Any Michigan State fans surprised to hear this one? Finally, Nick Saban has moved onto the NFL. The former LSU boss took the Miami Dolphins job. I know that no one in East Lansing is even a wee bit shocked at this breaking news.
I can't say that I blame Saban for grabbing Miami's coaching job. The NFL has pursued him for years. The Dolphins gig is still a high profile NFL job in my mind. It sounds like he will be given most, if not all, the power to run the organization. However, I never quite understand when coaches of Saban's ilk make this kind of move.
Why would Saban leave Baton Rouge? Yeah, Saban's a pro football guy, but the downside just seems so big. There is a long laudry list of failed college coaches the NFL has kicked aside. He will have a honeymoon period, but once the honeymoon ends that shiny national championship trophy the Tigers captured on Saban's watch won't buy him an ounce of goodwill with Dolphins fans.
It's not just Saban, either. Coaches like Bob Stoops get the NFL call constantly. I can't see why a successful coach at one of the big time programs would jump to the pros when life can be so much better in the college game. At LSU, Saban was something between governor and king. I suspect the same thing is true for guys like Stoops, Pete Carroll (who knows all about the rigors of the NFL), Bobby Bowden, and many others. Why toss all that out the window for a longshot at glory?
I suppose it's ego, but how many times do you get a chance to be king of the hill?
Saban has flirted with the NFL since the day he left the pro game, so I'm not at all surprised he took the jump. I can't blame him for wanting to move on, but I can't quite understand leaving LSU, either.
No comments:
Post a Comment