I pretty much agree with what thunder said. As much as we would like to think, Alabama hasn't been what most would consider an "elite" job over the past several years. Remember that during the coaching searches to replace Dubose, Franchione and Price, we didn't really have anyone beating our doors down to get the job. Heck, we were spurned by the likes of Mike Riley and Jim Leavitt during the search to replace Fran. And Fran himself was probably our third or fourth choice. I can think of a few other "big names" that have said thanks but no thanks in some of our recent searches, like Frank Beamer, Butch Davis and Tommy Bowden.
It's not because of a lack of tradition, or championships, or facilities or anything of that nature. I think a lot of coaches don't really want to deal with the expectations from our rabid fan base. It's like someone else said, we lose one game and we're already screaming for said coach's head. It's pretty obvious that Mike Price had no idea what he was getting himself into - if he had known I think he might have reconsidered. The head coach at Alabama easily garners more attention than the state's governor. That's not true for too many schools, and there are only a select few coaches who will willingly submit themselves to such pressure and attention for the sake of our University. That is why Mike Shula should be commended - he's doing this because he loves the University and wants to see us succeed.
So I guess my point is that I'm not here to bash our school or fans or anything like that - I just think that from an outsider's perspective Alabama wouldn't be the most attractive of jobs.