Saban Steals Another One From Les Miles: Chad Lindsay Signs with Bama

There is no doubt that Les Miles is a great recruiter.  Just look at the results.  He has pulled in some of LSU's best classes ever.  Yet there is one coach who always seems to do just a little better.

And that wouldn't be so bad if it weren't the same coach who's shadow many feel he is still trying to escape from.  Nick Saban has so far managed to squeeze the last recruit to outpoint Les Miles in recruiting in each of his two years at Alabama.

This past weeks announcement of Chad Lindsay hurts all the worse because Miles had told many people that Lindsay was coming to Baton Rouge.  In fact, most sports writers already had Chad in the LSU column as well.

Lindsay is a two-time, first-team All-District 14-5A selection who will start for a third straight year this fall and will be one of the top 2010 recruits from Texas. He is projected to play guard in college, but Saban has already said he could see him playing center just as easily.

At 6-3 and a solid 300-pound physique, Lindsay had offers from 18 other schools besides Bama and LSU.  His dad played football for Mississippi State, but they were never a serious consideration.  His sister already attends LSU as did his mother, so most thought that would seal the deal along with a closer drive for his parents.

"It would have been better for my parents for me to have picked LSU", (probably referring to a shorter drive and seeing both children) said Lindsay "But my parents told me to do whatever I felt was right."

“I am going to roll with the Tide,” said Lindsay “It just felt right. The campus, coaching staff and whole atmosphere was a big part of my decision. It felt like home to me."

"I went to LSU and Alabama for a final look. I took a step back from football and looked at academics. It just felt better for me at Alabama than it did at LSU."

And so Les Miles will have to face yet another that didn't just get away, but got netted by Saban.  And in the end, that makes it hurt twice as bad.