No. 2 Alabama (4-0, 4-0 SEC) will play at Tennessee (2-2, 2-2 SEC) Saturday in Week 5 of a 10-game SEC-only schedule.
The Crimson Tide enter the contest following a 41-24 victory over Georgia.
Alabama’s Nick Saban is aiming for his seventh national championship as a head coach. He won one national championship at LSU (2003) and five with the Crimson Tide (2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017).
Josh Palet played quarterback for Saban at Alabama from 2015-16. Ahead of Saturday’s matchup, he joined the show “Tennessee Two-A-Days” to discuss his time with Saban, Steve Sarkisian and Jeremy Pruitt at Alabama.
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A topic of discussion this week has been Saban’s replacement as head coach when he decides to retire.
Former Alabama wide receiver (1990-92) and assistant (1993-2000) Dabo Swinney is ideally the Crimson Tide’s first call to replace Saban. He has won two national championships as Clemson’s head coach (2016, 2018) and could ultimately remain with the Tigers and the program that he has built.
Sarkisian, who currently serves as Alabama’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, was previously in the same position for the Crimson Tide. He was offensive coordinator for one game in 2016 after being an analyst that season.
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After winning the SEC championship in 2016, and two days following defeating Washington in the College Football Playoff semifinal, Saban relieved Lane Kiffin of his offensive coordinator duties as he previously accepted the head coaching position at Florida Atlantic.
With one week to prepare for a national championship game against Clemson, Sarkisian was promoted to offensive coordinator for the title game. Alabama lost to Clemson, 35-31, in the contest.
“That was a crazy situation,” Palet said. “Everyone knows Lane Kiffin was hired at FAU, and we were still in the middle of our season. We had a coach here who is calling plays, but is recruiting for another school. We had Washington coming up, I thought he did a good job, but we only scored 24 points against a Pac-12 team that we put up 52 against USC earlier in the year.
“So our offense was disappointed that we did not put up more points. I think Saban said you go to FAU and do your recruitment process and we have Sarkisian right here, who is really similar to Lane Kiffin. They have almost the same exact play calls. I thought it was a good transition. I thought he did a fantastic job. It was not his fault that we lost to Clemson.”
Palet mentioned that Sarkisian fields “an extremely fun offense to watch” and one that “gives the ball to play-makers.”
“Sarkisian is very creative and a guy that you do not know what is coming next,” Palet said.
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Pruitt, now in his third season as Tennessee’s head coach, was Alabama’s defensive coordinator in 2016 when Palet was with the Crimson Tide.
“He is a great person,” Palet said of Pruitt. “A big reason Tennessee has so many great recruits is because he is such a good person. You can tell that when you talk to him. Jeremy Pruitt was so loved by everybody – the players loved him.
“Players (at Tennessee) are buying in because the coach is genuinely invested in you as a person. That is why Nick Saban is so successful because he actually cares about his players. Jeremy Pruitt is the same way – you just want to play harder. I think that is why Tennessee is going to be on the rise for awhile and they should keep Jeremy Pruitt as long as they can.”
The time will come soon enough for when Saban decides to retire from the sport he has been able to compete at a championship level annually since arriving at Alabama in 2007.
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Coaches that served as assistants for Saban will be at the forefront of replacing him if Swinney decides to remain at Clemson.
Sarkiaisn, Pruitt and Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal will be looked upon to fill Saban’s head coaching position. Cristobal served as Alabama’s assistant head coach, recruiting coordinator and oversaw the Crimson Tide’s offensive line from 2013-16 when Palet was in the program.
Palet views Sarkisian as the leading candidate ahead of Pruitt and Cristobal if Swinney elects to remain at Clemson.
“If Sarkisian is still the offensive coordinator, it has to be him if Dabo stays at Clemson,” Palet said of who is likely to replace Saban. “By then Sark will have built relationships through recruiting, coaching and winning at Alabama. I believe he is the obvious choice if he is still in the program.”
The entire show with Palet can be listened to here or below.