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There are many great "coaching family trees". Not necessarily having played for a coach but to have been associated with a certain coach. Example: Bear Bryant played for Frank Thomas at Alabama...

Ten Current College Football Coaches in the Bear Bryant Family Tree

by BabyTate (Senior Writer)

45

1,898 reads

Rankings/List

September 05, 2008


There are many great "coaching family trees". Not necessarily having played for a coach but to have been associated with a certain coach. Example: Bear Bryant played for Frank Thomas at Alabama. Frank Thomas played for Knute Rockne at Notre Dame. So even the great Bear is part of the immortal Rockne family coaching tree.

There have been many coaches that played for, or were employed by, Bear Bryant. It seems appropriate that here in the Silver Anniversary of the year of his passing we review the current head-coaches who are part of the Bear Bryant coaching tree.

10) Howard Schnellenberger–Florida Atlantic

The oldest and most immersed in Bear history. Tight End in 1952 and '53 at Kentucky for Bryant. Later the offensive  coordinator of the 1961 and '64 national title teams at Alabama. Howard won the national championship at Miami in 1983, and was the creator of the Miami dynasty.

 

9) Phil Fulmer–Tennessee

Fulmer played for Coach Bill Battle at Tennessee in 1970 and '71. Battle played for Bear on the 1961 national championship 'Bama team. Battle was the youngest head coach in the country when hired. His "Fulmer teams" went 21-3. Fulmer won the 1998 national championship for the Vols in the first ever BCS title game.

 

8) Nick Saban–Alabama

Stay with me here. Saban played defensive back at Kent State for Don James from 1970-72. James was an assistant coach from 1960-65 at Fla. St. for Bill Peterson. Bill Peterson was an assistant at LSU for Paul Dietzel from 1955-59. Dietzel was an assistant coach for Bear Bryant at Kentucky in 1951 and '52. Saban won the 2003 national title at LSU.

 

7) Gary Pinkel–Missouri

Was a teammate of Nick Saban at Kent State. See #8 for details to connect with Bear.

 

6) Frank Beamer– Va Tech

Frank was a defensive back at Va Tech for Jerry Claiborne in the 1966-'68 era. The late Claiborne, perhaps the closest of all the family tree members to Bryant, was a halfback in the late 1940s for the Bear at Kentucky and was an assistant coach for him at Kentucky and Texas A&M in the 1950s.

 

5) Mark Richt–Georgia

Easy one. Played quarterback at Miami for 4 years under Howard Schnellenberger from 1979-'82. See #10 above for Bear connection details.

 

4) Tommy West–Memphis

Another easy one. Played Tight End at Tennessee for Bill Battle from 1972-'75. See No. 9 above for Bear Bryant connection details.

 

3) Sylvester Croom–Mississippi State

Like Schnellenberger, Croom actually played for the Bear. He was a Center at Alabama from 1972-'74.

 

2) Mike Riley– Oregon State

Riley and Croom were teammates at Alabama during their entire careers in Tuscaloosa. Riley was an All-SEC defensive back, playing from 1972-'74.

 

1) David Cutcliffe–Duke

Cutcliffe was the student assistant to Bear Bryant from 1973-75. David, Croom, and Riley are all close friends, having been there at the same time.

So there you have it. Not necessarily in order of importance, or even in connection strength to Bryant. A listing of ten current head coaches who are part of the Bear Bryant family tree. Ten men to watch, and still see part of the legendary Bear in action.

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45 comments Last one added 3 months ago — Leave a Comment

  1. Mitch at sportschatplace.com 10 months ago

    Wow! 2 Miami QB's in one article and 3 Miami guys altogether, could be a sign of things to come later today, could it be all Miami? People forget Don James. I think almost every time I have heard Howard's name mentioned there is always a Bear reference attached to it.
    This is a great one as there are so many "coaching trees" out there. If any of my friends are out there reading this don't think this will spare you from me breaking out my 1988 Orange Bowl program and me mapping out the Jimmy Johnson coaching tree as well as the pointing out at least 1 player from every line of pictures on the "mug shot" pages who played in the NFL.

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Mitch: Shame on you. There is no Jimmy Johnson coaching tree. He played for Frank Broyles at Arkansas. Broyles played for Bobby Dodd at Georgia Tech. Dodd played for General Neyland at Tennessee.

      The old Miami dynasty was the meeting place of the Bear Bryant-General Neyland dynasties.

