How true is the "Don't talk to Saban" policy?

[bamanut_aj]

A radio hose up here blasted Saban last week for the widely known (as he put it) policy that nobody on the faculty or staff is allowed to talk to Coach Saban. You pass him in the hall, don't say "hi". You pass him on the Quad, don't talk to him.

How much truth is there to this policy?

 

[CornBiscuit]

Not true at all...

at least used to be that way. Can't imagine it changed.

 

[bamanut_aj]

Not true at all...

at least used to be that way. Can't imagine it changed.

Have you heard of any kind of policy that might be misconstrued as "don't talk to Saban"? My take was that there is a "common knowledge", if you will, that Coach is here, it's his team, and you can kindly butt out; and that it would be directed more at boosters and ne'er-do-wells than it would to faculty and staff. I'm just looking for something here because it's a station that I call into frequently, and I'm looking to put this guy back in his place over this.

 

[moorav]

I do not think there is much truth to that. I think this came from people asking about his team and etc - not general conversations as in Hey Coach.

He works for the University not the other way around.

 

[bamanut_aj]

I do not think there is much truth to that. I think this came from people asking about his team and etc - not general conversations as in Hey Coach.

He works for the University not the other way around.

that's my feeling as well. However, this guy said "it's widely known throughout the media........." and my guess is that some of the disgruntled media in 'bama started this. I hesitated to call in as soon as he said it because there was something nagging at me that maybe I had heard something similar, though less severe, when he was hired.

 

[dvldog]

Don't know for sure because for some reason no one seems willing to ask the Coach. Maybe one of the Mods could call him up and discuss? As we know, there is no such thing as a stupid question.:biggrin2:

 

[UAME]

I will only add this: I had a business contact who works for the City of Tuscaloosa. His name happens to be the same as a key figure in the recent Bama saga, so I kidded him about his identity and we started talking about the Saban regime. He claimed to have a relative (sister?) who was a long-time employee of the ath. dept, and he said that Saban implemented a "Don't speak unless spoken to" policy for the support staff.

That's a lot of he-said / she-said, but it doesn't appear to be tied to any reporters.

 

[Alanbama27]

99.9% of that rumor came from people at Michigan State and not even LSU! That's old news and I don't believe that it is true at Bama. He may not have a lot of time to talk to people, but I HIGHLY DOUBT he implemented a policy that would prohibit staff members to say good morning to him. That is just stupid.

 

[Bamabuzzard]

If Saban does have a policy among his office staff not to talk to him in the hall unless spoken to then nothing but problems will eventually come from it.

 

[CornBiscuit]

While working for him at LSU he was a very nice man. Someone here must have upset him to a large degree if that is now the case.

 

[Bama Bo]

If Saban does have a policy among his office staff not to talk to him in the hall unless spoken to then nothing but problems will eventually come from it.

Why?

 

[red55]

If Saban does have a policy among his office staff not to talk to him in the hall unless spoken to then nothing but problems will eventually come from it.

That story came out of Miami, as far as I know. There was no rule at LSU about talking to Nick that anyone ever heard of. Easygoing Skip Bertman likely wouldn't approve of something like that. He's an approachable AD and was a very approachable coach.

On the other hand, Nick is not a warm person and he was known to be cool and aloof to strangers, but that's a far cry from ordering people not to address him. I call urban rumor on this one.

 

[bamanut_aj]

I call urban rumor on this one.

that's what I'm looking for....I would like to be able to either definitely deny it or definitely confirm it or at least some variation of it.

 

[ColumbusTide]

That story came out of Miami, as far as I know. There was no rule at LSU about talking to Nick that anyone ever heard of. Easygoing Skip Bertman likely wouldn't approve of something like that. He's an approachable AD and was a very approachable coach.

On the other hand, Nick is not a warm person and he was known to be cool and aloof to strangers, but that's a far cry from ordering people not to address him. I call urban rumor on this one.

Did you say urban? Everybody knows that Urban Meyer invented the "Don't talk to Saban policy."

(ok I apologize for the blatant hijacking of this post, but I had to do it ...)

 

[Bamabuzzard]

Why?

Because employees have to communicate with other employees and that includes coaches or superiors. An unstable working environment (and having that policy would definitely create that) for employees does nothing but cause problems and would eventually come to head.

 

[bamanut_aj]

Because employees have to communicate with other employees and that includes coaches or superiors. An unstable working environment (and having that policy would definitely create that) for employees does nothing but cause problems and would eventually come to head.

that's my same thought. Surely CMM wouldn't institute such a policy, nor would he allow CNS to institute one himself.

 

[UA All the Way]

I imagine it's BS. Saban seems like an intimidating guy, so I'm not sure I'd actually approach him. I'm sure if you were like 'hey coach' he'd be nice and smile, but if you're a moron and talk his head off, well then you're in trouble.

 

[Bama Torch in Pcola]

If I had to guess I would say that the following would be true:

OK: "Good morning Coach."

Not OK: "Good morning Coach. Why in the world won't you move Jimmy Johns to linebacker?"

 

[Pachydermatous]

This is one of the silliest rumors I've heard yet. The employee might be trying to tell Saban the building was on fire, or Pres. Witt was on the phone with an urgent call, or a 5-star recruit was knocking on the door begging an interview. All sort of awkward situations coluld ensue from a hush-up policy. It's going to take more than babble from a "radio hose" to convince me.

 

[lafella]

I know one thing for sure. This policy is absolutely and 100% in affect

























has to be I haven't spoken to him yet. :biggrin2: