re: Bama Football Tidings

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Another former head coach is joining Nick Saban’s coaching staff at Alabama.

After spending the latter part of last week in Tuscaloosa, former Louisville, Texas and South Florida head coach Charlie Strong has agreed to join the Crimson Tide as a defensive analyst, according to Chris Low of ESPN. BamaOnLine reported last week this move was expected.

Strong was initially tied to an analyst role at Florida, returning to a place he knows well to work under third-year head coach Dan Mullen. But he ultimately chose Saban and Alabama.

Strong got his start at Florida as a graduate assistant in 1983 and made a name for himself as the Gators defensive coordinator from 2003-09 where he helped Florida win two national titles in 2006 and 2008. His Gator defenses played their best in national championship games, holding Ohio State to 82 yards in 2006 and limiting Oklahoma to only 14 points in 2008.

Before the 2010 season, Strong was hired as the head coach at Louisville. He compiled a 37-15 record leading the Cardinals, including a Sugar Bowl victory, in four seasons and helped the team to two Big East Conference championships in 2011 and 2012. After two years of producing double-digit wins, Strong was courted by Texas and left Louisville for Austin, Texas.

As the head coach of the Longhorns, Strong never won more than six games in his three years, and because of that, he was fired before the 2016 season ended and landed at South Florida. His tenure in Tampa started off strong with a 10-2 record in his first year, but the Bulls’ win totals dropped by three each of the next two seasons. He was fired after the 2019 season.

Strong is the latest former head coaches to join Saban’s staff. Current assistants or staffers that were once head coaches include Steve Sarkisian (Washington, USC), Kyle Flood (Rutgers), Butch Jones (Tennessee), Mike Stoops (Arizona) and Major Applewhite (Houston).

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Best play in Bama history IMO.

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