by Kyle Golik
#5 Bill O’Brien
O’Brien is no stranger to replacing a legend. He followed Joe Paterno at Penn State before jumping to the NFL with the Houston Texans.
It was GM Bill O’Brien who cost Head Coach Bill O’Brien his job in Houston. That led to him landing at the Saban Coaching Rehabilitation Center in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Despite the success, his two seasons as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach with the Crimson Tide are very divisive among the fanbase.
On one hand, O’Brien was instrumental in Heisman Trophy quarterback Bryce Young’s development and coordinating an offense that finished back-to-back in the Top 6 nationally in scoring.
On the other, it was big moments that O’Brien’s offense whiffed on. Many felt the Crimson Tide weren’t physical enough in the trenches for a good ground game in critical moments.
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If Alabama were to announce that Saban’s successor was Bill O’Brien, the hell freezes-over effect would mean every major head coach candidate and even some high-profile coordinators declined the job.
#4 Bill Belichick
Belichick never coached the college game, and if he were to express interest in the position, it wouldn’t be the first time an NFL coaching immortal jumped or attempted to jump back to the college game.
Bill Walsh, after winning three Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers, retired abruptly. A few years later, Walsh had the itch to coach again and returned to coach Stanford.
Vince Lombardi, after his historic run with the Green Bay Packers, contemplated becoming Fordham’s head coach.
Belichick would forego any chance of passing Don Shula’s all-time wins record to become the coach of Alabama to try to become the fourth head coach, joining Barry Switzer, Jimmy Johnson, and Pete Carroll to win an FBS National Championship and a Super Bowl.
If Alabama were to announce that Saban’s successor was Bill Belichick, the shockwaves around the football world would be immense. It would be insane that Belichick would choose Alabama over potential NFL gigs to pass Shula. The other aspect is Belichick will be 72 in April. How much gas does he have left to deal with all the craziness of college football?
#3 Deion Sanders
Nick Saban’s AFLAC commercial partner may have caught wind that Saban was contemplating retirement. We all know Saban was debating it personally and discussing with Miss Terry about continuing coaching which led to his abrupt decision. However, that doesn’t mean, through discourse, that Sanders couldn’t pick up on Saban wearing the full weight of the grind that his days would be numbered.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVOjKd5GeMg
It would be a marriage of college football’s most visible figure in Sanders and its most successful program in Alabama.
If Alabama were to announce that Saban’s successor was Deion Sanders, the hell freezes-over moment would be the question of whether this hire was all for attention. Sanders may be the sport’s most visible and charismatic figure, but in his own development as a head coach, he lacks the maturity needed to be able to handle a job like Alabama. His antics at Colorado work to an extent there, but at Alabama, you are expected to be the best because Alabama doesn’t look up to anybody in college football.
#2 Jimbo Fisher
Much like with Bill O’Brien, I don’t feel Jimbo Fisher is high on Alabama’s list, considering his lack of success at Texas A&M.
Fisher spent six seasons as Nick Saban’s offensive coordinator at LSU. He gets “The Process,” as he was integral in Saban’s securing his first national championship in 2003.
It looked like early on at Florida State that Fisher was the rightful successor to Bobby Bowden as he guided the Seminoles to six New Year’s Six bowl appearances, three ACC Championships, and the 2013 BCS National Championship.
However, the wheels fell off in Tallahassee, and Fisher ran to College Station and tried to make Texas A&M relevant – and we all know how that one ended.
If Alabama were to announce that Saban’s successor was Jimbo Fisher, the hell freezes-over moment would be at his press conference. Someone would have to ask the question, “So, how does it feel to replace “God?” referencing the now infamous temper tantrum Fisher had when he had his dust-up with Nick Saban.
Alabama would be going backward with this hire. It seemed Fisher wasn’t the same masterful tactician at Texas A&M, and his in-game adjustments were non-existent. Fisher would be seeking another record breaking buyout from Alabama before he would ever win a national championship in Tuscaloosa.
#1 Urban Meyer
As Paul Simon wrote in “The Sound of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel, “Hello darkness, my old friend,” it would be the rest of the college football world welcoming Alabama to the club of “We Want Urban Meyer!”
I wouldn’t blame them, considering Meyer’s .853 winning percentage trails only Knute Rockne and Frank Leahy all-time amongst Power 4 programs and Notre Dame.
Meyer turns 60 this year. On the age front, he is getting up there, but he is still young enough to maintain the Alabama dynasty Saban created.
Unlike other places that cried for Meyer, I don’t expect Alabama fans to be clamoring for him. If, for some reason, Alabama was able to lure him from the FOX booth, that would be the ultimate hell-freezes-over moment.
The difference between when Ohio State got Meyer after his year at ESPN and now is that Meyer was clearly not done coaching, and the Ohio State job meant everything to him. If he were to take on the Alabama job, if the expectations weren’t high enough of Meyer taking a job, compound it with the fact he would be at Alabama and replacing Saban, his only true rival as a coach.
The Meyer hire would send shockwaves through, and the temperature of hell would be quite brisk.
