Would Pruitt replace Saban?

#126
#126
Iam4utalways said:
Too much luck involved in football to base the buyout on wins and losses. When a coach “losses the team”(Try to define that in a Multi Million $ contract.) there should be a way to adjust the buyout.
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I dunno.. You might be right. I think we should keep an eye on Jimbo Fisher at TAM. He's middle of the pack now, sort of left FSU in shambles and finagled a $75,000,000.00 contract guarenteed. There is a lot of oil money at TAM from the old days, so they have deep pockets, however I think there actually could be some performance clauses in that contract. Like "get to SECCG after 5 years" (I don't know the term of this contract). That's just a ton of money that if he "loses the team", he can walk away (to a place with palm trees and mixed drinks).
 
#128
#128
ptcarter said:
I dunno.. You might be right. I think we should keep an eye on Jimbo Fisher at TAM. He's middle of the pack now, sort of left FSU in shambles and finagled a $75,000,000.00 contract guarenteed. There is a lot of oil money at TAM from the old days, so they have deep pockets, however I think there actually could be some performance clauses in that contract. Like "get to SECCG after 5 years" (I don't know the term of this contract). That's just a ton of money that if he "loses the team", he can walk away (to a place with palm trees and mixed drinks).
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That’s a serious stack of cash. It would only make sense to have some agreed on expectations for a coach to cash in on all the money.

It should be in Pruitt’s contract that we expect a Pat type run or he should expect to have to give us most of our money back. Not all of it, just most of it.
 
#129
#129
No matter how much a coach wins at a school, wins will eventually start to decline and fans will cry that the coach has lost his drive or the game has passed him by. This time frame usually is within 8-10 years at best for very good coaches and maybe an unreal 12-15 years for a Saban type coach. Nobody can continue at that pace forever, but the fan base will not be happy with less wins no matter who that coach is. Bear Bryant was on the hot seat in the middle of his run and I'm sure Saban's will warm in the next few years.
Now, would it be wise to follow Saban at Alabama? Absolutely not! Only a coach who has no pride in their legacy should even consider it other than the amount of $$$$ being thrown their way because they will be only a unforgettable footnote in Alabama football history in the future. A buy out clause of enormous $$$$ would have to be in that contract.
 
#130
#130
I can't imagine anyone being thrilled at the idea of trying to fill Saban's shoes, even if you are respected and it's your alma mater. How many coaches do you think really wanted to come to UT and take over after Pat Summitt? If Pruitt was smart, he'd give this starving fanbase what we want--a mf'ing DYNASTY. Then he would be revered by Volnation for all eternity....which isn't too bad a thing at all.
 
#131
#131
When Saban retires, Alabama will have the most coveted job in college football and can cherry pick CNS's replacement from college or NFL.
 
#134
#134
Gandalf said:
These are silly arguments. Dabo gets the first call. If he has any sense he stays put. If Pruitt is doing well, he might get the next call. If its within the next 2 years, then sure, he probably goes for $7M a year. If its 2022 and he won SECE in 2021, I am not so sure he goes anywhere. At that point, Fulmer will gladly pony up $7m a year to keep him and I think Pruitt will be "full TN" by then, its not like we are Rutgers or UCLA. He can feel the cultural pull to establish his own dynasty here like Dabo has done for Clemson.

It might be attractive to Dabo because he has already established a dynasty, whereas Pruitt has yet to prove up a first one. No sense in going after Saban. Only Dabo could do that and remain his own man because he had already proven it elsewhere first. Pruitt goes and win or fail, he gets no credit.

I think Pruitt will roll with whatever hand is dealt but is most likely to see his best interest in proving that he can create a dynasty here before going back to save the bubbas. Now if they got a lackluster replacement and after 5-6 more years, Pruitt had been dominating with 2-3 NC appearances? Maybe then just to show he too could do it anywhere - and the bubbas would be more ready for him then. As it is, Saban is a hard man to follow.
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When Saban retires Pruitt is going to get a huge raise. It doesn’t matter if he is on Bama’s short list or not. Pruitt’s agent will tell Fulmer that Bama wants to hire him so UT will pony up a huge sum to keep him here. Same thing happened with Dooley to UGA rumors, Butch to Michigan rumors, and Barnes to UCLA rumors.
 
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#135
#135
I hope Pruitt wouldn't leave after he has built something here. I know money talks but how much is enough? He's already rich and if he continues to build our team into what appears to be a future contender, then I'd hope it would mean enough to him to stay.
 
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#136
#136
08Vol said:
When Saban retires Pruitt is going to get a huge raise. It doesn’t matter if he is on Bama’s short list or not. Pruitt’s agent will tell Fulmer that Bama wants to hire him so UT will pony up a huge sum to keep him here. Same thing happened with Dooley to UGA rumors, Butch to Michigan rumors, and Barnes to UCLA rumors.
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Pretty sure Barnes to UCLA was a helluva lot more than just a rumor.
 
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#137
#137
sport3500 said:
When Saban retires, Alabama will have the most coveted job in college football and can cherry pick CNS's replacement from college or NFL.
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I'm not sure I'd agree the guy after Saban will be in a coveted position. The guy after the guy after Saban, maybe.
 