      Thanks for the inspirational look back to the old Hurricanes.....Hurricane warnings............

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    • Mitch at sportschatplace.com 10 months ago

      So what you're saying is the Sonny Lubick, Butch Davis, Dave Wannestadt, Larry Coker, Dave Campo, Randy Shannon, Mario Cristabal and then assistants Rob Cudzinski, Mike Barrow, Lamar Thomasi and all of the other assistants out there are just offshoots on the same tree?? This could be a great book...

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Sonny Lubick is the smartest man in football over the past 25 years.

      Yes Mitch, that's what I'm saying. The old Miami dynasty was the supernova of Bear and the General. If they had paid attention to what was going on instead of living the high life they would have not folded up like a tent after the Michigan loss in '84, shown up to play Tennessee in '85, taken Penn St seriously in '86, and realized that Holtz was coming for payback in '88. I am proposing that my Bear/General/Hurricanes "Big Bang" theory would have resulted in 7 consecutive national championships for Miami in the 1980s. They only missed by a hair, they had the talent, don't deny it Mitch, if they had shown up just a handful of more times they would be considered greater than the 1950s Oklahoma teams that won 47 in a row and has never been touched. They could have had it all. I saw those Sooner teams, Royal's teams of '61-64 and '68-'70, Bryant's teams, McKay's teams, Woody's teams, along with all the current titans. That 1980s crowd playing in the Orange Bowl was a special time and place, I don't want to say never, but I can't imagine we'll ever see anything like those coaching family trees ever again existing together.

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  2. 12 10 months ago

    BT, you know I loved reading this. Thanks for the reminders. Bill Battle, one of my favorite people of all time. He dated my sister while they both attended West End High School in Birmingham. I don't know how she let that one get away! He was a great coach, and I don't remember why he left coaching, but if he was going to remain at UT, Bama fans are fortunate he left. I do know he is a very successful business man. I can't remember if he ever beat coach Bryant, but something tells me he did. Probably was one of those "Fulmer teams"...YUK. LOL. I enjoyed being reminded of of Jerry Claiborne. What a fine man and great coach. He took some of those undermanned VPI teams and did wonders with them.

    Without a doubt this is my POTD.

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Thanks 12 and thanks for the vote. Claiborne was a great coach and leader. He took programs that were down and out and made them Bowl teams. I've already written an article on his "Split 60" defense that terrorized college football for 25 years in the 60s,70s, and 80s.

      You remark that your sister used to date Bill Battle. 12, I can see you realize he is successful now but did you know he is one of the richest men in the country? If you want something in sports that has a school or player name on it, you pay Bill Battle.

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    • 12 10 months ago

      I something on tv just the other day that chronicled how successful Bill Battle is. I wasn't aware of it until then.

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  3. Will Shelton 10 months ago

    As well as all of these connections, there are many, many folks who have The Bear's fingerprints all over them because they simply couldn't beat him. Battle beat Bear the first time he saw him, then lost six straight before being replaced by Johnny Majors...who lost his first five to Bryant, before finally beating him in Bear's final season. Much the same way Steve Spurrier helped define the pre-1998 portion of Phillip Fulmer's career, Bryant left his mark on both Battle and Majors.

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Will, Battle brought in a star high school receiver from S.C. named Stanley Morgan. Morgan played for years in the NFL. Morgan may be the most underrated Volunteer of alltime, apologies to the great Doug Atkins who finally got his due in recent years.

      Thanks Will!

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  4. Gray Ghost 10 months ago

    BT, this was such a great article. Amazing. There is no way to overstate your importance to the rest of us involved in CFB on B/R. I'm not trying to gain any "brownie points". This is honor where honor is due. You have earned your stripes.

    The Bear's finger-prints are all over CFB, and especially in the south. I am honored that Richt is in the tree!

    I met a deputy in Elkhart, Indiana who played for one of Bears National Championship teams, and he showed me his office. It was a shrine to the great coach. Definitely one of the most loved and respected men to ever walk the sideline.

    Ronnie Hammon, the song-writer, wrote a song about the day that Bryant died:

    "I’ll never forget
    The day that I heard the news
    Bear Bryant has died
    Funny, I thought he’d refuse
    I watched as they laid him to rest
    In old Alabama
    Oh how I cried
    The day Bear Bryant died”

    Thanks for throwing the light on a legend. ***** and POTD for sure!

