I have always been fascinated by Coaching trees and where many high-profile Coaches cut their teeth in before the big time. Nick Saban not only learned under some terrific Coaches he would then go on to have an extensive Coaching Tree of his own, one of course is Sark.
As a DB at Kent State, he played for legendary HC Don James, who would go on to build a powerhouse at UW, winning a NC in ’91. Don James OC during his peak years was Nick’s fellow GA while at Kent State, Gary Pinkel. Pinkel would years later replace Saban after he HC’d at Toledo in ‘90 and left for the NFL. Pinkel would go on to be a very successful there and later as HC at Mizzou.
Nicks 1st job outside his alma mater was DB Coach at Syracuse then West Virginia, followed by 2 seasons as Secondary Coach under Earl Bruce at Ohio State ’80 to ’81. The DB Coach he replaced? That would be Pete Carroll, who left to become the DC at NC State for his mentor from his GA days at Ark., Monte Kiffin (Lane's Dad). Then left to be Secondary Coach at Navy. There he worked with Steve Belichick (long time Asst. there and Bill’s dad) under HC Gary Tranquill. Tranquill would later join Saban as Asst.’s under Bill Belichick while was the Browns HC.
After Navy, Saban got his 1st DC job at Michigan St in 1983. under then HC and Chuck Noll disciple, George Perles. Perles was the DL Coach and DC during the Steelers “Steel Curtain” DL era which won Noll 4 Super Bowl in the 70’s. Perles was the DL Coach under 4-time NC Duffy Daugherty at MSU before that. Saban spent 5 seasons not only as Perles’s DC but also his protégé, winning the Big Ten and the Rose Bowl in ’88. Among his prized pupils was Lombardi & Butkus winner, Percy Snow. Then the NFL came calling.
Saban was DB Coach under Jerry Glanville at Houston in ’88-’89. The following year he got his 1st HC job at Toledo. He won the MAC but only stayed a year. Bill Belichick, an 11-year Bill Parcells disciple and DC of two Super Bowl winning teams, wanted Nick to be his DC when he took the Browns’ HC job. The 2 Defensive minds gelled very well and had the NFL’s best Defense in ’94 and made the playoffs, and Nick then moved on to his 1st major College job.
Saban returned to Michigan St. to succeed his former boss and mentor, George Perles in 1995. He brought in longtime friend Gary Tranquill to head the offense and his DC from Toledo, Dean Pees. Pess would later be a Super Bowl winning DC at Baltimore and New England. Saban’s teams made a bowl in their 1st 3 seasons and in ’98 finished 6-6 despite upsetting #1 Ohio State. In ’99, with Saban led the Spartans to victories over ranked teams Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State. MSU finished 2nd in the Big ten, a #7 final ranking along with MSU’s best record since the 1960’s. Future NFL Head Coaches Josh McDaniels and Brian Daboll were GA’s under Saban. Also, future Spartan HC (and MSU all-time winningest HC) Mark Dantonio honed his craft under Saban before going on to DC on the OSU ’02 NC team. The Nation had taken notice, especially AD Joe Dean at LSU.
LSU who had long been kind of dormant hired Saban after the ’99 season. Saban brought Jimbo Fisher as his OC (and would remain there until ’06), Gary Gibbs and later Will Muschamp as his DC’s. Results were immediate with an SEC Title in his 2nd year followed by a BCS Bowl Win. In year 4, LSU was SEC & National Champion after dispatching season long no. 1 OU for the NC. Year 5 saw contend in the SEC but lose to undefeated SEC Champ Auburn. Other assistants on his LSU Staffs include future HC’s Kirby Smart, Mel Tucker and Derek Dooley. Also, DL guru Pete Jinkens, D and St guru Sal Sunseri, S&C stalwart Scott Cochran, DL extraordinaire Bo Davis and longtime OL Coach Stacy Searels were Asst.'s Saban's tenure in BR, including future NFL HC Adam Gase (GA). The NFL was next.
In his 2 years in Miami, Saban again surrounded himself with Asst’s who would go on to great careers. Guys like Jason Garret, Scott Linehan, future NFL HC Dan Quinn. Saban's win percentage with Miami was just at .500. If the team Doctors had green lit Brew Brees then who knows.
Then there is his 17-year run at Bama which saw the Tide win 6 National Titles, 9 SEC Titles and 7 CFP appearances. His staff assistants list reads like a who’s who of current/former major CFB HC’s and even NFL HC’s. Theres Jim McElwian, Kirby Smart, Lane Kiffin, Steve Sarkisian, Jeremy Pruitt, Bill O’Brien, Brian Daboll, Mario Cristobal, Dan Lanning, Billy Napier, and Kai Locksley. Other Assistants include Charles Kelly, Tosh Lupoi, Doug Nussmeir and Major Applewhite.
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It's safe to say Nick Saban's mark on the game will last a very long time.