#138
#138
This is the problem with hiring from without our family. These question will always pop up, that being said, I hope he says forever. I do really like him and think he is a very good coach.

Now within our family of coaches, I don't know of any that would have been ready to take on this job.
 
#139
#139
Falcons02 said:
Pretty sure Barnes to UCLA was a helluva lot more than just a rumor.
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UCLA didn’t have enough to pay him more than what we were paying him. Their athletic dept’s financials are in a really bad place. I don’t remember the details but due to the debt they are carrying the AD couldn’t just funnel booster money to a new coaching hire. Barnes would of had to be paid by boosters under the table or he would of had to take less money for a higher prestige job.
 
#140
#140
I wonder how Pruitt's sentimental attachment to Alabama would compare to his attachment to Tennessee and the athletes he recruited for Tennessee. I do think he appreciates the opportunity and support here. If he continues doing a good job, as I expect, Tennessee might become his place, where he wants to be.
 
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#141
#141
05_never_again said:
If offered the job, of course he'd accept it. I don't even think that's a debatable point. He could go to Alabama, fail miserably, and still be paid handsomely for the time spent plus a buyout. Then could slide into a top assistant job again after that.

The real question is how good does Pruitt have to perform at Tennessee for Alabama to seriously consider him. I still maintain he'd probably need to win the SEC at least once for them to truly consider him. Maybe he'd still get consideration if he won the East at least once, but either way, he still would need to win something beyond just some games. I can't imagine their admin and boosters turning the keys to their program over to a guy who was just "pretty good" at another school.

If by the time Saban retires the best Pruitt has done is 8-9 regular season victories but no championships, I think he'd be way down their list.
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Don't underestimate Bama's donors. The list of Coaches before Nick Saban, and after Gene Stallings, reads like a list of Bad Middle School Coaches.
But, to answer your question, there is 0 doubt that Coach Pruitt would take the Bama job, if it was offered. Who could blame him? It is his Alma Mater. It is his home. And, if you dig really deep, I'd say it is his ultimate goal. I am ok with it. What would he need to achieve, here, before being offered? A consistent run of success. 2-3 SEC East Titles. 1-2 SEC Titles. BEAT BAMA, more than once. Get UT in the NC conversation.
 
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#142
#142
Vol Main said:
I wonder how Pruitt's sentimental attachment to Alabama would compare to his attachment to Tennessee and the athletes he recruited for Tennessee. I do think he appreciates the opportunity and support here. If he continues doing a good job, as I expect, Tennessee might become his place, where he wants to be.
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That’s a very good point. Pruitt’s roots are high school kids. I think he has pride, ownership, and a very personal relationship with his players. And as time and attrition purge Butch recruits, the team becomes more his every cycle. For some coaches, the feeling of abandoning and betraying kids by leaving, kids who you have sat in the living rooms and spoke of what you can do for that athlete. Some do it easily. It’s business. Don’t take it personal. CJP though seems genuinely bonded to his guys.
 
#144
#144
08Vol said:
When Saban retires Pruitt is going to get a huge raise. It doesn’t matter if he is on Bama’s short list or not. Pruitt’s agent will tell Fulmer that Bama wants to hire him so UT will pony up a huge sum to keep him here. Same thing happened with Dooley to UGA rumors, Butch to Michigan rumors, and Barnes to UCLA rumors.
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LOL! That's Fulmer's signature move! How many times was he the leading candidate to be the Carolina Panthers head coach. No way he falls for it unless he gets a kickback somehow.
 
#145
#145
I like this bit about expectations be too high for comfort in bammerville......let Coach win a NC for the Vols and then watch those Big Orange shaded expectations grow and grow!
 
#146
#146
Vol Main said:
I wonder how Pruitt's sentimental attachment to Alabama would compare to his attachment to Tennessee and the athletes he recruited for Tennessee. I do think he appreciates the opportunity and support here. If he continues doing a good job, as I expect, Tennessee might become his place, where he wants to be.
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Agree.........see Dooley (Au grad) at Georgia and Dye (GA grad) at Auburn.
 
#147
#147
I do not believe Pruitt would follow Saban. After someone else went there for at few years, then I believe he would be more apt to return.
 
#148
#148
At 13-12, this is an irrelevant question.

If Pruitt improves on that over the next few seasons, it may become a relevant question.

Right now, Pruitt is one game better than Butch Jones at the same point in his tenure, and Jones’ best season was year 3.

Bama’s not touching a .500 coach after Saban leaves.
 
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#149
#149
BornAndRaisedVOL! said:
I can't imagine anyone being thrilled at the idea of trying to fill Saban's shoes, even if you are respected and it's your alma mater. How many coaches do you think really wanted to come to UT and take over after Pat Summitt? If Pruitt was smart, he'd give this starving fanbase what we want--a mf'ing DYNASTY. Then he would be revered by Volnation for all eternity....which isn't too bad a thing at all.
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My UT fan side says Pruitt wants his own legacy with UT. But these coaches are like 5* high school player not worried about who is there now. They all think they can come in and crush it. I hope Pruitt is ultimately successful enough that it’s a consideration
 
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