re: Would Bama have been better off if they had hired Mike Elko?

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I don't think it was a good move by Bama.

Deboer is a good coach, but I don't think Bama's ready for that yet. They still want "Saban", which won't happen no matter how good the new guy is. They need to get that out of their system first, and THEN go get their guy

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So a better move would have been to intentionally get an average coach who they knew would get run out of town? The main reason Bama was able to get DeBoer, one of the hottest names in coaching, was because of the current shape of the program. Trying to "go get their guy" after a few years of mediocrity and depleted talent seems like a bold strategy.

DeBoer's got some things to figure out obviously. Not the least of which is how to instill some discipline in some of the players. That said, the way Bama looked against Georgia in the first half was as impressive as they ever looked under Saban. I think it would be a good idea to wait a little while before writing him off as a failed experiment.

For six straight quarters, against Wisconsin and the first half of the Georgia game, Alabama looked like the best team in the country. Since then they have looked milquetoast. But clearly they have the potential to be really good. They can also be very average.

But the fact they have that potential should keep any team from counting them as an automatic win.

It sure would be a shame if, after all the threads from LSU fans trumpeting Alabama’s downfall, Alabama actually beat LSU. A real shame.

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So a better move would have been to intentionally get an average coach who they knew would get run out of town? The main reason Bama was able to get DeBoer, one of the hottest names in coaching, was because of the current shape of the program. Trying to "go get their guy" after a few years of mediocrity and depleted talent seems like a bold strategy.

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Well... yeah.

Fact is, you have to transition away from Saban and the Saban expectations. Deboer is a good coach, a prize coach, but he's going to hit rough patches in that transition, and may not survive to rebuild it in his image. If he moves on in a couple of years due to that, you probably won't find a better coach, just a different one (and maybe not as good).

Look at the period between Tressel and Urban at Ohio State. I think they needed that, to let Urban do his thing when he came.

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may not survive to rebuild it in his image.

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Alabama isn't just going to fire him. We gave Shula 4 years. DeBoer will get a fair shake.

Kneejerk reaction fans act that way because they have absolutely no control over what happens.

Most LSU fans have pointed to Les Miles (who they think is a shitty coach) following Nick Saban. They say anything less than an 11 win season is a complete failure for Alabama.

However, no Alabama coach nor any Georgia coach nor any Florida coach has ever had 11 wins in his first season. Not Bryant, not Saban, not Dooley, not Richt, not Smart, not Spurrier, not Meyer. LSU did once with Miles in 2005 and Tennessee did once with Bill Battle in 1970.

Alabama is being held to a standard where anything less than 11 wins is a failure. Maybe it is. But it is a higher standard than any other team.

Texas A&M hasn’t had 11 wins since 2012. The last one before that was 1998.

LSU hasn’t had 11 wins since 2019, and the last one before that was 2011.

And yet many are dancing in the streets over the idea of Alabama finishing 8-4 or 9-3. It will be a real kick in the nuts if Alabama finishes 10-2.

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homemade piece of shite submarine in his back yard that imploded on him when he swam too close to the sun,

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Is this a hilarious intentional malapropism for the greek mythologic tale of Daedalus and Icarus, the son who flew his wings to close to the sun?


Maybe it's a story I hadn't hear about, but a submarine swimming too close to the sun? This is good stuff!!!