re: Josh Pate top 10 SEC HC rankings

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I don't want KD to leave Bama (thank GAWD they gave him that extension months after that 38-3 pasting) but

Pate's rationale for him at 2 was flawed. He's using the 2024 Sugar Bowl (which Washington barely won btw) as evidence that KD is better than Sark: 1) they've only played each other once and 2) whose offense do you want your team running: DeBoer's or Sark's? I thought so

He used KD's 2-1 record over Kirby as well. Great, congratulations, did those wins amount to anything? Last I checked Georgia is the 2-time reigning SEC champion and Alabama has not won the SEC in KD's 2 years so far.

Also, if ranking coaches came down to head to head matchups, then Brent Venables, Mike Norvell, and freaking Sherrone Moore are better coaches than KD, that's surface level laziness. College football's about the big picture in today's climate. I mean until the 2012 national title game, Les Miles from LSU had a 3-2 edge over Nick, like stop.

I will grant KD's success at recruiting for Bama...to a point, Nick still keeps his office at SABAN Field and does entertain recruits from time to time. You can't convince me that having the GOAT still keep an office and his presence on campus with Byrne and at the Bama home games isn't a built-in recruiting advantage to keep the talent pipeline coming.

Also, the relative problems DeBoer has at Bama are kind of the same as he had at Washington. The dirty little secret of that magical 2023 season that got him the Bama job was that his teams weren't dominant and always got locked in these close games - granted like KD Bama did in 2025, they won those games usually BUT that's not a good way to live if you're a top football team

AND when they played ultra physical and almost Saban Bama reminiscent teams like Michigan and Indiana, they got belt to arse so hard.

That's KD's identity as a head coach and I think people in these parts are lunging for anything to keep his myth alive because they can't handle the fact that Alabama is becoming Washington-South as opposed to vintage Saban Bama teams.

Also, his offense isn't really that great, not as physical on the line, too reliant on the quarterback, can't really establish a soul-crushing run game. I don't see why he gets rated highly as he does NOW other than he wears the script A on his wardrobe.

ETA: fact-checked myself to determine KD has beaten Sark twice, albeit by single scores both times BUT that was an 8-4 BIG 12 Texas team squaring up against a 10-2 hot Washington team on a 6-game winning streak in the fricking Alamo Bowl. Let's not act like that was a mano a mano battle of equals there to dock or give significant points.

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