Kiffin’s last hurrah with the Tide? Saban has nothing but kind words
ATLANTA — Alabama head coach Nick Saban is used to his assistants moving on to different opportunities. Saturday’s game against a Florida team coached by former Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain is the obvious example.
If recent speculation holds true, Saban could be looking to replace yet another assistant following No. 1 Alabama’s matchup against No. 15 Florida in the SEC Championship Game. According to a report form SB Nation on Friday, Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin will interview for the head coaching position at Houston on Sunday, following the Crimson Tide’s game against the Gators.
This week, Saban has denied knowing anything of the rumors surrounding his offensive coordinator, stating Kiffin has yet to approach him on the matter. Friday, Saban was asked if he feels Kiffin is ready to be a head coach again.
“Absolutely,” Saban said. “I think he’s proven when he was a head coach, he had a reasonably good amount of success. Much more than I think he gets credit for.”
Kiffin previously served as a head coach for the Oakland Raiders (2007-8) as well as at the college level with Tennessee (2009) and Southern Cal (2010-13). He joined the Alabama prior to the 2014 season and is in the last year of a three-year deal with the Tide.
Since Kiffin took over Alabama’s offense, he has helped coach the Tide to a 38-3 record, including a national championship last season. In each of his three seasons with the Tide, he has had to break in a new starting quarterback.
“He’s done a phenomenal job in the three years that he’s been with us relative to taking the players that we’ve had and actually molding a system, especially for the quarterback to be successful in,” Saban said. “I think those are signs of tremendous maturity as a coach who is not just committed to a system, but committed to doing the things that he has to do to help players be successful.”
This season, Kiffin has received plenty of praise for building an offense that highlights the talents of true freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts. Through 12 games this season, Hurts leads the SEC with a 65.9 percent completion percentage while passing for 2,454 yards and 21 touchdowns with nine interceptions. Kiffin has also molded the offense to include more option-based plays, allowing Hurts to rush for 840 yards and a team-high 12 touchdowns.
“A lot of guys are committed to a system, and then they need to have the players that can fit into that system to make that system work,” Saban said. “But I think it's a true sign of a really good coach who can take the players that he has and adapt the system to make it work for them.”
Kiffin also shares a good relationship with newly appointed LSU head coach Ed Orgeron, who worked under him at Tennessee and Southern Cal. Kiffin is believed to be the front-runner for the LSU offensive coordinator position.
According to the report from SB Nation, Kiffin is being actively promoted by Nick Saban for the Houston job, possibly to prevent him from joining a division rival.
If Kiffin does take a different job before the end of the season, it is uncertain whether or not he will finish out the rest his contract at Alabama. Last year, former Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart was named Georgia’s head coach following the Tide’s SEC Championship title against Florida. Smart finished out the year with Alabama, helping the Tide to its 16th national championship before moving on to the Bulldogs.
Regardless of what happens with Kiffin, Saban said his team’s focus is solely on Saturday’s SEC Championship Game. He expects that to be the case with Kiffin as well.
“We want to win it for the fans, everybody’s prideful about being able to win a championship, but you really want to do it for the players, and you want to do a good job for the players,” Saban said during his weekly radio show Thursday. “I don’t see any coach on our staff that’s not totally committed to doing a great job for that.”
This story was originally published December 2, 2016 at 5:02 PM with the headline "Kiffin’s last hurrah with the Tide? Saban has nothing but kind words."