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| There's no reason that successful coaches like Saban and Meyer should leave college for the NFL. |
For two straight years now Chip Kelly has flirted with the NFL, interviewing with big league clubs only to decide to turn around and head back to college football. Kelly's indecision over the past two years has prompted a question out of me: Why are college football legacies so over looked in favor of getting a NFL coaching job?
Who's the last truly "great" college coach that we've seen retire as a college coach? Jim Tressel (I know he was pushed out because of the violations, but still)? Well he only won title. Lloyd Carr? Again, only one National Title. Bobby Bowden? I guess sort of, he won two titles, but he faded down the stretch. We'll have to go with Tom Osborne who won three in four years with Nebraska in the mid-90s. That was more than 15 years ago. So why do we see so many coaches lately just easily give up their chance for college immortality?
A couple of names come to mind when you think of guys that just got up and left for the NFL amid a fantastic college run. First is Pete Carroll who coached USC from 2001-'09. In that span he had some of the filthiest college players in Reggie Bush, Matt Leinart, Troy Polamalu and Mike Williams winning himself a BCS National Title, appearing in another and winning back-to-back AP National Championships. The guy had built a dynasty right before his eyes, and instead of going down with the ship when NCAA violations emerged, he bolted for the NFL where he has a done a mediocre job with the Seahawks. Surely he could've gotten the program back to a National Title even with a few postseason-less seasons. Another name that comes to mind here is Butch Davis. His Miami teams in '99 and '00 had shown us that the U was back to it's dominant ways that were in the 1980s. Davis then missed out on his 2001 National Championship by bolting for the Cleveland Browns, where he had four mediocre years and only one playoff appearance. Again, Davis was primed to become a legend with those Hurricanes teams that followed afterwards. Remember they won 34 straight games from when Davis coached in 2000 all the way to the middle of the 2002 season in which Larry Coker coached.
Now with the likes of Chip Kelly and Nick Saban creating the foundations of their own amazing coaching legacies, there really is no reason for them to leave. Saban, of course, is well on his way to becoming one of the greatest coaches to ever roam a college sideline. Chip Kelly has won back-to-back BCS bowls and has established one of the most exciting and impressive programs in college football. You could even add Urban Meyer into the mix once his Buckeyes get their postseason eligibility back; he's won two National Championships and led Ohio State to a perfect record this year in his first campaign in Columbus.
Yes, Saban might have left the college ranks for the NFL, but he realized it was a mistake two quick years later. Once he returned to NCAA football, he immediately grabbed himself three more National Championships in only five years. Right now he is by far the best college coach in FBS and as he rightly said, college is where he belongs. He'll probably get paid more at 'Bama than he would in the NFL and he knows he's coming back with one of best groups of players next year, so he might be contending for his third straight title. Why would you forego a chance to match Bear Bryant to coach the Cleveland Browns? Or in Chip Kelly's case, why would you give up a chance to bring home Autzen's first National Title? How about Urban Meyer, who certainly has an opportunity to catch Saban at some point? There's just no reason for these successful head coaches to leave their perch in college for a what-if scenario in the NFL.
Coaches need to realize that America loves football, whether it's college or the NFL it does not matter. Is going out and winning one Super Bowl better than winning three National Championships? I just don't think so, especially considering the fact that college football is going to become even more exciting with the addition of a playoffs.
When you have a chance to make it Nick Saban Field at Bear Bryant Stadium, you have to do it.
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