Finebaum is either pleading his case or knows something. If history repeats itself, then the later should be true. Finebaum is typically like a well trained pointer on a brisk February morning frozen on a covey in a beige meadow - RIGHT ON POINT.===============================================
Saban has easy choice to make
Imagine for just a moment you could get inside Nick Saban's brain. What do you think is going on in there? Is he considering Alabama? Has he already ruled it out?
More than likely, the only thing Saban is thinking about is the next football game -- Monday night against the New York Jets and then turning around six days later to travel to Indianapolis for the season-ender on Dec. 31.
However, when the NFL season is finally over, when the Dolphins will be watching the playoffs from home for the second straight year under the great Saban, some decisions will have to be made.
Should he bail on a storied franchise with one of the greatest traditions and one of the greatest former head coaches in history, but one that continues to misfire? Should he do all of that to go to a storied college with one of the greatest traditions and the greatest former head coach, but one that continues to misfire?
In other words, should he give up on becoming the next Don Shula in Miami and try to become the next Bear Bryant at Alabama?
Usually, when trying to decide to leave one job for another, money is the first consideration. Not with Saban. He left LSU (he was already the highest paid coach in college ball) two years ago for approximately $5 million a year. He was given total control in Miami, something that didn't occur the year before when he surprised many by turning down the Chicago Bears.
He didn't make a snap decision in leaving LSU. Saban spent days agonizing over the offer. In other words, simply because Saban's season in Miami ends on Dec. 31, don't expect a decision by the time the ball falls on Times Square at midnight.
The issue will likely come down to whether Saban believes he has a future in pro football. Saban left LSU (and a national championship caliber team) because he felt the Miami offer would be his best shot at the NFL. But does he still love the NFL after 100 weeks of 16-hour days and little success?
Nick Saban is just another coach in the NFL. He's not on anybody's list of best head coaches. Not even close. Still, he makes a fortune. But so did Steve Spurrier. Saban was the hottest thing going two years ago but so was Jon Gruden four years ago, and his future in Tampa is colder than the North Pole.
If Saban fails to make the playoffs in Miami next year, will he have a future? Will he even have a job?
That is the real question. Until now, Saban has been playing with house money in Miami. Not anymore. He's on the clock.
Oh, some say, the Alabama job isn't what it used to be. You can't win because of all the meddling. Please. On his first day, Saban would be the most powerful man to hold that position since Bryant. Nobody will challenge him. Nobody.
For one thing, considering the desperate nature of this search, the hiring of Saban won't only be considered a grand slam, it will be the longest ball ever hit. It will immediately signal to the legions of critics that Alabama not only has a pulse, but it has one of the finest college coaches in the game. Would Saban, on his first day, be considered the best coach in college football?
Probably not. But one thing is sure: He'd be on the front row in a group picture.
The complexion and direction of Alabama football would change about as dramatically as it did in 1958 when Bryant came home.
Saban knows this. He is a smart guy. So what does he do in two weeks when the Dolphins' season finally ends and he is faced with yet another seminal moment in his career?
Does he stay the course and try to right the ship with the Dolphins, a club which hasn't been to the playoffs since 2001 and in a Super Bowl since 1985? Does he continue to knock heads every week against the likes Bill Belichick, his mentor, and Tony Dungy and Bill Cowher or does he try to match wits with Tommy Tuberville, Les Miles, Houston Nutt and throw in Sly Croom and Ed Orgeron for good measure?
One thing is for sure. Saban knows he can compete in the SEC (although he was only 2-3 against Tuberville). He has yet to prove anything on a consistent basis in the NFL. Will he ever?
Today, at a bitterly disappointing 6-8, now mired in last place in the AFC East and his preseason Super Bowl expectations shattered, the decision doesn't look as difficult.
Saban does not look like the kind of man who wants to run from a challenge and that's exactly what he has in Miami. Expectations are no longer the issue. It's results or bust.
At Alabama, it's a different story. He would inherit a five-game losing streak to Auburn. Now, who wouldn't leap at a chance at ending that stranglehold? He would walk into a program that from a national perception has hardly ever been lower. He would be a hero everywhere he went.
Say what you want about the sunshine in South Florida, but not only will money go a lot farther in Tuscaloosa, the lifestyle is plenty suitable for a man who never sees daylight (outside of practice) because his head is buried in a film room.
Saban knows all of this. If he survived five years in Baton Rouge, Tuscaloosa will seem like a holiday.
So the decision is his. What would you do? Seems rather simple, doesn't it?
Contact Paul Finebaum at:
finebaumnet@yahoo.com
His column appears Tuesdays and Saturdays in the Press-Register.
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