The sky is definitely not falling. I just feel like one more season of not winning the SEC is going to cause Saban to lose interest and step aside.They have been or are in the process of getting passed by by Georgia, but the sky isn't falling.
How much longer does he want to coach? Part of it is a need in regards to recruiting, but he recently signed an extension through 2029. He's 71 years old.
They still easily have a top 3-4 roster. I think he needs to replace one if not both coordinators. They've been raided and have had to replace coordinators and assistants so frequently there eventually was going to be a drop-off with possibly some weak links in that facet of his program.
Ohio St is one of the haves when it comes to talent, but as a CFB fan also, I think the coming 12 team playoff will be good for the sport and help spread the wealth more. Those high 4 and 5 star kids want to play for a national championship and expanding the field should give those kids more options to choose other than those half dozen or so schools they concentrate at now.The riches continue:
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Hope you are correct.Ohio St is one of the haves when it comes to talent, but as a CFB fan also, I think the coming 12 team playoff will be good for the sport and help spread the wealth more. Those high 4 and 5 star kids want to play for a national championship and expanding the field should give those kids more options to choose other than those half dozen or so schools they concentrate at now.
Yes, we’ve seen the peak. Honestly, the true peak to me was 2008 to 2013, when they played otherworldly defense and were more of a dominant, run-based offense. But you could easily argue the peak extended all the way through 2017, even after Kirby Smart left but Jeremy Pruitt was there running the defense. Lane Kiffin as OC starting in 2014 changed the feel of the program to being a more explosive passing offense, with a minimized focus on dominant defense.Have we seen the peak of Saban's amazing program?
Is this season a temporary setback or the beginning of a decline?
Will Saban win another national championship at Alabama?
What goes up must come down, so how will it end when it ends?
I say he stays till his combat boots fall off or are worn outI hope he doesn't pull a Joe Pa. That was sad on so many levels. He stayed way, way too long - at least a decade. He said he took a lesson from Bear Bryant who retired and died shortly after - the implication being that a coach needs the job to keep living. Once Joe was fired, he didn't last long.
But the Penn St program became a shell of what it had been and a sex abuse scandal was beyond his abilities to deal with. Paterno went from a coaching legend with the reputation of a principled man who made a positive impact on many people to a coach the fans wanted gone and whom others considered an enabler of a child sex abuser and someone who cared more about his football program than boys being raped. It's just incredibly sad.
Will Saban be like Paterno or more like, say, Bob Stoops, who got out while the gettin was good?
If Saban stays they regroup but then again once he leaves Tuscaloosa isn't the most dynamic place and there has been dry runs at 'Bama when the coach didn't fit; the right coach is needed to keep that train on it's track. Especially if Auburn where to ever get their sheet together.Absolutely not. This team wasn't regarded as a great Bama team, other than Bryce Young coming back. They've lost two games by 4 points, on the road with 100K plus fans in the stands. They will regroup and be right back in there next season.
Now, the other program to look at is Clemson. I think Dabo Swinny has done a fantastic job there. He does not get the numbers of 5 / 4 stars that the other top programs. Clemson had a great run with two elite QBs in Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence. I think Clemson probably played above their program level for a while. I can see them dropping off some, and that's no shade to them, it's just the reality of the talent you can bring in .
I do feel Dabo has the ability and has had the ability to coach guys up better than most. What's easier, winning with 5 star guys or 3 star guys? I mean we should know who the top teams are year by year just looking at the recruiting classes. Who's at the top of recruiting annually, Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State...Clemson usually isn't up that high. From this standpoint I'd say Dabo may be a better coach than Saban, Day and Smart.If Saban stays they regroup but then again once he leaves Tuscaloosa isn't the most dynamic place and there has been dry runs at 'Bama when the coach didn't fit; the right coach is needed to keep that train on it's track. Especially if Auburn where to ever get their sheet together.
Clemson benefitted from the historically solid Florida St.& Miami being at all time lows during their 2010s run. Ohio State also had the same kind of luck as Michigan floundered to find the right coach and Penn State was basically dealt a death penalty due to the Sandusky situation.
If Saban stays they regroup but then again once he leaves Tuscaloosa isn't the most dynamic place and there has been dry runs at 'Bama when the coach didn't fit; the right coach is needed to keep that train on it's track. Especially if Auburn where to ever get their sheet together.
Clemson benefitted from the historically solid Florida St.& Miami being at all time lows during their 2010s run. Ohio State also had the same kind of luck as Michigan floundered to find the right coach and Penn State was basically dealt a death penalty due to the Sandusky situation.