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Ghost, thank you sincerely. I appreciate the kind words. I notice you have traveled around the country a lot. Why do I know the name of the town of Elkhart, Indiana? Is that where John Dillinger was captured? That's familiar for some reason.

      It's a pleasure to see your articles accumulate huge reads and comments. I'm convinced the cartoon image on your cupcake article is that of Bo Schembechler exploding after another call went against him.

      Appreciate the comments!

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  5. Lisa Horne 10 months ago

    Great article...POTD. That list is absolutely amazing. Thanks for giving us a coaching-tree history lesson on one of the greatest coaches ever!

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Thank you Lisa. I appreciate that. I almost, almost, was able to connect Rick Neuheisel to Bear. Bear came to Alabama in 1931. The coach who just left in 1930 was Wallace Wade. Wade went to Duke, where he had a nifty QB named Tommy Prothro who took the Blue Devils to the Rose Bowl. Prothro later was the head coach at Oregon St and then UCLA. When he was at UCLA he had a defensive back named Terry Donahue. When Donahue was headcoach at UCLA he had a QB named Rick Neuheisel.

      That's one paper mache' away. My gosh, can you imagine if Rick thought he was part of the Bear Bryant family tree? He would probably charge the announcers to interview him at halftime of the games!

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  6. L.J. Burgess 10 months ago

    Six degrees of Bear Bryant...cool.

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  7. Kristofer Green 10 months ago

    BT-

    I love your articles. They are all a college football history lesson. This was great, detailed "family tree". I was only aware of the Schellenberger connection and had no idea Gary Pinkel and Nick Saban were teammates or that Croom and Riley were teammates, or that Cutcliffe was a SA when Croom and Riley played. Just amazing stuff! POD!!

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Thanks Kristopher. These old teammates need to play each other. Pinkel vs Saban. Cutcliffe vs. Croom. Lots of possibilities.

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  8. Burton DeWitt 10 months ago

    Tommy West above Howard? You kidding?!? Serious? West is one of the worst coaches in Division I, so bad that I have named an award after him (Tommy West award). Howard has never been outcoached, ever. He has single-handedly built programs. He was the reason Miami went 17-0 in 1972.

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    • Burton DeWitt 10 months ago

      oh, good article. Forgot to put in my compliments. I always love your work; I just rarely agree!

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    • Chris 10 months ago

      I think you missed this line:

      "So there you have it. Not necessarily in order of importance, or even in connection strength to Bryant. A listing of ten current head coaches who are part of the Bear Bryant family tree."

      Any sane person would agree with you if it were a ranking.

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    • Burton DeWitt 10 months ago

      ah, I think that needs to be put at the top. I stopped reading at #3. Something like that needs to be in the introduction.

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Burton, there is no ranking to this 10, just a list of 10. We started with Howard because that's a good starting point, everyone seems to know he's connected with Bear.
      Thanks for the comment.

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  9. Michael Collins 10 months ago

    Bryant's quotes were gold, too - wisdom passed along to his coaches and players. (A possible article here)
    A few:
    -I'll beat you with my team today, and I'll beat you with your team tomorrow.
    -Never quit. It is the easiest cop-out in the world. Set a goal and don't quit until you attain it. When you do attain it, set another goal, and don't quit until you reach it. Never quit.
    -Set goals - high goals for you and your organization. When your organization has a goal to shoot for, you create teamwork, people working for a common good.
    -Sacrifice. Work. Self-discipline. I teach these things, and my boys don't forget them when they leave.
    -What matters...is not the size of the dog in the fight, but of the fight in the dog.
    -If your assistant coaches aren't smarter than you are, then you don't need them!
    -Tough times dont last, but tough people do
    -Sure I'd like to beat Notre Dame, don't get me wrong. But nothing matters more than beating that cow college on the other side of the state (Auburn)
    -If you want to walk the heavenly streets of gold, you gotta know the password, "Roll, tide, roll!"

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  10. Joe Willett 10 months ago

    Whoa, my head hurts. Nice job with this one BT

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Thanks Joe, I'll bet it's the Nick Saban connection that gave you Excedrin Headache #22.

      I like your writing Joe.

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  11. J. Michael Morris 10 months ago

    There are only six degrees of seperation between any two people in the world, if you trace the right path, brother.

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  12. Joe G 10 months ago

    Nice! I learned quite a bit from this one. I've always wondered this about Bryant though...if he coached at Kentucky, how come my beloved Wildcats don't have any football tradition worth speaking of?

