🏈 Saban enjoys last laugh with Kiffin

[BAMANEWSBOT]

Nick Saban is enjoying the last laugh.

It’s quite a turnaround from a year ago, when Saban’s decision to hire Lane Kiffin as offensive coordinator was the butt of jokes.

Kiffin had been fired as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders and Southern California.

And Kiffin’s abrupt departure as the head coach at Tennessee after one season and brash comments along the way made him unpopular among fans.

“Coach Saban really took a chance on me when other people wouldn’t and has been phenomenal to me,” Kiffin said during his Broyles Award luncheon speech a week ago when he was a finalist for the top assistant coach in the nation.

He guided an offense that blossomed into the most productive in program history.

Kiffin assembled an offense that gained 6,376 yards with a first-year quarterback in Blake Sims, who started his career as a running back. The Crimson Tide are 15th nationally with 490.5 yards a game.

“Lane has done a fantastic job for us across the board,” Saban said. “He’s a very good teacher. He has a really good way with the players in terms of how they respond to him.”

The offense average 37.1 points a game, second-best in the SEC as the Crimson Tide (12-1) won the SEC title and became the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.

Productivity from Sims led to a stellar season for Heisman Trophy finalist receiver Amari Cooper.

Kiffin’s offense doesn’t follow the old Alabama run first, second and throw when needed style. He’s opened it up with 281 yards a game passing and 209.5 yards rushing.

“Nobody thought it was a good hire — all of a sudden we did something bad,” Saban said. “I don’t know; I thought it was a good hire. Nobody else did. Now, I got beat up like a drum for doing it and now, all of a sudden, it’s great.”

Kiffin also added tempo to surprise defenses. Sims functions better in a fast-paced environment, so Kiffin went with what worked.

He opened up about his first season with the Crimson Tide at the Broyles Award presentation.

And he also joked about his style and game interaction with Saban at the luncheon.

“People ask me when he’s following me up and down the sidelines, right behind me,” Kiffin said. “Oh gosh we are on TV. Can you cut that part out? This is why he doesn’t let me talk to the media. He’s saying, ‘Hey Lane, I love you so much. Thank you so much for coming here. Can you please stop throwing the ball so much and run it some more?’ ”

Joking aside, Saban likes what Kiffin has done. He wanted other coordinators to throw more and use the talent on the team.

Kiffin was the first to be innovative.

“I think it’s his willingness to make changes in what he’s always done, because of the personnel we have,” Saban said. “A lot of coaches wouldn’t want to do that. They want to stay with the system they know. He did an outstanding job tailoring our offense to the people we have, featuring the players, doing what the quarterback can do. And it has worked out extremely well for us.”

Video of Kiffin’s Broyles speech made the social media rounds.

“I thought it was humorous,” Saban said. “What he said at the end was probably the best message. It’s smart we don’t let him talk to the press. He kind of got that. He understands that.”

However, the players responded to his personality. He coaches with a passion different from Saban.

Saban’s brings the serious intensity, while Kiffin goes from laid back to excitable.

That’s been a winning combination for the Crimson Tide this season.

“His personality, when you’ve got a great personality like that, you’ve got no reason to walk around moping,” Sims said. “When you make a bad play and come off the field and he’s smiling and he’s joking with you, you kind of forget about it and when your next time to come up for your next drive, you’re ready to go.”