start the season ranked no worse than No. 2 (behind Oklahoma and nobody else) in the polls, and in the conference-sanctioned balloting for SEC champ it drew 62.4 percent of the 157 votes cast. This despite losing four first-round NFL draftees (Marcell Dareus, Julio Jones, James Carpenter and Mark Ingram) and starting quarterback Greg McElroy.
Asked Friday about this apparent incongruity, Alabama’s coach said: “From a logical standpoint, I know there’s a couple other teams in our division — forget about the league — that have just as many returning starters and their quarterback. So even though [sarcasm alert] I have a tremendous amount of respect for the intelligence level and your ability to prognosticate … I don’t understand how you come to the decisions you do.”
The answer, this correspondent of limited intellect would submit, has to do with Alabama’s coach. Nick Saban is considered the best collegiate coach now working by as great a distance as Dwight Howard is regarded as the NBA’s top center. Saban has won BCS titles at different SEC outposts, which proved his black magic was transferable. And it isn’t so much that folks believe Saban is smarter than everyone else but that we know he’ll work his 30-hour days until he figures things out.
Alabama fans are difficult to please — a guy bearing an ursine nickname won pretty big in Tuscaloosa — but they’ve venerated Saban from the moment he arrived. Indeed, a cult of personality has arisen around this coach, and that’s something you don’t often see in SEC football. There was one surrounding Paul W. Bryant and also about Steve Spurrier (though he qualified as an Evil Genius only at Florida), but Vince Dooley (six SEC titles, one national championship) and Urban Meyer (two BCS titles) never had one.
With Saban, it’s really a cult of impersonality. Sometimes it seems the sole difference between Saban and his near-namesake Satan is that the devil has a sense of humor. It was Saban who famously spent the press briefing after Alabama’s breakthrough victory over No. 3-ranked Georgia in 2008 — the Tide led 31-0 after two quarters on the road — raging about how his team had been outscored by 20 points in the second half.
“I know I don’t look happy,” Saban said that night, “but I am.”
Saban never looks happy. The man is so driven you wonder how he hasn’t yet driven himself, and those who work under him, insane. He cracked one smile during his half-hour appearance before the print media Friday, and then only to make fun of Baton Rouge writer Glenn Guilbeau, whom Saban described as “a friend.” (Coach Satan has friends? Who knew?)
As odd as it sounds, the glowers have become Saban’s stock in trade. He appears to take football more seriously than anyone else in his industry, and this plays well in the South, where college football is taken most seriously, and in his state, which is mad for the game.
Another incongruity: The manically intense Saban spent a couple of minutes Friday suggesting that Auburn-Alabama rivalry has grown too intense. “We can be all be a little more respectful to each other and still have just as a fierce a competition on the field as we’ve ever had,” he said.
But that was it for moderation. Saban devoted most of his time to the boilerplate stuff — focus, commitment, all that jazz — and then he stalked away, the smell of sulfur in his wake. Gazing on him, we thought to ourselves, “What mortal can possibly stand against such fury?”
Les Miles, maybe?
By Mark Bradley
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391 comments Add your comment
Angie O'Plasty
July 22nd, 2011
9:12 pm
For the record- I love Saban !!
cjb56
July 22nd, 2011
9:36 pm
Saban didn’t seem like such a genius at Michigan State, where he went 34-24-1 in five years, and only finished higher than 5th place in the league one time. He got really smart when he got to the SEC, though, and could oversign recruits.
Saban Never Sleeps
July 22nd, 2011
9:48 pm
I see your puppies still have the bad taste in your mouths from the Black Out butt whooping
uhoh
July 22nd, 2011
10:00 pm
That’s why it’s so much fun to see the Bammers loser. Wound way too tight from the top down.
But, be sure to guard your stuff when you beat them-they don’t lose with a whole lot of class.
