Transfer Portal 2023-2024...

[Snuffy Smith]

I can't imagine that anyone in the football building expected the kind of attrition we're seeing in the wake of Saban's retirement.

I'm sure they expected there to be losses, but this is almost like we're hemorrhaging players.

I sure hope DeBoer and his staff can stop the bleeding.

Not really unprecedented. Oklahoma lost around 12 current players and 7 current year commits after Riley left. We now have 8 and 2 2024 commits (counting Sayin & Grimsley as commits vs current players). And before you get out the flamethrowers - yes I realize it's likely not over….

 

[BearFan]

I said before he was hired he couldn't recruit, had no ties to the southeast and this was an issue.

You tell me, why does he not even offer Sayin? Huge QB prospect out of California, DeBoer is an offensive guy with the highest paid OC in Grubb, and they don't even offer Sayin? What is that about? Do you know?

Then, he goes and adds Mack which is now being spun as a well Sayin already said he was leaving move. All I see is Sayin wasn't offered by DeBoer and then DeBoer brings in another QB. That's what I know for a fact.

Then how do you know that DeBoer didn’t recruit or offer him. Not trying to be ride

I said before he was hired he couldn't recruit, had no ties to the southeast and this was an issue.

You tell me, why does he not even offer Sayin? Huge QB prospect out of California, DeBoer is an offensive guy with the highest paid OC in Grubb, and they don't even offer Sayin? What is that about? Do you know?

Then, he goes and adds Mack which is now being spun as a well Sayin already said he was leaving move. All I see is Sayin wasn't offered by DeBoer and then DeBoer brings in another QB. That's what I know for a fact.

Then how do you know DeBoer didn’t recruit or offer Sayin? Not trying to be disrespectful, just curious.

 

[KrAzY3]

Then how do you know that DeBoer didn’t recruit or offer him. Not trying to be ride

Then how do you know DeBoer didn’t recruit or offer Sayin? Not trying to be disrespectful, just curious.

Fluid situation, I checked his offer sheet on one of the recruiting sites. Someone countered with a Tweet that did appear to show an offer.

But could be kind of moot. Allegedly two industry insiders on 247 posted basically the same version of events, which is that the staff really did just prefer Mack over Sayin.

Waiting for a screenshot but I got the quotes from an Alabama fan so a weird thing for them to make up.

 

[CrimsonBloodn62]

Bama has sacrificed great coaching for great recruiting, and we have paid for it.

How many times has it been brought up about Bama being out-coached? It's been brought up even at times when Bama struggled to win. A lot of those wins were because Bama just had more talent than the other team.

 

[teamplayer]

I hope I am. I have been as negative on the issue as anyone here (I hope there's some understanding because my attitude came with the belief it would play out like we're seeing).

I really, really wanted to keep these guys around and let them get a ring. The talent was there, I wanted a Les Miles type of ring for these guys, one last Saban ring.

More than that though I just want to be wrong about this and have some people tired of hearing my cynicism rub it in my face.

My initial impression was clouded by an inaccurate offer list, but there are some reports coming out that the staff was in fact higher on Mack than Sayin. If that's the case, and they were willing to accept the ripple effects of even losing other guys because Sayin left, then I'd say it really needs to pay off and Mack does in fact need to be better.

We'll learn more one way or the other though.


You're not wrong there. I think I usually come off as more negative than I feel, but the Sayin news felt like a guy punch. I've never dealt well with worrying something might happen, warning about it, then experiencing it happen.

Then again I'm trying to talk it out instead of just punching air, heh.

If you go outside to get some air, please don't go near any bridges or cliffs. Hahahaha
Things are going to be okay, brother.

 

[JohnD]

I'm not.

In fact, in retrospect, I wish he would have stepped down after the 2020 title. Anyone who has watched the way the last few teams played will tell you they were winning largely on talent alone, looking nothing like the dominating teams Saban fielded year in and out for the previous decade. The decline was right in front of us but as most are results-oriented, it wasn't overly-obvious.

I've been somewhat reserved in my criticisms of Saban but you can find posts I've made which were quietly critical of his team prep and coaching choices since 2020 because it was obvious something was wrong, from the process-oriented perspective.

It was a good run, but despite the W/L results, Bama hasn't really looked like Bama for the last few years. It was (likely past) time. I'm thankful for what Saban did but I'm also thankful he didn't hold on longer than he did.

Had he stepped down prior to 2015, the same points could be made. Things slipped in those years also, and game prep, play calling, etc. had some head-scratcher moments.

I don't disagree with what you are saying in terms of losing some of the "make them quit" dominance factor. However, but we were fingernail length away from a championship in 2021 and again this year. And the '24 recruiting class was #2 this year. So it's not like we were sliding off the face of the earth.

 

[BamaInBham]

I"m not suggesting that we should have hired Kiffin (assuming he was interested) but I would guess that we wouldn't have seen nearly the amount of attrition on offense had he been hired.

Idk about the defensive side of things, but IF bringing Kiffin in also meant bringing Golding back, then I'm really happy we didn't go that direction.

IMO, CKD is a far, far better choice than Kiffin. Just the record shows that: 2-19 vs ranked teams for Kiffin, 12-2 for DeBoer. And I doubt that Kiffin would have staunched the exit any more than DeBoer, at least not much. Only 9 have left. IMO, only Downs is irreplaceable, Amos might hurt, but the rest including Bond, are not much of a loss, if any. Of course, Sayin might be one, but not for the upcoming season. If it stops with little more attrition, I still think it will not be a rebuild and the team will likely have a decent chance of making the CFP next season.

