Nick Saban: The Coach of the Year

Nick Saban has become a "God" to most Alabama fans while also creating a huge target on his back that continues to grow. While some say that he is the best coach in the NCAA football world, others begin to wonder why he is even a coach.

In shorter words, opinions have been stated on the subject of coach Saban, some good, some bad, but to me he is one of the best people that the University of Alabama has ever had the honor of calling "coach." This statement may be also known by other fellow Crimson Tide fanatics. I believe this for many reasons.

My first reason is clear to all, even those who hate: He is coach of discipline and improvement. Saban is one of the best coaches in today's college world because of discipline. He believes that being on the football team is a right, and if you want to be on the team, you have to abide by the rules. The rules being his rules, the university's rules, and the NCAA's rules.

If you fail to behave in proper manor, and decide not to abide by these rules, Saban will 99 percent of the time punish you. This is why he such a great and honorable coach. His team knows just what to do in order to renew their membership on the team each season, and if not, they will most likely realize it soon.

Coach Saban seems to be honoring the famous quote of a famous coach, "Show class, have pride, and display character. If you do, winning takes care of itself," by none other than Paul "Bear" Bryant. This definitely describes the coaching style of Nick Saban.

I really believe that Saban does a great job with the program. Another reason I think this is because coach Saban bases his program on improvement. He does not want to compete within the team to see who is the best at what position. In his program, you play your position. Not another one's position, yours!

This is why his teams are so successful. He is always looking to improve. Even after a huge upset victory, he lists ways that his team could have done better, and that is what they practice the next day. He really has built a stronger, more stable program by doing so.

We will need this in the upcoming season because we are going to be having a lot of new people, at the most important positions, that have never really had any playing time.  This could mean more practice time on the fields for these few players. The list includes: quarterbacks Greg MacCelroy and Star Jackson, running backs Terry Grant, Trent Richardson, and Mark Ingram, and free safety Javier Arenas.

I believe that Saban is a stellar coach, and Alabama has long been in need of a coach of his caliber. He has brought the crimson and white back to one of the elite teams in the nation in only two years as head coach.

He has done a great job here at the University of Alabama, and I hope to see him on the sideline for a years to come. He will definitely get his name in the Hall of Fame one of these days. I am ready for the 2009 season now!