Bo
July 22nd, 2011
10:11 pm
“Sometimes it seems the sole difference between Saban and his near-namesake Satan is that the devil has a sense of humor.” – Good one
tex dog
July 22nd, 2011
10:12 pm
@ lowcountry dawg: Bama fans and a sense of humor do not go together. They take things much too seriously. After living in the state for three years, I can say in full belief, “There is nothing else in the state to get excited about, so why not cheer for football.”
Autiger83
July 22nd, 2011
10:40 pm
Bradley, you remain CLUELESS AS EVER. Auburn people have NEVER been scared of Saban. Not at LSU, nor at Bama. He’s a great coach and a great recruiter, but has never been able to dominate Auburn.
David Granger
July 22nd, 2011
10:53 pm
Coach Saban is the best college coach in the country because he’s a no-nonsense, hard-nosed coach who ALWAYS has his team ready to play. They NEVER take a half to get going. When they lose a game, it is usually very obvious that the other team is better than they are…and they often win a few of those, too. And you NEVER see Coach Saban popping up with this “new uniform” nonsense that…to my great regret…the coach of MY favorite team seems to live by.
And you will NEVER see players on a Saban-coached team dancing and boogeying on the sidelines in the fourth quarter of a game they’re losing…like we saw at Georgia three years ago.
Why be Scared?
July 22nd, 2011
11:02 pm
Got to love an Auburn saying they have never been scared of Nick Saban. The first 3 years he was at Alabama he ran off the Head Coach of Auburn, The BOT, and controlled the recruiting inside the state of Alabama. It took a “bagman” or several “bagmen” to even get Auburn off the mat. Now we all know Chizik is the puppet and the money being thrown around the south at high school players is at an all time high due to the money Auburn uses to get the highest rated players but poorest players to commit to Auburn. You can buy players but you cannot buy class. We as UGA fans have seen the players who were great players but bad characters come through our doors and run on the fields in Athens.
We are just now seeing the quality of players Auburn recruits with the mutiple arrest of a woman beater, and 4 armed robbers. It is just the beginning for the low character players who will make more headlines for their off the field antics than their performances on the field. But Oh! That is right the Preacher himself Gene Chizik is running a ministry down there and the prayer meetings he holds is going to keep those rogue players in line.
Go ahead and make your comments about CMR and our problems at UGA. The difference is that Coach Richt is now forcing players to attend class and be reputable student athletes, while at Auburn players do not go to class, but they get grades for classes not in attendance and collect their envelopes to help them with their nights at the sandpiper supper club.
steve
July 22nd, 2011
11:12 pm
I’m an Atlanta guy now living in Birmingham. Nothing prepares you for the intensity of fans over here. Saban is practically worshiped. I used to be a big football fan. But years of hearing about Alabama/Auburn 365 days a year has gotten old. I now dread football season. Saban is obviously a great coach, but in my opinion, he comes across as a complete jerk.
Paul
July 22nd, 2011
11:24 pm
Alabama didn’t blow the lead against auburn. Auburn just woke up. Anyone who watched that game knows auburn walked into a buzz saw that day. Alabama came out fired up and the au defense (two lineman suspended) gave up some big plays and blown coverages early. In the second half au got their lineman back and controlled both lines of scrimmage. Bama got their points on blown plays and coverages. Auburn got their points by methodically driving it down bamas throat and have key fourth down conversions. Bama is lucky auburn muffed the punt return or they would have been shut out in the second half instead of their little field goal.
As for saban the man can coach but he shouldn’t be feared. The man has losses to lousiana monroe and tulane on his resume. He also only has one second title in 4 seasons at bama which sounds about average and par for the course to me. His teams are coached well but they are beatable.
Joe Bob Thibodaux
July 22nd, 2011
11:41 pm
Independence Bowl Experience
Mark, Sabin is the kind of coach that can use a visit to the Independence Bowl as a learning experience, then go on to win National Championships. He did that twice already, first as coach of Michigan State then he went on to win the NC at LSU, then as Head Coach of Bama. Most of the Georgia teams that visit Shreveport don’t learn anything, and it is largely because of bad press which generatte low expectations and a gripe sessions instead of an opportunity to hone the team skills. Its just how you view your opportunities, Mark, and whether the experience is beneath your dignity or not.
