Nick Saban's New Definition of 'Commitment'

Nick Saban's idea of commitment has changed over the years. "I will continue to be committed to LSU," said Saban before he left to coach the Miami Dolphins.

He was committed to the Dolphins when he said, "I'm not going to be the Alabama coach."

His idea of commitment changed in 2010 when 5-star receiver Keenan Allen verbally committed to the Tide but then decided to sign his letter of intent with the California Golden Bears.

Perhaps sensing that he had sent mixed messages about his idea of commitment, Nick went before the public and clearly defined his new version of commitment with this rant:

"I'm old-fashioned," Saban said. "I think a commitment is a commitment. We tell guys when they commit that we want the recruiting to be over or we really don't want them to commit. If you're not really ready to stop recruiting, then you aren't really ready to commit because committing means you are coming to that school.

"I would rather you go visit other schools until you're sure that this is what you want to do rather than making a commitment and then not feeling comfortable and wanting to go explore other opportunities.

"There is an old saying, 'If you're shopping, then we should shop.' It shouldn't be that way, but when guys make commitments and then don't stick up for them, then you kind of get stuck a little bit because there may be other guys that you didn't recruit, that you could have recruited, that could have actually taken their place.

"I wish there was a better way, but there is not. We'll just have to manage it and keep recruiting guys and do the best we can with them."

Apparently, his idea of commitment changes with the context. If its a recruit committed to Alabama, they should be true to that commitment. If its a recruit committed to another school, then "commitment" is a very loose term.

Saban and his staff still try to sway recruits such as Shon Coleman, who committed to Auburn but was harassed by Alabama until signing day.

I'm sure Brandon Ivory (a 6'3", 335-pound defensive lineman from Memphis, Tenn., committed to hometown Memphis in early January 2010) didn't hear Saban rant on commitment when he switched to the Tide on signing day.

Did Cyrus Kouandijo arrive in Tuscaloosa in Saban's doghouse for his conflicting view?

Darius Philon heard Saban's message loud and clear, and after committing to the Tide last September, ended his recruitment and never took a visit to another school. He was firmly committed to Alabama, Nick Saban and the scholarship that was promised for the 2012 school year. 

Justin Taylor stayed committed because Saban stayed committed to him even after a devastating injury. Well, Saban was committed to them until late in the recruiting process. In turns out that even though these kids were no longer "shopping," Saban still was.

Justin Taylor is the first person in his family to GRADUATE FROM HIGH SCHOOL. Congratulations, kid. Saban's plan? Don't go to college, we'll find you a job. In January we'll readdress the situation.

Yet Saban lambasted the media for not having these kids' best interest in mind.