Storyline: Nick and Jim aren’t buddies. The reasons? SEC success, Saban’s college legacy, Harbaugh’s pro success, and Harbaugh’s jealousy of Saban’s easy access to America’s best gridiron prospects.
The South.
Fresh produce being sold roadside, fried green tomatoes, biscuits n’ gravy, NASCAR, and the overbearing humidity are all signs that you’re there. But, most importantly, you’ll notice that you’re in SEC football territory.
Courtesy: finebaumfan.com
Well, Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh decided to set up his summer satellite camps here and SEC coaches didn’t take too kindly to this. The one who voiced his disapproval the most was Alabama’s Nick Saban, who viciously attacked the idea of Harbaugh’s camps in the South and simply said: “It’s bad for college football.”
Harbaugh then responded with this snide remark: “Amazing to me: Alabama broke NCAA rules and now their HC is lecturing us on the possibility of rules being broken at camps. Truly amazing.” The comment was an obvious reference to former Tide assistant coach, Bo Davis, who was dismissed from the team in April for recruiting infractions.
While the whole fiasco happened over a month ago and Saban claims that he has “no beef” with Harbaugh, I think the whole situation escalated as much as it did for one reason–the rivalry between the two.
So, why do these two guys have such a great distaste for one another?
Big Ten vs. SEC
Courtesy: CBSSports.com
Let’s face it: the SEC and Big Ten rule college football. With powerhouses like Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State in the Big Ten, and Alabama, Georgia, and LSU in the SEC, the competition between the two conferences is always a fierce one.
But here’s what the SEC has on the Big Ten: tradition–not just the cultural aspect of having Gameday traditions every Saturday in the fall, but a tradition of winning as well. The SEC has won the national championship 8 times in the last decade, including a stretch of 7 straight from 2006-2012. After a two year drought, Saban’s Crimson Tide won the title yet again this past year. That path to glory included a 38-0 bashing of the Big Ten’s Michigan State.
The tradition of winning football games in the South has become as much a part of the culture as the fried food that triples your cholesterol levels. And if you’re a fierce competitor, like Jim Harbaugh, then it just has to burn you up inside.
Saban’s Success at the College Level
What Harbaugh and Saban do have in common is the fact that they have coached at both the college and pro levels. But the difference is that Harbaugh has not experienced the same success as Saban at the college level.
Courtesy: NBC Sports
Harbaugh has a nice 68-30 record at the collegiate level, having coached at San Diego, Stanford, and currently at his alma mater Michigan. But then, you look at Saban’s track record and you’re just blown away.
Saban is 191-60-1 at the college level, having brought home 5 national championships and 7 conference titles over his career. Crimson Tide fans are–in the words of SEC football analyst and radio show host Paul Finebaum–“spoiled like trust fund children.”
While Harbaugh has yet to establish himself as one of the elite coaches at the college level, the Michigan coach does have the one thing that Saban is yet to conquer … and probably never will.
Harbaugh’s Success in the NFL
Nick Saban has more than established his dominance in college football. He is nipping at the heels of Alabama football legend Paul “Bear” Bryant, who won six national titles (just one more than Saban), during his time in Tuscaloosa.
Courtesy: Forbes.com
But Saban’s time spent in the NFL with the Dolphins was–for lack of a better word–a disaster. Saban went a mediocre 15-17 while in South Florida. He then left for Alabama in January 2007 to take over a program that Mike Shula had pretty much driven into the ground.
Saban is pretty much an immortal in Tuscaloosa now, too. I mean, seriously, they built a statue of him outside the stadium.
Unlike Saban, though, Harbaugh has had success in the pros, both as a player and a coach. A first-round pick out of Michigan, Harbaugh spent 14 seasons playing quarterback in the NFL. Saban, on the other hand, never played a down in the NFL. Harbaugh has also had success as a coach in the NFL. In his four seasons with the 49ers he went 44-19-1. Harbaugh lead San Francisco to two NFC championship games, as well as an appearance in Super Bowl XLVII, where he lost to his brother, John Harbaugh, and the Baltimore Ravens.
So while Saban has definitely proven himself in the NCAA, Harbaugh has proven himself in both the NCAA and NFL.
Saban’s Rich Recruiting Grounds
If I had to come up with a college basketball equivalent to Nick Saban, I would choose Duke’s Coach K. Saban and Coach K have both had a great deal of success at the collegiate level. But, unlike Coach K, Saban has won his national titles with players that were in his region, and in most cases, his state.
Courtesy: sportingnews.com
Just look at last year’s team. Derrick Henry and Jake Coker were, without a doubt, the biggest playmakers on last year’s championship team. Well, Henry was from nearby Yulee, FL and Coker was a native Alabamian, having grown up in Mobile. Also, look at the 2012 national championship team: standout quarterback, AJ McCarron, and explosive running back, TJ Yeldon, were both from the Mobile Bay area.
Unlike Harbaugh, Saban gets the job done with in-state and regional players. While Michigan and Ohio offer a good number of talented players on the gridiron, it’s nothing like the South, which is a factory for football players. That’s why Harbaugh takes his camps to places like Atlanta, Jacksonville, and Mobile. It’s simply to search out talent.
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Harbaugh and Nick Saban are two excellent football coaches. But the two will never go on an Alaskan cruise together. The SEC’s success, Saban’s legacy, Harbaugh’s success in the pros, and Harbaugh’s jealousy of Saban’s easy access to the nation’s best prospects are the reasons.
The two just don’t–and will never–like each other. It’s a good thing that three states separate the two.
