PhillyGirl
Member
Nick Saban did to Lane Kiffin what Bill Belichick did to him more than 20 years ago.
Saban said Wednesday that Kiffin would be his first offensive coordinator at Alabama to coach from the field. Major Applewhite, Jim McElwain and Doug Nussmeier all coached from the press box during their respective tenures.
Saban made it clear this was his decision. Kiffin coached from the press box when he was offensive coordinator at USC but has helped call plays in some capacity from the sidelines as a head coach since 2007.
"I always let the coordinators be where they want to be," Saban said. "In this case, even though he felt more comfortable being in the press box, I think it's important that he is on the field. He has the greatest impact and effect on the players."
That will be even more vital for this particular season, as Kiffin could be working with multiple quarterbacks during the first few games.
Saban went through a similar transition in his later years as an assistant coach.
After years of calling defensive plays from the press box, Saban moved to the sidelines when Belichick hired him in 1991 to be the Cleveland Browns' defensive coordinator. It wasn't Saban's choice.
"He said you're not going to be in the press box. You're going to be on the field," Saban said. "I said, 'Man, I can't call this stuff. You've got 52 different personnel groups and all these formations and all this stuff.' He said 'You install it every day, you're the one that's the face with the players all the time, you're the one they listen to, you've got to be on the field so you can make the adjustments and impact the players during a game.'
"I memorized my stuff, I could not pull the call sheet and look at it during the game, I had to know what I was going to do on everything, but he was right. I had a much greater impact on the players and making adjustments in the game."
Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart has been a mainstay on the sidelines since he took over the position in 2008. Saban did not mention who would coach in the press box Saturday against West Virginia.
Saban said Wednesday that Kiffin would be his first offensive coordinator at Alabama to coach from the field. Major Applewhite, Jim McElwain and Doug Nussmeier all coached from the press box during their respective tenures.
Saban made it clear this was his decision. Kiffin coached from the press box when he was offensive coordinator at USC but has helped call plays in some capacity from the sidelines as a head coach since 2007.
"I always let the coordinators be where they want to be," Saban said. "In this case, even though he felt more comfortable being in the press box, I think it's important that he is on the field. He has the greatest impact and effect on the players."
That will be even more vital for this particular season, as Kiffin could be working with multiple quarterbacks during the first few games.
Saban went through a similar transition in his later years as an assistant coach.
After years of calling defensive plays from the press box, Saban moved to the sidelines when Belichick hired him in 1991 to be the Cleveland Browns' defensive coordinator. It wasn't Saban's choice.
"He said you're not going to be in the press box. You're going to be on the field," Saban said. "I said, 'Man, I can't call this stuff. You've got 52 different personnel groups and all these formations and all this stuff.' He said 'You install it every day, you're the one that's the face with the players all the time, you're the one they listen to, you've got to be on the field so you can make the adjustments and impact the players during a game.'
"I memorized my stuff, I could not pull the call sheet and look at it during the game, I had to know what I was going to do on everything, but he was right. I had a much greater impact on the players and making adjustments in the game."
Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart has been a mainstay on the sidelines since he took over the position in 2008. Saban did not mention who would coach in the press box Saturday against West Virginia.
