Thanks for having my back, coach.

Justin Taylor wasn’t the only kid who got bad news from Alabama yesterday.  Darius Philon, who verbally committed to the Tide last September and wore a UA hat to his Signing Day ceremony, was told at the last minute that the only way he could count on going to Tuscaloosa would be as a grayshirt.

That’s tough, but at least Philon still had other options (he later signed with Arkansas).  But there’s a truly sorry part to this story and that involves Philon’s high school coach.  Read this (h/t Jaybird) and shake your head:

… His coach, Kerry Stevenson, who should have been outraged over one of his players being jerked around like that, instead said he wasn’t sure when the offer was pulled and blamed the SEC’s new rule for putting UA in “a bind.”

Now that’s supporting your player.

You wonder how coaches like Saban are able to continue to sell their programs to recruits despite the negative publicity which accompanies aggressive roster management?  A high school coach offended by Saban’s inconvenience – there’s one answer for you.

25 Comments

Filed under Nick Saban Rules, Recruiting

25 responses to “Thanks for having my back, coach.

  1. JT

    Good lord. Unbelievable.

    Like

    • JayBird

      You ought to watch the video of this kid’s presser..He looked like he’d just been told his best friend had been doing his girlfriend for the last 6 months.

      Like

  2. rusty

    No one in Bammerland cares….

    Like

  3. heyberto

    Sounds like this coach could have been given some vague kind of promise from Saban.. I don’t know maybe we’ll need a coach someday, or a graduate assistant, or a weight room attendant.

    Like

  4. Booger Presley

    Wow, people eat his crap up. ESPN is at the head of the line.

    Like

  5. Bevo

    Wow. Sorry is almost an understatement.

    Like

  6. Hogbody Spradlin

    The king can do no wrong. Droit du seigneur, in the butt.

    I guess Saban had Luca Brasi tell Coach Stevenson it might affect his season ticket privileges if he criticized the program. What a spineless, mealy mouthed, limp dicked, no character, weaselly, fork tongued, two faced thing to do.

    Like

    • Hogbody Spradlin

      And let’s watch those ironclad Auburn 4 year scholarships to see how that works out. Everybody has lawyers.

      Like

      • Chopper Reid

        For the Record…Auburn offering 4 year Scholarships was a Cash Flow move…it wasn’t to differentiate the Chiz from Saban. More risk for Auburn = Smaller Signing Bonuses. The money saved will be spent on new trees and more towels for Trooper Taylor–apparently, he swung all the corners off of last year’s batch.

        Like

    • Cojones

      Yeah, but how do you really feel about him, Hogbody? The guy is racially mixed and got the bad end of both genes pools; sickle cell and a small dick.

      Like

  7. JaxDawg

    Well, when the Bama program comes back down to earth (and it will, always does), the thundering crash will be momentous. It will certainly be a site to see and hear.

    Like

  8. charlottedawg

    Sad thing is so long as he keeps winning Saban will have no shortage of elite players begging him to be one of the 27 or so guys he signs every year no matter how notorious his roster management practices.

    Like

  9. Spike

    Saban doesn’t have time for this shit.

    Like

  10. You’d think the high school coach would be more concerned with the opinions parents of the other kids under his care than a college’s. Because if my kid was there I’d have some severe reservations about this coach right now.

    Like

  11. South FL Dawg

    Sad that even HS coaches are infatuated with Saban.

    Like

  12. Dog in Fla

    “We all assume certain risks in whatever we do,” the Harry Whittington of high school football coaches said. “Whatever activities we pursue and regardless of how experienced, careful and dedicated we are, accidents do and will happen…. I am deeply sorry for all that Vice President Saban and his Alabama family have had to go through this week.”

    Like

  13. Irishdawg

    I knew they based that coach in “Johnny B Goode” on someone real.

    Seriously, for all his coaching genius, Saban is one cold son of a bitch.

    Like

    • Cojones

      That’s because he treats a fun sport as a business. A stiff dick has no conscience and you probably know how stiff it gets when you are making big money.

      Like

  14. JayBird

    There is someone on this blog comment section that is obviously not infatuated with Nick Saban’s “prowess”,.. but something else entirely……….

    Like

  15. Always Someone Else's Fault

    I would love to hear from the parents/guardians on this one. I really don’t care what the coach thinks one way or the other.

    Purdue did this to a kid out of Tampa last year and got banned by the coach because it just came out of nowhere the week before signing day. I wonder what sort of expectations people set with recruits – do they talk about conditionals, the impact of injuries, or things like that?

    You also would think Auburn would jump into this, especially with the multi-year deal thing they were trying to publicize. Perfect PR opportunity for them if they felt the kid could contribute.

    Like

  16. texasdawg

    “S-E-C! S-E-C!”

    Be proud, folks. Be proud.

    Like

  17. Derek

    This is my favorite quote:

    “I’m pretty sure he’s wondering, ‘Why me?'” Stevenson said of Philon, who was No. 119 on the Press-Register’s Super Southeast 120. “On a number of occasions, (Alabama) stated how much they don’t want to lose him.”

    So saban tells this kid:

    Yeah we ARE fucking you!  We are fucking the SHIT out of you!  But ya know, I love you.  

    I think Trey Parker created a character that evil.  He was so evil he made Satan his bitch.

    Like