compared to his first 5 years at Bama? A comparison of Saban to his former self. LSU 2000: 8-4 #22 AP / NR Coaches 2001: 10-3 #7 AP / #8 Coaches 2002: 8-5 NR AP / NR Coaches 2003: 13-1 #2 AP / #1 Coaches 2004: 9-3 #16 AP / # 16 Coaches 48-16 record (75%) 1 National champ (split), 2 SEC champs, 2 SEC west, 2 Top 10 teams, 3-2 bowl record Bama 2007: 7-6 NR AP / NR Coaches (pre-sanctions) 2008: 12-2 #6 AP / #6 Coaches 2009: 14-0 #1 AP / #1 Coaches 2010: 10-3 #10 AP / #11 Coaches 2011: 13-1 #1 AP / #1 Coaches 56-12 record (82%) 2 national champs, 2 SEC champs, 3 SEC west, 4 Top 10 teams, 4-1 bowl record Not even close when compared to what the first 5 years at the Bama program were. I'm wondering why Saban had Bama winning 2 NC games in 5 years & 4 top 10 finishes in 5 years, while putting up very mediocre records at LSU? 5-3 SEC champs, for instance in 2001. Was it the weak scheduling? their facilities? the recruiting service advantages? SEC in offices in Birmingham? no holding calls or blatant fouls called? their incredibly supportive media? bear bryant whispering? All of the above? None of the above? All of a sudden, this guy can't seem to lose, which he didn't mind doing here. LSU was never ranked #1 at any time during the regular season at LSU while he was here. Bama is rarely not ranked #1 during the regular season at some point. I remember it being very unusual that after a dismal 7-6 start, bama pulled in the #1 recruiting class, raising more than a few eyebrows. I also remember Baton Rouge writer I think it was Rabalais with an AP vote, saying he would only vote LSU #1 if we beat Georgia again in 2003 SECCG. Very different media treatment of coaches at LSU, compared to bama.
Because Alabama had a better starting position for Saban than LSU did. Plus Saban was a nobody, no name recognition, he had to work harder to recruit at LSU because he was a no one. LSU made Saban not the other way around.
Coaches learn. Its not that he was mediocre here, its that years of SEC experience plus a short stint in the NFL has made him better. He is indeed a much better coach now than he was then. He's still an azzhole! Some things never change.
He's a winner. Always was and everywhere he went. http://www.rolltide.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/saban_nick00.html
Saban is a great coach because he has the ability to know his own weaknesses and to learn from his mistakes. Plus he's great at analyzing the situation. Because of his ability to learn, he's gotten better at his job every single year. He'll be even a better coach next season than he was this year. Compare him with someone like Chizick who was over rated and took credit for the hard work of the athletes and his assistants. Some coaches peak early and never get any better.....not Saban.
I dunno about all that "know his own weaknesses". He's pretty much an arrogant bastard and those types don't generally think they have any faults. He's definitely astute at seeing faults of others, though.
He is a great analyst He is great at that. I think he learns from his mistakes because the year before he left LSU, he had the greatest defense in the history of college football. They had a million different blitz packages from a whole bunch of sets. That defense was like the Giants defense with Carson and Taylor. It was full of formation shifts and reads. Eli manning was thoroughly confused by that defense...and he was the best QB in the nation that year. Problem was that it was so complicated that when the seniors left off that team the next year's starters had zero practice at making all those reads and the same defense sucked so bad Saban lost 4 or 5 games that year...the year that he left LSU. Bama never had a defense that professional under Saban. He learned how to run a defense that wasn't so complicated and that new starters could actually learn in spring and fall practice. He learned from that experience.