2019 Michigan Season Thread

[Anonymous Coward]

You formed that opinion (that Saban let his offensive staff go) at a time when it was still probable. But now you have good reason to change that opinion. After verbally abusing Gattis over his decision to leave for Maryland and trying to convince him to stay, it doesn't make sense to believe Saban "let Gattis go" unless you believe that story Gattis told -- about Saban being pissed, stressing to keep him and Gattis leaving anyway -- was made up.

[Mdot21]

You formed that opinion (that Saban let his offensive staff go) at a time when it was still probable. But now you have good reason to change that opinion. After verbally abusing Gattis over his decision to leave for Maryland and trying to convince him to stay, it doesn't make sense to believe Saban "let Gattis go" unless you believe that story Gattis told -- about Saban being pissed, stressing to keep him and Gattis leaving anyway -- was made up.

There is zero chance that Saban wanted to purge his entire offensive staff that just engineered his offense to be the best in the history of Alabama’s program and the best offense Saban has ever coached anywhere at any level just so he could go hire a fricken loser like Sark. Adding Sark after losing all that coaching talent = a disaster imo. 
My guess is those offensive coaches probably didn’t enjoy working for an anal control freak like Saban and just found better jobs that paid them more money and had the added benefit of they didn’t have to put up with Saban’s bullshit.
All 4 of the coaches leaving got job title promotions and more money. Hard to say there is anything weird about that at all. The only one that is a little weird to me is Dan Enos. Because with everyone already bolting he was in line to be the next OC. The OC spot at Miami is a clear cut demotion for the OC job at Bama.

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm quite sure Enos, Locksley and Gattis enjoyed all that winning**. I'm also fairly sure that Saban is really disappointed that he didn't manage this better. Losing those three was not on purpose.

**(they didn't leave to get out of Dodge, IMO; they left to further their careers ... with the possible exception of Enos)

[Hawkinole]

In other news, TE Zach Gentry has declared for the NFL draft. Which makes no sense to me, seeing as how he has some ways to go as a blocker still and he dropped more big key passes in the biggest games this season than any WR/TE that I’ve ever seen at Michigan. Should’ve stayed in school and improved.

Probably not the best year for Zach Gentry to declare early at the TE position. There are other tight ends coming out early.

[MaximumSam]

You formed that opinion (that Saban let his offensive staff go) at a time when it was still probable. But now you have good reason to change that opinion. After verbally abusing Gattis over his decision to leave for Maryland and trying to convince him to stay, it doesn't make sense to believe Saban "let Gattis go" unless you believe that story Gattis told -- about Saban being pissed, stressing to keep him and Gattis leaving anyway -- was made up.

There's almost no question he let him go. The question is why wouldn't he give him the same opportunity Michigan gave him so he would stay.

[Anonymous Coward]

There's almost no question he let him go. The question is why wouldn't he give him the same opportunity Michigan gave him so he would stay.

I think that's an unfounded opinion, whereas the "Saban really tried to keep Gattis" opinion has at least some founding:
Gattis:

• "If you look at my track record, I've been at places for a long time. I was with James Franklin for six years. Opportunities started presenting themselves and I had some tough choices to make. And, obviously, professionally and personally one of my goals was to be an offensive coordinator. That's been a lifelong dream of mine. That's something with the input that I've had and the fingerprint I've been able to leave on a lot of programs has allowed me to continue to prepare myself to put me in this position. When Coach Harbaugh called, it kind of caught me off guard because I had just left a meeting with Nick Saban getting my butt chewed out for 20 minutes telling him I was leaving and he was trying to get me to stay. It did not go over well."

We have no evidence for Saban letting any of these guys go, but now we do have evidence for at least one of them (a) going out and getting a better job without letting Alabama in on a bidding war and (b) Saban being mad/sad about that.

[Anonymous Coward]

Probably not the best year for Zach Gentry to declare early at the TE position. There are other tight ends coming out early.

He couldn't have known about Gattis at the time but could reasonably have sensed that (major?) offensive change was coming.