JBT
Mobile Dawg
July 22nd, 2011
11:41 pm
Bradley, do you have a time delay on your posts?
Mobile Dawg
July 22nd, 2011
11:47 pm
Nick Saban is a football coach and is paid $4 Million Plus a year, he takes it seriously, Can you say the same thing about Mark Richt? Sounds like a lot of sour grapes are hanging low tonight.
Mobile Dawg
July 22nd, 2011
11:48 pm
OK, two posts disappear into the blogosphere. Good Night. Highly aggravating.
Ted Baxter
July 22nd, 2011
11:56 pm
Not feared as much as Dan Uggla in July. How about a freaking baseball article bredley. It is for crying out loud baseball season
Bama Rick
July 22nd, 2011
11:58 pm
Exactly Paul @ 11:24. So many on here have no clue.
Shawn
July 23rd, 2011
12:01 am
Sure glad uga doesn’t have to play them or lsu this year. But even a remote sec fan knows miss st or tenn will beat ga this year along with 3 other losses. It’s fun being a sec fan from another school and watching the pride and joy of the sec go down each year. This city has way toooo many uga homers.
Real bulldogs 34
your puppy dawgs 24
gcs
July 23rd, 2011
12:09 am
Some of you UGA fans just don’t get it. Instead of criticizing Alabama and Saban you should be learning from them.
There is a good reason why Alabama has 13 national Championships and UGA has one.
.
It’s about more than football for Tide – Tbo.com | Football
July 23rd, 2011
12:58 am
[...] Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog) [...]
Tide dominates All-SEC team in record-setting fashion – msnbc.com. Páginas Web Mexicali . Agencia de Publicidad Round Trip Communication. México. Mercadotecnia, Internet y Diseño.
July 23rd, 2011
1:15 am
[...] media pick Alabama, South Carolina to meet for SEC championshipWashington PostAtlanta Journal Constitution (blog)all 597 news [...]
RED DOG 77
July 23rd, 2011
2:25 am
Saban is one shady dude, no question about it!……….But those who would still pray to the alter of the late Paul “Bear” Bryant………folks I have proof…….and you can look it up. Coach Bryant used to run all atheletics at Alabama, thus, he used basketball, baseball, tennis, swimming, track, vollyball, and basketweaving scholarships to load up his football teams with talent, if you couldn’t cut it, he’d cut you, and just simply replace you………more rules changes were the result of Bryants “cheating ways” than any other school or coach in college football……..I’m a Georgia boy, no Tech fan………But I don’t blame Bobby Dodd for leaving the SEC for this very reason……Bryant put fear in the media…….so does Saban……..But I’ll tell you one thing for sure, everyone in the SEC is gunning for some Alabama butt kicking this year………..by the time the final poles are posted I’ll be surprised if Alabama is in the top 25……….Regards to the Tide, RED
Black Beach
July 23rd, 2011
2:35 am
For those of us who vacation with Nick Saban, or “Rick from Arizona” as he likes to call himself, he is not that intimidating at all.
He is a fun guy even let us film him:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVtEX1J7tXQ
Ramma Bama
July 23rd, 2011
3:14 am
auburn fans—terrified of Saban and Alabama and are counting down the days till the ncaa takes their tainted title, bought and paid for with cam cash newton.
National Champs
July 23rd, 2011
4:02 am
There is no fear from Auburn fans just enjoyment. We are loving our National Championship! We are especially enjoying the bitter tears of envy from the Bammers, Pups, et al. We get a real kick out of your whining and hating.
Auburn fans will start worrying when the NCAA actually servers Auburn with a LOI or someone shows up with some actual evidence other than some story a guy heard from a friend of a friend who has connections.
Keep up your whining Bammers, it is very entertaining.
