I really hope they dont bite. I dont think they would, but you never know. I wonder if he will also try to steal Jones from us, to keep him in Alabama?
Here's a question. I keep hearing about Saban's NFL ties. How much damange did he do to those ties in the past week? From everything I've read and heard, he's seen as someone who quickly realized he couldn't make it in the NFL and bolted in the most weaselish way possible back to the college ranks. I've been (pleasantly) surprised at the amount of distain coming out of the NFL about him, his tenure at Miami, and his antics over the last week. Will that hurt his ties to the league? Is that something that might be a factor long term when it comes to using that as a recruiting point?
Its not like Saban was a complete failure in the NFL. Kids will believe him that his heart just wasn't in it - as they should because it is true. They will see that he knows what it takes to be an NFL player and he will of course tell them that he can make them one. All of that media disdain is not really going to make a difference either. All that matters is what kids think when they meet him, and he will have the chance to clear all that up at that point. Whether Nick was good or bad in the NFL doesn't change the fact that he was an NFL head coach - and from a recruits perspective, what better way to get ready for an NFL career than by playing under one right now. Whatever NFL ties Saban has strained will not be enough to stop people from drafting his players. They still respect his ability to recognize talent I assume - they just don't like him as a person. Fortunately, most players are not particularly happy under him. Saban had and will have high rates of turnover - while this doesn't directly affect us, I think it can be used in recruiting because players here are much happier under Miles now. Also, Miles has shown he can get our guys drafted & coach them up, so it's not like Saban has that argument over us.
Im sure he burned a lot of bridges with NFL execs. Honestly, thats besides the point. Saban turns out very good players. Right now he wont quite have the talent he had at LSU, but in time Im sure he will bring in big time talent. The NFL is a business, they may dislike Saban and the man he is. Fact is, he produces good players, so they will work with him with a smile when need be. I just hope karma bites him and he doesnt have success. That the players and parents realize the man he is and stay away from the Bama program.
Thanks. I guess I'm having trouble wrapping my mind around the argument that Saban's ties to the NFL will help him get players into the NFL, and that that may give him an edge over Miles. But the NFL goes where the talent is, and so long as LSU continues to have a top ranked program and posts 11 wins, so long as the coach turns out good players (and I give Miles the edge here, JR seems to have benefitted tremendously for example) the NFL will take a good look at our players no matter who the coach is. I can understand the NFL argument if you were talking about a rinky dink second tier program that has to beg pro scouts to... Oh, wait. Never mind. Blame it on sleep deprivation.
Who can list any blue chips that NEVER would play for LSU as long as Saban was here? Perrilloux's coach at ESTJ said recently that the reason RP was so high on going to TX was Saban. Once Saban bolted, he knew he could play for Miles. He hated Saban's personality. I wonder how many other kids he scared off that Miles would have been able to bring in?
Perrilloux is one example. Jai Eugene I believe was another. Miles had a lot of ground to make up on current recruit Luther Davis & his mother because of the way Saban handled recruiting his brother. I'm sure there were other examples as well, but that doesn't mean we can ignore all the talent that he did bring.
I thought the main reason Eugene de-commited from Michigan to sign with LSU at the last second was because of his son? So that way he could be closer to his son.