[MaximumSam]

I think that's an unfounded opinion, whereas the "Saban really tried to keep Gattis" opinion has at least some founding:
Gattis:

• "If you look at my track record, I've been at places for a long time. I was with James Franklin for six years. Opportunities started presenting themselves and I had some tough choices to make. And, obviously, professionally and personally one of my goals was to be an offensive coordinator. That's been a lifelong dream of mine. That's something with the input that I've had and the fingerprint I've been able to leave on a lot of programs has allowed me to continue to prepare myself to put me in this position. When Coach Harbaugh called, it kind of caught me off guard because I had just left a meeting with Nick Saban getting my butt chewed out for 20 minutes telling him I was leaving and he was trying to get me to stay. It did not go over well."

We have no evidence for Saban letting any of these guys go, but now we do have evidence for at least one of them (a) going out and getting a better job without letting Alabama in on a bidding war and (b) Saban being mad/sad about that.

Right - what I'm saying is it seems pretty clear Alabama had no interest in Gattis as the offensive coordinator.  It was pretty well rumored he was going to Maryland for a long time, and Saban basically offered Gattis nothing to keep him.  My point is that it is a weird situation to let your co-offensive coordinator just walk without trying to keep him, and the only response I've heard is that Saban didn't think Gattis could be the offensive coordinator.  Well, why not?

[Anonymous Coward]

Perhaps the best reason he couldn't be OC at Alabama is because he seemed to deliberately leave Saban in the dark and Bama out of a bidding war. Saban clearly wanted to do *something* to keep his assistant but there's not much chance for Nick to keep Gattis (or much good it can do) if his only window is 20-minutes after the fact.

The most unusual thing about the hire isn't the unfounded idea that Saban let Gattis go but the now-founded idea that Gattis didn't let Saban know about his plans.

It's plausible that Gattis could have been OC at Alabama if he wanted (or at least a step up to the "co-OC who calls plays"), but keeping Alabama in the dark made that impossible, which he was apparently fine with.

[Anonymous Coward]

Right (...) and the only response I've heard is that Saban didn't think Gattis could be the offensive coordinator.

I know you keep saying that, but where else have you heard it. Saban? Gattis? Other members of the staff? I'm clearly doubting you heard it from a reliable place.

[MaximumSam]

I know you keep saying that, but where else have you heard it. Saban? Gattis? Other members of the staff? I'm clearly doubting you heard it from a reliable place.

Just putting the pieces together.  A guy says he's leaving because he wants to be the offensive coordinator.  So, that wasn't an option at Alabama.  Otherwise, we start getting weird theories about how he would rather be at Maryland than Alabama.  

[847badgerfan]

Just putting the pieces together.  A guy says he's leaving because he wants to be the offensive coordinator.  So, that wasn't an option at Alabama.  Otherwise, we start getting weird theories about how he would rather be at Maryland than Alabama.  

This is my take. Saban would have liked to have kept him, but felt he wasn't ready to be the OC at this time. 

Enos' move is the one that puzzles me the most. He could have had the keys to the Ferrari, instead of a Focus.

We'll never hear from Saban on this, by the way. That's not how he rolls.

[Anonymous Coward]

Of course it's OK to blindly guess that's the case. I do prefer that we emphasize that no one associated with Alabama has said anything to strengthen that idea yet. Especially this new info from someone assoc'd with Bama (Gattis) that, whether Saban wanted to promote him or not, Nick was in the dark until after everything was over.

[Anonymous Coward]

Just putting the pieces together.  A guy says he's leaving because he wants to be the offensive coordinator.  So, that wasn't an option at Alabama.  Otherwise, we start getting weird theories about how he would rather be at Maryland than Alabama.  

Not to get too Bayesian, but: A weird theory with direct support is equal or better than a normal theory without any.

Gattis keeping Saban completely in the dark is definitely weird, but - apparently - true anyway. Maybe he just didn't want to be on Saban's staff anymore.