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Ranking the SEC football offensive coordinators, offseason sees 10 changes
System
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Ranking the SEC football offensive coordinators, offseason sees 10 changes
The top three offenses in the SEC will be undergoing makeovers this offseason, including that of two-time defending national champ.
Comments
Interesting article Mike and I’m still scratching my head on Saban’s choice for OC. Tommy Rees was good, but not overly impressive at ND. You are probably right that Brian Kelly wanting Rees at LSU could be a hint that he has potential. I agree with your comment in the 2nd paragraph that Bama, UT and our Dawgs all start the season with new OCs and QBs, but Joe Milton is (kinda sorta) a veteran. Next year will be his 6th season and he threw for almost 1000 yards last year for the Vols. He also had a very good Orange Bowl game and smacked Clemson big time. Go Dawgs!!!
" Rees is the ninth OC under Saban in 17 years and sixth since Kirby Smart left Tuscaloosa in 2015. "
That is simply amazing. Despite the revolving door of assistant coaches, Saban keeps the Tide churning forward every year.
@MontanaDawg
This is what I have gathered from reading the Bama boards. Some background: the idea that a head coach rules his program with an iron fist is fiction. Instead a high profile coordinator with a proven track record is both going to have the confidence to press his own ideas AND the credibility to force the head coach to listen to them, especially when the HC's expertise is on the other side of the ball. This is what happened with Saban's OCs over the years, with the conflict between Saban and Kiffin being particularly notable. Now this is what is supposed to happen: a championship staff made of future/former head coaches with good ideas that often conflict with each other.
But Saban turns 72 this year and is on a rebuilt hip. He doesn't have the energy anymore to do combat with his assistants. So Saban needs coordinators who A. will do what they are told and B. be good at it. And Tommy Rees is that guy. On one hand, Rees is 30 and lightly regarded. He doesn't have the standing at this point in his career to do anything but be a good soldier and take his marching orders. On the other hand, Rees has the background to be good at precisely that. An assistant in the NFL, a QB coach and OC with playcalling responsibility at ND. Even better: his job as coordinator was to implement Brian Kelly's system and his job as playcaller was to execute Kelly's strategy. He is regarded as having done an excellent job at both, meaning that any shortcomings were on the part of Kelly's system and strategy. As these same shortcomings preceded Rees' tenure as OC, this is likely the case.
At Alabama, Rees will have the same job. As coordinator Rees will implement Saban's offensive playbook (Saban hired Lane Kiffin to create it, and Saban has since augmented it with ideas from Kiffin's successors). And Rees will call plays, but according to Saban's philosophy, strategy and in some cases gameplanning.
Will it work? Who knows. It can work like gangbusters with Saban winning 2 national titles and leading to his retiring, having accomplished all that he can, within 3-5 years. Or it can blow up in his face, leading to his retiring, having accomplished all that he can, within 3-5 years. Either way, Lane Kiffin will be Saban's replacement in Tuscaloosa. And Marcus Freeman will have either succeeded at Notre Dame and gone on to become an NFL head coach or gotten fired, making former ND QB and OC Rees - with SEC experience on his resume - his most logical successor in either case.