Charlie Strong could be next coaching reclamation project for Nick Saban at Alabama
Charlie Strong visited Alabama on Friday and could be a candidate to join Nick Saban’s coaching staff in an off-field role.
Nick Saban has rehabilitated a few former head coaches and seen then get re-hired. Could Charlie Strong be the next reclamation project at Alabama?
The former USF, Texas and Louisville head coach was in Tuscaloosa on Thursday. According to The Athletic’s Aaron Suttles, if Strong joins Saban’s coaching staff, it would be in an off-the-field role. That’s something former Tennessee head coach Butch Jones has worked as since his termination by the Vols.
Strong was fired after going 4-8 in his third year at USF where his win total decreased each year he was the Bulls head coach. Prior to arriving at USF, Strong went 16-21 in three seasons at Texas and 37-15 in four seasons at Louisville. He was never able to match the level of success he had his last two years at Louisville when the Cardinals went 23-3.
Should Strong join the staff, it would mark a return to the SEC for the former Florida defensive coordinator on Urban Meyer’s staff from 2003-2009. Strong won two national championships as the defensive coordinator for the Gators and coached several players who made the NFL.
Should Charlie Strong choose to join the Alabama staff, it would be in an off-the-field analyst role. He is no longer in Tuscaloosa.
— Aaron Suttles (@AaronSuttles) February 14, 2020
He may not be suited as a head coach but Strong can coach and teach defense. He can also help on the recruiting trail with his past in Florida and Texas developing new pipelines to Tuscaloosa.
Saban helped Mike Locksley and Lane Kiffin get head coaching jobs after working for Saban. He brought in former USC head coach Steve Sarkisian who was fired after issues with alcohol.
He’s not afraid to take a chance on a coach who has had success in the past and needs to get back on track.
If I’m Strong, I join Saban’s staff and soak up everything I can from him in every meeting, practice, small conversation and game for the next year or two or three. If I’m Strong, I accept the off-field role the first year on the staff and approach the game from a new perspective. But I’d have the goal of getting back on the field coaching the defense, and ultimately being promoted to the defensive coordinator.
Once there, Strong can be in a position to be a head coach again. And this time, he’ll have the benefit of having spent however much time with Saban it ends up being to learn from his past failures all while learning from the best to ever do it.
Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding is young in his role with the Tide but he would benefit from having Strong work to complement him.
Plus, with the rate which Alabama coaching staffs are plucked and raided every year if Golding is snatched up by another school, Strong could find himself as the Alabama defensive coordinator as early as 2021.
That would be the dream scenario for Strong as he thinks about whether to join Alabama or stay on the sidelines and pursue jobs next cycle.
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