The 2010, 2012, and 2013 NCs for Bama are indeed remarkable.Yes, we’ve seen the peak. Honestly, the true peak to me was 2008 to 2013, when they played otherworldly defense and were more of a dominant, run-based offense. But you could easily argue the peak extended all the way through 2017, even after Kirby Smart left but Jeremy Pruitt was there running the defense. Lane Kiffin as OC starting in 2014 changed the feel of the program to being a more explosive passing offense, with a minimized focus on dominant defense.
The defensive points per game allowed have been up (by Saban standards) ever since 2018; those averages are more than a TD larger than the true peak of the program in 2011-13.
To me, they’ve been declining since 2018, but it’s really become noticeable the past two seasons. Last year was the first time in awhile when they only had one really good WR, and he was a transfer (Jameson Williams). The team’s fortunes changed when he got hurt. They still lack a star WR this year, although Isaiah Bond might be the star by next year. In recent years, I’m no longer confident that Bama can stifle good offenses.
They can get back to the top quickly, but it probably requires replacing Pete Golding (and probably Bill O’Brien) with better coordinators.
I think Saban probably has one more national title in him, if Golding is replaced and everything comes together.
It’ll end in a few years, probably after a “disappointing” two-loss or three-loss season, and it’ll probably be a quiet retirement, with Saban not one to ever want a bunch of fanfare.
Who knows who the next coach will be? Lane Kiffin seems like a top candidate, but it all depends how far down the road that is.
It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
^ This.They have been or are in the process of getting passed by by Georgia, but the sky isn't falling.
How much longer does he want to coach? Part of it is a need in regards to recruiting, but he recently signed an extension through 2029. He's 71 years old.
They still easily have a top 3-4 roster. I think he needs to replace one if not both coordinators. They've been raided and have had to replace coordinators and assistants so frequently there eventually was going to be a drop-off with possibly some weak links in that facet of his program.
Do you really think that the expansion to twelve will increase the playoff viability of the remaining teams in that dozen?Ohio St is one of the haves when it comes to talent, but as a CFB fan also, I think the coming 12 team playoff will be good for the sport and help spread the wealth more. Those high 4 and 5 star kids want to play for a national championship and expanding the field should give those kids more options to choose other than those half dozen or so schools they concentrate at now.
Not significantly.Do you really think that the expansion to twelve will increase the playoff viability of the remaining teams in that dozen?
Satan's decline has been in the works since 2019. He pulled a dozen games out of his butt in 2020 and 2021 as well. Similar to 2022 when he barely beat Texas and Texas A&M, but faltered against LSU and Tenn. In the past two seasons, he has accessed the portal more than two dozen times. And MOST had to start. Until THIS season, UGA had taken ONE! They took three for 2023.Have we seen the peak of Saban's amazing program?
Is this season a temporary setback or the beginning of a decline?
Will Saban win another national championship at Alabama?
What goes up must come down, so how will it end when it ends?
And FOUR LOSSES!Yes.
Beginning of the end.
No more natty.
He’ll step down after next season after a solid 10 win season.
I agree. I actually attended FSU for a while. And they just flipped our five-star TE Landon Thomas, from Colquitt Co. They will be a force VERY quickly. And I don't see them losing more than one, maybe two games a season, in the foreseeable future.Not significantly.
But let's say, a Florida St, suffers several key injuries in the pre-season and loses 3 of their first 5 games, but they get healthy and hot and win their last 7 regular season games. Because of their early season struggles, they don't make the ACC championship game.
Under the 4 team system, their injury bad luck and early season struggles would eliminate them. But when healthy, they have shown they can beat anyone. In the 12 team system, they would be a high seed with a legit chance to compete for a national championship.
But to your point, there are teams that will make it in as a higher seed who do not have a legitimate shot to win the whole thing because their overall talent just isn't good enough. There are probably only 6-8 teams that have rosters good enough to be national champions in a given year.
Cinderellas generally last a few rounds in the NCAA tournament and then reality sets in. It will be similar here, but that 9-3 hypothetical Florida St team will benefit greatly and make the playoff stronger. FWIW
THAT'S what happens when half of your starting lineup, are portal guys from slappies from other conferences.Never seen a Saban team so sloppy.
EVERY season that he sticks it out, is one more chance to tarnish his legacy.They have been or are in the process of getting passed by by Georgia, but the sky isn't falling.
How much longer does he want to coach? Part of it is a need in regards to recruiting, but he recently signed an extension through 2029. He's 71 years old.
They still easily have a top 3-4 roster. I think he needs to replace one if not both coordinators. They've been raided and have had to replace coordinators and assistants so frequently there eventually was going to be a drop-off with possibly some weak links in that facet of his program.