Transfer Portal 2023-2024...

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Jun 29, 2023
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I have said it before in another thread. Saban abandoned The Process and was trying to squeeze out one more championship to get to 7 at Bama before retiring. He brought in players and coaches who were not bought into Bama. We weren't going to avoid this rebuild.
I actually thought last year was a rebuild, but maybe it was a "repair".
 
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Bamabuzzard

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The team didn’t seem as dominant the past few years but I don’t think Saban retiring before he did would have been a help.
im going out on a limb here but my guess is Saban was aware of the relative strength and weaknesses of his coaches and did the best he could with what was available at the time.
The work hours and his age to put the hours in no doubt had A LOT to do with his retirement. But there's no way someone will ever convince me that the signs in the decline of the program didnt start showing itself after 2018 (save 2020, the anomaly) because I witnessed it with my own eyes. The NIL and transfer portal were the nails in the coffin for him, IMO. At that point that made his decision definite.
 

CB4

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The signs really were there in 2021 when Billingsley and Hall made it all about themselves, and I really think had we lost another game after Texas this year then we quite possibly would’ve seen people quit the team or loaf during games. Whether Saban was here or not we would have had to deal with 15-20 guys entering the portal.
Even if Coach Saban had not retired, looking at trends with programs across the country, I was expecting a minimum of 20 or more transfers out. And I expected most of those to be players a few years in the program and “buried” on the depth chart.
The difference is, with Coach Saban’s retirement, exodus of players that were starters, saw significant playing time, or players that would have the opportunity to contribute significantly next year.
This is going to be a transition season and may well leak over into 2025 as well. As Kenny Bell stated in his post last week “if you don’t want be here, get the hell out”. The main issue for Coach DeBoer is program stabilization and finder the leadership among those players that care more about the success of the team and the program and less about “next NIL pay raise”.
 
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SkullDuckery

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I think these comments are dumb. We were still one of the best teams in the country and were a few inches away from the Lawson tip ball in Michigan drive away from winning another title. This team was talented but they were not as talented as past teams and with the new NIL teams will be less and less talented. That Michigan team doesn’t sniff a title 5-10 years ago because of talent it doesn’t matter how much of a team they were. We won a lot of championships just because we were much much more talented then them not because they were so much more of a team. We had teams with Hurts, Tua, Mac Jones on same roster. We had Henry, Drake, Kamara, Yeldon on same roster. We had Smith, Jeudy, Riggs, and Waddle on same roster. We haven’t had that type of depth and roster the last few years.

The times have also changed and there a differences in social media and how kids act not just at Alabama but everywhere the last 5 years. You gonna see the same issues with Deboer as Saban with players. Georgia who has won 2 titles and could won 3 had mass exit thus season and will have huge turnover next but they won last two years because of all talent they had previous years look at some of the issues they had even those last few years.
It’s not really dumb, we did have O’Brien and Golding who couldn’t develop a QB or out scheme a defense. Golding had a once in a lifetime edge rusher dropping in pass coverage getting beat by receivers on 3rd down.
 

Cruloc

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I think these comments are dumb. We were still one of the best teams in the country and were a few inches away from the Lawson tip ball in Michigan drive away from winning another title. This team was talented but they were not as talented as past teams and with the new NIL teams will be less and less talented. That Michigan team doesn’t sniff a title 5-10 years ago because of talent it doesn’t matter how much of a team they were. We won a lot of championships just because we were much much more talented then them not because they were so much more of a team. We had teams with Hurts, Tua, Mac Jones on same roster. We had Henry, Drake, Kamara, Yeldon on same roster. We had Smith, Jeudy, Riggs, and Waddle on same roster. We haven’t had that type of depth and roster the last few years.

The times have also changed and there a differences in social media and how kids act not just at Alabama but everywhere the last 5 years. You gonna see the same issues with Deboer as Saban with players. Georgia who has won 2 titles and could won 3 had mass exit thus season and will have huge turnover next but they won last two years because of all talent they had previous years look at some of the issues they had even those last few years.
If you couldn't see the internal decline you weren't paying attention.
 

tidefan39817

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Those Lambos must be nice gifts this time of year 😩
I'm Shocked. What will Sark do now that Saban is no longer evaluating talent for him? what about Kirby? for years other coaches waited to see who Coach Saban talked to, heck even asst. coaches. If Coach had a position to fill, how many times did we hear that he interviewed "person X"? even if he didn't hire person X, person X usually ended up at Georgia, Auburn, LSU, Tennessee or somewhere else within a few weeks.

I don't wish them well, I actually hope they turn out to be as good as Hall and Billboard for them.
 

81usaf92

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I have said it before in another thread. Saban abandoned The Process and was trying to squeeze out one more championship to get to 7 at Bama before retiring. He brought in players and coaches who were not bought into Bama. We weren't going to avoid this rebuild.
More of my point. In his introductory speech it was “the process to being a champion” not the “process of recruiting a champion”. You are seeing many former players in the NFL look far better than they ever did here especially on the defensive side of the ball.
 

Saban4Ever

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I wish Saban had coached another year or two, but certainly understand why he retired. He gave a great interview with Rece Davis.

I have heard that after the loss to Michigan, several players in the individual meetings (which he has each year to talk about goals for next season, etc) were more concerned with re-negotiating their NIL deal than they were with talking about next season's goals. I'm assuming one of those players was Bond. I know players from every team probably do this each year, but I'd bet that Coach had just had enough of it. This, plus everything else he mentioned in Rece Davis interview).
 

CB4

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The work hours and his age to put the hours in no doubt had A LOT to do with his retirement. But there's no way someone will ever convince me that the signs in the decline of the program didnt start showing itself after 2018 (save 2020, the anomaly) because I witnessed it with my own eyes. The NIL and transfer portal were the nails in the coffin for him, IMO. At that point that made his decision definite.
Agree completely. Think about it. You are 72 years old and have spent 50 years coaching, the thing you loved to do. But as CNS said to Mal Moore on that plane to Tuscaloosa in 2007, he was an average coach but a “hell of a recruiter”. The success of those 2009-2017 programs were a combination of get top classes AND being able to replace quality coordinators and assistants with equally talented or better coordinators and assistants. As the years rolled on, this became more difficult.
In the recruiting side, many of those 50 years had been spent presenting to 17 year olds “the vision of delayed gratification of the NFL and the financial rewards associated” by coming to Tuscaloosa and developing over 3-4 years. And our program being the one to give them their best shot. And let’s face it, all with the recruiting process, was a whole bunch of kowtowing and fanny smooching of 17 year olds that had been told they were “elite”. BUT if you got them there, you had the majority of them there for three years. NOW every year a coach has to “re-recruit” every meaningful player on the roster in ADDITION to those you’re signing each year. Better order your chapstick by the case, because that fanny smooching just tripled.

At 72 years of age, I can’t blame CNS for saying “I’m done”.
 

Bamabuzzard

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Remember, most folks are results oriented, so as long as Bama is winning a lot of games, they don't see the decline.
This staff of DeBoers has more "football coaches" on it than any staff Saban had for the last 5 years. We had accumulated a lot of recruiters with football coach titles.
 
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