Jan. 8, 2010

Saban's legacy at Alabama set in stone

By Dennis Dodd | CBSSports.com Senior Writer
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NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. -- Nick Saban enjoyed the moment. But that's all it was -- a moment.

Thirteen hours after winning his second national championship, at the peak of his career, Alabama's famously stern coach started off the first news conference of the rest of his life this way:

"Can I make a comment off the record?"

Well, no, you're in front of about 100 reporters and TVs that are televising you nationwide Nick, but, sure go ahead.

"Somebody told me that in the press conference we had in here the other day I was shaking my leg," Saban began, "so therefore I was 'tolerating' the press conference. I shake my leg in meetings, I shake my leg when I'm sitting in my chair at home, I shake my leg all the time so I must be 'tolerating' life."

As brow-beaten and dog-cussed as it must be most of the time under Saban, life is actually good right now in T-town. Saban delivered. The coach could declare war on Canada at this point and rally enough followers to sack Montreal.

The guy who categorically denied going to Alabama three years ago now owns Alabama. After three short seasons Saban already has a spot reserved on campus for a statue to go along with other 'Bama championship coaches -- Wallace Wade, Frank Thomas, Bear Bryant and Gene Stallings.

"We're underway with some plans on that," AD Mal Moore said.

No word on how they're going to work in the shaking leg.

Thursday's title was the school's first in 17 years and validated Alabama's everlasting resilience. Coming out of a decade in which it went through five coaches and two NCAA probations, the program fired a warning shot at the rest of college football.

Bang, you wounded college football. And this is just the beginning.

This season's No. 1 is sure to be next season's preseason No. 1. The fear is not so much that the SEC has monopolized the BCS but that Alabama is about to monopolize the SEC. Saban has brought the program to a point where it could go on a run like Nebraska did in the 90s (three in four years) or Florida recently (two in three years).

Why not? The first coach in the wire-service era to win titles at two different schools gets back most of his important players on offense (eight in all) and from two to four on defense where NFL decisions will have to be made by linebacker Rolando McClain and defensive back Kareem Jackson.

Of course, that's enough of an alarm for Saban to make it sound like he's trying to resurrect New Mexico State.

"The bottom 40 guys on your roster usually determine how good that roster really is," he said. "You guys look at the top four or five guys on the roster and make that determination."

Yeah, well, you really fooled us this year, Nick. Your team spent five weeks at No. 1 in 2008 and sat near or at the top of the polls for most of the 2009 season. We'll take our chances at predicting you'll be good again.

Saban is about sending messages. The quote above was meant to go directly to his players' ears that everything is going to have to be earned back, that nothing is certain.

Another message, not meant to take a shot, actually took a shot at Mike Shula. Saban was asked what the players were lacking when he arrived in 2007.

"Just the whole work ethic, toughness, mental toughness, discipline, the intangible things ...," Saban said. "A lot of those things had a long way to go."

Saban was back to being Saban, even complaining about his Gatorade bath on the sidelines.

"It was a little chilly out," Saban said. "I don't know if you noticed, our defensive players did a pretty good job of hitting. They're not supposed to hit you in the head with the bucket."

The one-time vagabond coach is now home. When he arrived three years ago, Saban established the "one voice" philosophy that all information comes from him. Assistants weren't allowed to talk to the media. He made sure that Alabama's cloying fans weren't going to become a distraction.

"Probably the day that I felt like something special could be sort of accomplished was the first spring game we had and there were 92,000 people and 10,000 or 12,000 more that couldn't get in," Saban said. "That kind of passion, that kind of support, that kind of positive energy certainly continues greatly to being successful."

Wow, the coach was almost getting a little misty-eyed there.

Not really.

"I'm always thinking ahead, anticipating problems," Saban said.

Not always. A couple weeks ago the coach narced on himself, admitting he'd forgotten his anniversary.

"When I go recruiting for two straight weeks, I kind of lose track of the date and the time," the coach said.

Terry Saban was not amused. But like his team this season, St. Nick recovered quickly from adversity. Now they're building a statue of a guy who could lose seniority to a fifth-year senior in the cafeteria line. The only other active coach with that honor might have been Bobby Bowden. And it took him a lot more than three years.

But that's Alabama -- it tends to overreact to most everything football.

"You would hope that something you do leaves a mark," Saban said.

You would hope that mark is not made by the coach aiming at one of his players' backsides.

Oh, he's not such a bad guy. Turns out on the way back from the news conference, Saban got a surprising call. They chatted. The coached cracked a smile, then he invited the guy on the other end down to Tuscaloosa to play in the traditional noon-time basketball games with the coaches and staff.

No word on if President Obama accepted.

Nick Saban enjoyed the moment -- and then it passed.