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Bryant's fearsome teams led by George Blanda, Babe Parilli, and others set a standard for the Wildcats. Here is what really happened:

      We all know the story about Bryant getting a cigarette lighter for going to the Orange Bowl and Adolph Rupp getting a Car. That is a little bit of a, well, an exaggeration to cover up the true problem. After Rupp's Wildcats were blistered by the NCAA for being involved in a fraud and point shaving scandal which resulted in the several year probation of the Wildcats, the University laid down the law that "outsiders" should not be recruited. In other words, if a man was from the state of Kentucky Bear could go see him and recruit him. If he was from outside the state Bear had to jump through hoops to even give a scholarship to him as a walk-on. Bear felt he was being punished for the outrageous behavior of the "yankee from Kansas", Adolph Rupp. Bear was contacted by A&M and left shortly thereafter to become Athletic Director and Head Coach. Rupp continued on with his winning ways and the Wildcats became the alltime winningest basketball program (like Michigan in football). Well, that's the way Jerry Claiborne told it to me when he was the headcoach at VPI in the 60's and we were passing the ball in his yard one day.

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  13. J.C. Ayvazi 10 months ago

    Thanks BT - stuff like this I eat up with a big spoon. Then you read the comments and it's like easter eggs on a dvd.

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  14. Brian Scott 10 months ago

    Good job BT - the Bear's legend will never die!

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Thanks Brian. As you well know, not only did LSU have former Bear assistant Paul Dietzel as head coach but also Charlie McClendon who played for Bear at Kentucky. Then, you've got Jerry Stovall who played for Dietzel and McClendon at LSU and took the Tigers to the Orange Bowl as a player('62 season) and as head coach('82 season). And you've got Curly Hallman who played for Gene Stallings at Texas A&M and later coached LSU. Stallings played for Bear at A&M. When Curly played for Stallings, they beat Alabama in the '67 season Cotton Bowl and Curly was the MVP of the game.

      Now I think my head hurts!

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  15. Julian Rosario 10 months ago

    No matter the generation, Bear Bryant will resonate as the MAN in college football. Schnellenberger seems like a great guy, but he disrespected my Horns, and FAU took a beating for that. Richt is a great coach, and I love his Georgia teams. Beamer is a guy who does more with less, and gets his team to play all the time. Saban is the man, do not care what any man says, the guys puts up results, and he can recruit his butt off. Fulmer seems to be a little bit overrated, but still a great coach nonetheless. And I think David Cutcliffe is the guy that can turn around the Duke football program!!!!

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  1. ss 10 months ago

    Yea, but the rules state that you have to connect them to Kevin Bacon?

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  2. Timothy Croley 10 months ago

    BT, just when I think you have worked your best you come back with more! I bet you just wrote this up over morning coffee or during half-time of the Notre Dame-SD State game. You have so much CFB knowledge and history stored up to share with all of us in the B/R community it is almost overwhelming to think about it. Well done!

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    • BabyTate 10 months ago

      Thanks Timothy. I had to research Saban's connection. I was convinced that it existed, and I found it by pouring over old information in my possession. Pinkel was just a bonus as a teammate.

      The other 8 were off the top of my head, so you're right about that.

      You know, San Diego St is unwatchable. Notre Dame needs to improve immediately as well. This Weiss may have another rough year. How could such a close game be so boring? I might start a movement to bring Jim Grobe to South Bend, why should he be wasted in the smallest school in major college football there in Winston-Salem?

      Back at you soon.

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    • Timothy Croley 10 months ago

      I think Grobe would do a great job for the Irish. Everyone thought Weis was going to be the man to lead ND back to glory. He has recruited fairly well. He looks to have the right pieces in place. But he just doesn't (to me) seem to have the authority and ability to lead. It's like I'm looking at some PE coach who is just trying to get the kids to play dodgeball for the next hour while he sits and watches and make it to another day. There is no sense of urgency with this guy. He never seems to get mad. He seems to be satisfied with what he has. And that my friend, what was on display Saturday afternoon, was the furthest thing from Notre Dame football I can imagine. Even in some games they lost last year they looked hungry and fighting to win. But not Saturday. Now I know my Tide has been down, but they at least have been competitive. Notre Dame looks like they belong in the Sun Belt.

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  3. Auburn Rags 3 months ago

    How about a list of the coaches that played or coached under the Bear, that later coached at a college that went on probation. I think people would be amazed at that list also.

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