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Michael Casagrande |
Such is life in college football.
Assistant coaches come and then assistant coaches go. And that's nothing fundamentally new in Tuscaloosa with annual reshuffling and retooling of the lineup supporting Nick Saban.
The current scenario is somewhat different, however, in a few ways. The Tuesday departure of offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian certainly wasn't on the horizon when he was promoted in December. It's now the second frankly surprising headline and sudden exit from that position when paired with Lane Kiffin's championship-week farewell.
It also leaves two offensive jobs vacant with another opening likely when the NCAA is expected to add a 10th on-field assistant nationwide.
With a sophomore quarterback in Jalen Hurts moving into Year 2, continuity would be preferable.
Now he's set to meet his third quarterbacks coach/offensive coordinator since December when Saban hires Sarkisian's replacement. The Tide already lost receivers coach Billy Napier to Arizona State and offensive line/tight ends coach Mario Cristobal to Oregon. Napier had been in Tuscaloosa five seasons and Cristobal the last four.
That leaves second-year offensive line coach Brent Key and the last original Saban assistant -- running backs coach Burton Burns.
Mike Locksley was promoted from analyst to offensive assistant in January, but his exact title has not yet been announced officially. FoxSports on Jan. 20 reported he would be a co-offensive coordinator with Sarkisian. Under the coaching staff listing on the school's official website, Locksley is labeled just "assistant coach" while the others all have specific titles next to their name.
Who could replace Steve Sarkisian as Alabama's next offensive coordinator?
The amount of turnover the last two years has been notable. Only two of the nine assistants -- Burns and linebackers coach Tosh Lupoi -- remain from Alabama's 2015 national championship season.
Sarkisian left Alabama less than a year after arriving as an analyst repairing his career in the fallout from his very public firing at USC. He was a back-office staffer outside of the spotlight until Kiffin got the coaching shuffle started in December.
Sarkisian was quickly named his offensive coordinator replacement starting in 2017, a timeline bumped up by the first real surprising development in January. By all accounts, the transition was as smooth as could be expected when a team changes offensive coordinators a week before playing the national championship game.
"I mean, I like Sarkisian a lot," Alabama receiver Calvin Ridley said Jan. 5. "Pretty much doing the same thing as we did with Coach (Lane) Kiffin. But everything is a lot more faster and smoother. He coaches us real good. Can't wait to go on the field Monday and see what we'll do."
Sarkisian's first, and ultimately only game in the captain's seat saw the Tide score 31 points with 376 yards only to lose 35-31 to Clemson.
Alabama players were surprised when news broke Tuesday morning that Sarkisian was leaving for the Falcons
In the meantime, two Alabama staffers who would make strong offensive coordinator candidates left for other jobs. Cristobal is now co-offensive coordinator/offensive line coach at Oregon while Napier is the offensive coordinator at Arizona State.
Either way, Alabama has two offensive assistant coaching jobs to fill in early February. A year ago, the comings and goings were resolved by Feb. 10 when Derrick Ansley was announced as Mel Tucker's successor as defensive backs coach.
Saban ultimately makes these hires on his timetable. It's a yearly ritual, but this year's coaching swap meet hasn't played out like the others. Saban couldn't have expected a Round 2 in the pool searching for the top offensive voice.
Continue reading...
Assistant coaches come and then assistant coaches go. And that's nothing fundamentally new in Tuscaloosa with annual reshuffling and retooling of the lineup supporting Nick Saban.
The current scenario is somewhat different, however, in a few ways. The Tuesday departure of offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian certainly wasn't on the horizon when he was promoted in December. It's now the second frankly surprising headline and sudden exit from that position when paired with Lane Kiffin's championship-week farewell.
It also leaves two offensive jobs vacant with another opening likely when the NCAA is expected to add a 10th on-field assistant nationwide.
With a sophomore quarterback in Jalen Hurts moving into Year 2, continuity would be preferable.
Now he's set to meet his third quarterbacks coach/offensive coordinator since December when Saban hires Sarkisian's replacement. The Tide already lost receivers coach Billy Napier to Arizona State and offensive line/tight ends coach Mario Cristobal to Oregon. Napier had been in Tuscaloosa five seasons and Cristobal the last four.
That leaves second-year offensive line coach Brent Key and the last original Saban assistant -- running backs coach Burton Burns.
Mike Locksley was promoted from analyst to offensive assistant in January, but his exact title has not yet been announced officially. FoxSports on Jan. 20 reported he would be a co-offensive coordinator with Sarkisian. Under the coaching staff listing on the school's official website, Locksley is labeled just "assistant coach" while the others all have specific titles next to their name.
Who could replace Steve Sarkisian as Alabama's next offensive coordinator?
The amount of turnover the last two years has been notable. Only two of the nine assistants -- Burns and linebackers coach Tosh Lupoi -- remain from Alabama's 2015 national championship season.
Sarkisian left Alabama less than a year after arriving as an analyst repairing his career in the fallout from his very public firing at USC. He was a back-office staffer outside of the spotlight until Kiffin got the coaching shuffle started in December.
Sarkisian was quickly named his offensive coordinator replacement starting in 2017, a timeline bumped up by the first real surprising development in January. By all accounts, the transition was as smooth as could be expected when a team changes offensive coordinators a week before playing the national championship game.
"I mean, I like Sarkisian a lot," Alabama receiver Calvin Ridley said Jan. 5. "Pretty much doing the same thing as we did with Coach (Lane) Kiffin. But everything is a lot more faster and smoother. He coaches us real good. Can't wait to go on the field Monday and see what we'll do."
Sarkisian's first, and ultimately only game in the captain's seat saw the Tide score 31 points with 376 yards only to lose 35-31 to Clemson.
Alabama players were surprised when news broke Tuesday morning that Sarkisian was leaving for the Falcons
In the meantime, two Alabama staffers who would make strong offensive coordinator candidates left for other jobs. Cristobal is now co-offensive coordinator/offensive line coach at Oregon while Napier is the offensive coordinator at Arizona State.
Either way, Alabama has two offensive assistant coaching jobs to fill in early February. A year ago, the comings and goings were resolved by Feb. 10 when Derrick Ansley was announced as Mel Tucker's successor as defensive backs coach.
Saban ultimately makes these hires on his timetable. It's a yearly ritual, but this year's coaching swap meet hasn't played out like the others. Saban couldn't have expected a Round 2 in the pool searching for the top offensive voice.
Continue reading...