Not replying to you, but to others regarding this being a portent of recruiting to come: CKD has lost 9 players and kept ~75. But IMO, this is not a good indication one way or another. UGA has lost 20 to the portal this year, causing many UGA fans to lament

But there are surely more losses to come, but at this moment, this roster is still sufficient to produce a good year.

I'm so grateful that Alabama/Byrne did not fall for the Kiffin fix.

 

[smith5753]

I agree that we have been on a decline since 2020, but it is about results at the end of the day, and the results weren't terrible. A year from now, I think we can be in a much better place in terms of the program's coaching ability and stability than we were two weeks ago, but whether or not we can replicate the level of success we've had over the last three years will be challenging.

I'm not saying Saban should have stayed, or that he would have righted the ship, because I don't believe that. And I'm definitely not saying we made a bid hire, because I think DeBoer will be fantastic if given the chance. I'm just saying the last three years could have been much worse, and probably would have been with someone else as the HC.

Hindsight being 20/20, if coach Saban wanted to go out on top and leave the program in a better position 2020 was his year with Sark taking over. It’s hard to argue his decision to return because he came dangerously close to 2 more national championships but the transfer portal looked different then and Sark would have held onto the players

 

[davefrat]

Stetson Bennett. He won back-to-back in 2021 and 2022. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the fourth round, 128th overall, in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Forgot about him...so he's the outlier in the last what, decade?

 

[davefrat]

Alabama has several guys on your roster who are fully capable of achieving this.

I agree, but they are probably going to be in the first couple rounds if they do it.

 

[DrJJoyner]

That 22nd date must have been wrong, but that's what I was reading

That might be when they're allowed to interview assistants currently on staff with other NFL teams.

But they're free to interview college coaches, unemployed coaches, or those currently on their staff whenever they want.

 

[bamamc1]

Question. Did the little Sayin brat receive any NIL money before this stunt? If so, that’s a problem. RTR

 

[Ledsteplin]

He has Roach and Gillespie. Two good recruiters. And, he has hired Kane Wommack, who will be able to recruit the south well, Maurice Linguist, who recruited some stud DB's to Texas A&M and coached DB's for the Cowboys and he just hired Colin Hitschler, who was a top 30 recruiter last year at of all places Wisconsin. We will still get recruits. And when we get them, DeBoer will coach them up as good as anyone in the country.

And Courtney Morgan, who is a great recruiter and player favorite.

 

[DrJJoyner]

Forgot about him...so he's the outlier in the last what, decade?

We'll see where JJ McCarthy goes, but probably in the first two rounds.

Jake Coker piloted Alabama to a title in 2015. He was undrafted.

The year before that, Cardale Jones beat Alabama on the way to a title. He went in the 4th round.

So . . . that's at least four championships in the last decade.

 

[Scobaman]

The more likely scenario other than coincidence is that the staff knew that Sayin was going to declare and decided to announce their commitment first.

I did wonder why they were bringing in another QB, and I think you have explained it to my satisfaction.

 

[CrimsonTitles]

That might be when they're allowed to interview assistants currently on staff with other NFL teams.

But they're free to interview college coaches, unemployed coaches, or those currently on their staff whenever they want.

I found it. This is what I was reading.

 

[KrAzY3]

Question. Did the little Sayin brat receive any NIL money before this stunt? If so, that’s a problem. RTR

I'd hesitate to call him a brat.

There's one version of events going around that Sayin was in fact pushed out. That might not be accurate, could be a rumor people keep reporting but I've seen the purported quotes and if true he's certainly not deserving of any negativity.

I can't find the origin of the quotes but it certainly isn't clear right now considering Alabama took in another QB before his departure.

 

[Sensation77]

So I guess you’re calling plays over Alexa at the 60 inch but somehow they aren’t get through, right? 😉

😄It's a 70" I tend to not get as upset about the games as I've gotten older. There were times it ruined my whole weekend, but it's not like that anymore. I do remember yelling at Ken Darby 20 years ago to quit hesitating every time he got the ball, and just hit the hole, hoping he could hear me. Those 11am JP Sports games with the 3 Daves were the worst!

 

[BamaMoon]

I'm not.

In fact, in retrospect, I wish he would have stepped down after the 2020 title. Anyone who has watched the way the last few teams played will tell you they were winning largely on talent alone, looking nothing like the dominating teams Saban fielded year in and out for the previous decade. The decline was right in front of us but as most are results-oriented, it wasn't overly-obvious.

I've been somewhat reserved in my criticisms of Saban but you can find posts I've made which were quietly critical of his team prep and coaching choices since 2020 because it was obvious something was wrong, from the process-oriented perspective.

It was a good run, but despite the W/L results, Bama hasn't really looked like Bama for the last few years. It was (likely past) time. I'm thankful for what Saban did but I'm also thankful he didn't hold on longer than he did.

Self awareness and "fan" self awareness are difficult.

When I was a kid the joke was Coach Bryant could walk on water.

As a man, you can believe in a person like we believed in CNS but also admit he made mistakes.

I said it a couple of days ago, but we've got a better staff today than a week ago Wednesday. Love for CNS not withstanding, but IMO we'll be better top to bottom.

 

[Scobaman]

I feel attacked! I slurp down a lot of Diet Cokes during games, myself. Granted, mine are from the couch.

If you are from Fansville, you should be drinking Dr Pepper.