Alabama Football: Best-Ever Nick Saban Assistant Coaches
By Ronald Evans
(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Alabama Football Assistant: Defensive Coordinator
The Nominees: Kevin Steele (2007); Kirby Smart 2008-2015); Jeremy Pruitt (2016-2017) and Tosh Lupoi – Pete Golding (2018)
Yes, we are about to do it again. It’s fine, guys. Really.
The fact of the matter is no one understood the intensity that it took to be a Saban assistant quite like Kirby. He had opportunities to go elsewhere, whether it was to take the DC position at Georgia in 2010 or as a possible replacement at Auburn in 2013, but he remained Saban’s consigliere until he absolutely knew he was ready to leave.
As the Tide’s sole defensive coordinator from 2009 to 2015, Smart did a remarkable job of executing Saban’s ridiculously complex defensive scheme. While it doesn’t necessarily take a lot of creativity to be Saban’s DC, it certainly takes discipline and a keen eye for detail. In his seven years on the sideline, Smart’s defenses averaged 13 points and 265 yards per game.
Certainly, Saban’s scheme has been susceptible to the HUNH over the last several years, but Smart’s squads usually adapted well in-game and that was a testament to how well-prepared a coach he is.
Think about how a befuddled Crimson Tide defense allowed Johnny Manziel and the Aggies’ offense to steamroll them to the tune of 20 points in the first quarter and only nine points the remaining three. It takes a steady hand to get the troops to calm down to that type of chaos and none have been better under Saban than Kirby Smart.
Three of the four national titles Alabama won under Saban were with Smart as both defensive coordinator and ILBs coach. None of this is a coincidence as the above players were pivotal to each of them.
We’ll throw “2 & 26” and fake punt decisions in his face from now until the end of time, but the truth is Smart was a fabulous defensive coordinator.
Honorable Mention: Jeremy Pruitt
Best-Ever Nick Saban Defensive Coordinator: Kirby Smart
That’s it Crimson Tide fans – Nick Saban’s ‘Best-Ever’ assistant coaches. What an impressive group. It is little wonder why so many of the assistants discussed in this post have become head coaches.
Special thanks for the combined staff effort on this post. The most and best words were written by Jonathan Waldrop, Zachary Mangum and Ronald Moody.