There has been a longstanding joke that during Nick Saban’s dynasty in Tuscaloosa, Coach Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide have been playing chess while everybody else is playing checkers.
On Thursday, even more evidence of that theory came to life with the report that Saban has hired former Michigan assistant George Helow to the Alabama coaching staff ahead of the Tide’s College Football Playoff semifinal matchup against the Wolverines.
Helow spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons with the Wolverines in Ann Arbor before the two parties mutually split in February of 2023.
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic was the first to report the news.
SOURCES: Former Michigan LB coach George Helow has been hired by Alabama to the Crimson Tide staff. Helow spent the 2021-2022 seasons on the UM staff. Bama faces Michigan in the Rose Bowl, Jan. 1. https://t.co/QuWeZFjuIhhttps://t.co/QuWeZFjuIh
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) December 14, 2023
Helow has experience in Tuscaloosa as well, serving as a defensive intern in 2012. Helow’s new role in Tuscaloosa has yet to be announced publicly.
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