Nick Saban's influence is doing wonders for College Football. Every remaining CFP team has a head coach who worked for Nick Saban at one point during their careers. And won a title in Tuscaloosa with the Alabama Crimson Tide under the coaching G.O.A.T.
Yet, the Tide are led by "Husky Harsin" Kalen DeBoer. What gives?
Yahoo Sports' Dan Wolken called out Alabama for being on the outside looking in, watching the Miami Hurricanes, Ole Miss Rebels, Indiana Hoosiers, and Oregon Ducks compete in the CFP semifinals, as all four enjoy being led by a Saban disciple.
"It hasn’t always worked out, of course. Plenty of former Saban assistants have arrived at head coaching jobs with big hype and left a trail of expensive buyouts in their wake," Wolken wrote.
"But when you look at the entire breadth of the sport, Saban’s coaching tree is now undeniable, stretching from Kirby Smart at Georgia to Steve Sarkisian at Texas to Lane Kiffin at LSU to Brent Key at Georgia Tech along with up-and-comers like newly hired Cal coach Tosh Lupoi and Charles Huff at Memphis.
"It’s enough Saban-connected success across the landscape to raise the question of why Alabama — which is 20-8 without a playoff win since Saban retired — doesn’t have a Saban acolyte in charge now."
Alabama has mismanaged their way out of College Football relevancy
Wolken admitted the issue was "a story for another day" and "old news." He didn't feel talking about the Tide at great length was necessary, with the CFP set to crown a champion that isn't Alabama, the Georgia Bulldogs, or the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Out with the old, in with the new. As long as the Tide believes that's the best way forward, they'll continue being behind teams that did the obvious and hired the guys with DNA from Alabama's greatest era.
There's value in familiarity in football. For whatever reason, Saban has an office at Bryant-Denny Stadium, but UAT's powers that be are not letting him be more involved with his successor. And/or he simply doesn't want to be.
One wonders how long Saban will want to sit on the sidelines on a sideshow next to Pat McAfee on College GameDay before he gets back in the game and tangibly changes things, in West Central Alabama or elsewhere.