Saban Made A Smart Move
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by user Joebook
Nick Saban is not a stupid individual. This much we know. Why he left LSU for the bluer pastures of the Miami Dolphins will always be a mystery. He'll always be a college coach. He's Coach K. He's Bob Knight. He's Dickie V. He's the same as anyone who is meant to teach. To coach.
Saban signed an 8-year, $32 million deal today to become the Head Coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. His money is guaranteed, so even if he decides in a year or two to wet his lips with the NFL again, he's a rich man.
So why would Alabama guarantee him the entire contract? Because he's not going anywhere.
Saban made a huge mistake leaving LSU, and he knows it. Sources (who are the sources, really...) say that he was unhappy with the primadonna lifestyle of the pro players, and wanted to go back to a place where football came first. Say what you want about college football, but the players play hard so that they can live the primadonna lifestyle at the next level. That's what makes college sports special. The minute they start to pay college athletes... sorry... got sidetracked.
Alabama also made a great move, bringing in Saban to replace an "unmotivated" Mike Shula. What made him unmotivated? A 6-win season? A year after a 10-win season and a four-year extension for Shula? I think Mikey got the short end of the stick, but if you are sitting on a silver coin, and a gold dollar rolls down the street, are you not going to move on it?
Nevermind the fact that Saban said two weeks ago to Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga that he wasn't going to Alabama. Nevermind the fact that he passed up three more years with the Dolphins at $4.5 million per. He listened to his heart, and that's worth more than all the money in the world. (and if you believe that...)
Saban wants to teach football? Great. I just don't want to see him as the Thursday night Ethics professor in Tuscaloosa.
Saban will have Alabama in the top-10 for most of those eight years. It will take him a year or so to get the proper staff, recruiters, etc. into place... but when he does, it will be ROLL TIDE ROLL every season.
'Bama lost some bad games this year, including Mississippi State and Auburn at home. I'm sure Saban will be under more pressure to beat Auburn than anything else.