War Eagle! National Champs!
reality
July 23rd, 2011
4:37 am
I am a Georgia fan——-or am supposed to be——–but —I have to say after Media Days for the SEC======I liked Saban and Dooley the best. Richt is just too layed back and overconfident. And when asked If he worried about his future Richt replied —I’m not—I am just here for the ride———Well, we already know that———-duhhhh. Look at what Saban did at Bama in just a few years—–success speaks for itself.
Whopper Dawg
July 23rd, 2011
4:40 am
Interesting Mark, certainly Mr. Richt will not withstand that kind of fury. We saw that not too long ago, still fresh in my mind. It looked like bait fish thrown to the sharks.
To sum it up, Chuck Norris is scared of Nick Saban.
The Gamblin' Man
July 23rd, 2011
4:49 am
The most objective fan is the gambling fan. All I know is that I had the ML and Bammer last year against the Scamster and at 24-0 I was counting my $$$. The last 3 quarters Bammer looked scared and Saban looked like he was coaching against Louisiana Monroe.(lost that ML as well) He can be a great coach, but he also can sux with the best of ‘em…..Hold off on another statue….
Buckeye
July 23rd, 2011
6:49 am
NCAA won’t hit Ohio State with failure to monitor – AJC Headline
Read it and weap all you naysaying SECville-ites and dogs.
Death penalty? Nope.
Dagny
July 23rd, 2011
7:15 am
It’s a joke to include Mark Richt in the same sentence with Nick Saban. Saban is a coaching genius in the prime of his career. Richt is waaaaay over-the-hill, and even in his prime, he was third-rate at best.
And there’s the slime factor. Saban is clean; Richt is covered with the stuff.
Phil
July 23rd, 2011
7:38 am
Saban is 1 and 3 verse Mark Richt! God is more powerful than satan!
BAMA dude
July 23rd, 2011
7:56 am
Paul
July 22nd, 2011
11:24 pm
Bama got their points on blown plays and coverages. Auburn got their points by methodically driving it down bamas throat and have key fourth down conversions.
Boy, if that isn’t some revisionist history. Four plays turned the “tide” so to speak:
- The most ridiculous bounce I’ve ever seen when Ingram had the ball poked out from behind at the Barn 20, the oblong ball then somehow staying in bounds rolling all he way to the end zone right down the sidelines.
- Trent dropped the easiest TD pass you’ll ever see.
- The McElroy fumble/injury replacement OG Steen being completely oblivious to his surroundings.
- The long pass to Zachery where one-armed Mark Barron tried to swat at the ball with his good arm instead of using the sideline as his friend, turning a decent gain into a TD.
As far as Bama’s lack of offensive production in the second half, folks forget that Julio sprained his knee in the first half of that game and Hanks bruised his ribs. Then, of course, McElroy went down late. Seeing as how the Barn’s weakness all year was pass defense (Julio had 199 yards in basically half a game), I’d say it was pretty lucky that injuries derailed that part of Bama’s game. Combine that with the lightning-in-a-bottle-maybe-purchased-maybe-not-one-year-wonder-juco-transfer Heisman winner and you just have to say it was their year.
» Shabazz shines, Tennessee self-imposes, Bama rules John Clay’s Sidelines
July 23rd, 2011
7:57 am
[...] Alabama’s coach can scare you, writes Mark Bradley of the AJC. [...]
Birmingham Tide
July 23rd, 2011
9:09 am
the barners—still living under an inferiority complex to the elite UA in Tuscaloosa. That tainted title will not last–they know that. The NCAA will find all that money they paid to newton before long. In 2011: Bama wins the SEC — #24, then plays FSU for the national title — #14. Bet the house!
UA_Dome_in_Atl.
July 23rd, 2011
9:22 am
The truth is that Alabama recruits Georgia youth better than UGA does and that incites jealousy, We need too and these Chick Filet Classic Kick offs give us even more of a boost.
Alabama is a household name in CFB, and is the flag ship of the SEC fleet. I wish we were ranked in the second ten of the top twenty and allow is to earn the rank on the field, Our kids got caught reading the papers before the USCe game last season and I oicked that game as a stumbling block for the Tide as well. We came back on them but it was way to little and late to change the outcome.
We don’t run up the score on teams when the outcome is decided, don’t have to and Saban and staff never seem to get credit for that and it is unfortunate.
I guess it doesn’t fit the persona grata of the villian…
KR
July 23rd, 2011
9:25 am
Mark, you have it all wrong:
Respect for his accomplishments as a recruiter and coach? Sure.
Fear? Absolutely not.
Ellis Island
July 23rd, 2011
9:43 am
$aban deserves another Statue at SEC headquarters in these tricky economic times.
loel
July 23rd, 2011
9:49 am
How can you dare to say we “fear” Saban. He has been beaten and will be many more times. He gets recruits not necessarily because of himself but because Alabama, the school, has a long legacy. If he coached some no name school, who would care and who would go. I personally have zero fear of any man.
SEC FAN
July 23rd, 2011
10:03 am
Alabama wins because they have a coach who wants to win more than anything and has the intelligence, ability and determination to do so. UGA doesn’t win because it has a coach who would rather be beating the bushes in some God-forsaken third world country then winning football games and whose ability to win games from a coaching standpoint is questionable at best. Therein lies the reason Saban has two NC’s to his credit and Richt will never have so much as one.
LSU4LIFE
July 23rd, 2011
10:06 am
Here we go,Bama overrated hype wage,this gets so old when schools like Bama and Ohio S. are way over rated every year.
Warm Springs, Georgia
July 23rd, 2011
10:21 am
`
” We have nothing to fear but fear itself.” —- F.D.R.
.
Napoleon Complex
July 23rd, 2011
10:26 am
Alabama was in “4th place” in the six team SEC West last year.
Shorty Saban has a lot of work to do.
KINGDAWG
July 23rd, 2011
10:36 am
I ran into Coach Saban at the marina on Lake Burton last summer and politely greeted him with a hello Coach how are you…..he just sneered back and my friend and myself…it confirmed what a horses a** he is.
Answers.com
July 23rd, 2011
10:44 am
How tall is Nick Saban?
Nick Saban (like Tom Cruise) wears inserts in his shoes to add a couple of inches to his height. My brother worked out at the same gym as Nick many years ago.
My brother is 5′9″ and he said he was looking down on Nick. He guessed him to be no taller than 5′ 6″ without shoes.
Answers.com
July 23rd, 2011
10:46 am
Nick Saban is 5′6″ tall without shoes.
Wladmir Klitschko
July 23rd, 2011
10:59 am
I would be scared to death if I met Nick Saban in a dark alley.
Timbo
July 23rd, 2011
11:08 am
What I’ve noticed over the years, is that Bama fans are indifferent to UGA while Georgia fans hate Alabama. This is very telling when considering the successes of the two programs. Hate Saban all you want, but the man isn’t distracted about what his mission is. He want’s Alabama to win, and i appreciate him for that.
uhoh
July 23rd, 2011
11:17 am
If I was recruiting against Bama I’d take pics of all those Bammers hanging out trying to “touch” Nicky and ask “This who you want to “hang with” for the next 4 years?”
Billy Peeler
July 23rd, 2011
11:31 am
@ Buckeye
re: 6:49 a.m. post
You’re right, the NCAA didn’t hit OSU with a “Failure to Monitor”…and they shouldn’t have, because OSU did not fail to monitor.
OSU knew EXACTLY what was going on. The head coach KNEW…beyond doubt…that several players had committed violations that made them ineligible. Yet he played them anyway, and covered it up with that “they’ve promised to return and serve a five game suspension” BS. What OSU did was worse than “Failure to Monitor”. The coach monitored the situation like he was supposed to…found out that certain players’ actions rendered them athletically ineligible…and continued to play them.
OSU is trying to contain the damage by blaming it all on Tressel, and he probably deserves the lion’s share of the blame. In my opinion, that fact should be the ONLY reason OSU doesn’t get the death penalty.
JB
July 23rd, 2011
11:34 am
At the end of the day, glad I’m still a Dawg fan