The football gods have let me down.

Damn.

Todd Grantham, who interviewed for the @AlabamaFTBL DC job, has decided to return to the NFL as an assistant with the New Orleans Saints, sources tell ESPN. Grantham was an analyst at Bama last season. He worked in the NFL for 11 seasons and was DC at three different SEC schools.

— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) February 3, 2023

I was really looking forward to seeing Alabama’s towel guy.

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Keep hope alive!

So you’re saying there’s a chance…

Sources have told @TideIllustrated that Todd Grantham is a viable candidate for Alabama's DC position if the Crimson Tide is unable to hire Jeremy Pruitt for the role. More here ⬇️

🔗 https://t.co/3TY1eWDSUy pic.twitter.com/mUyDFkCNUK

— Tony Tsoukalas (@Tony_Tsoukalas) January 30, 2023

The bonus here is that Saban is having trouble getting his preferred candidate over the finish line.  Third and Grantham would make a terrific consolation prize if he can’t, don’t you think?

“The tree has a little bit run out of branches.”

Pete Thamel says Nick Saban may have to go outside his comfort zone to hire his next defensive coordinator.

Part of the reason there isn’t a shoe-in candidate for the gig, Thamel said, is the pipeline of defensive assistants under Nick Saban has dried up, with talent getting plucked elsewhere. This leaves few names on staff in viable position to get promoted.

There is, notably, one exception, and the best part is that the moving expenses would be minimal.

“It would be interesting to see — does he go outside of his own tree? Never discount the people inside the building. Todd Grantham has been in the so-called ‘rehab program’ there.”

“And he’s coordinated a lot of good defenses in the SEC. He’s driven a lot of fans nuts along the way too but that’s the logical in-house candidate,” Thamel said.

And Nick Saban is a logical man, right?  Anyway, the folks at Roll Bama Roll are cool with Todd if that’s how Nick decides to roll.

And guess what? The Tide will still win if Grantham is the guy.

FAFO, my man.  Especially on third down.

Out of the frying pan…

Shot.

Pete Golding is leaving @AlabamaFTBL to replace Chris Partridge as defensive coordinator at @OleMissFB, sources tell ESPN. Golding has been with Nick Saban at Alabama since 2018, the last four seasons as defensive coordinator.

— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) January 13, 2023

Chaser.

If we promote Grantham from analyst to DC I will absolutely fucking riot.

— Chris Marler (@VerneFUNquist) January 13, 2023

Whaddaya say, football gods?  Works for me.  Still, I suspect Saban is trying to figure a way to bring Pruitt back, potential NCAA sanctions or not.

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UPDATE:  On the other hand, this would absolutely suck.

One name to watch at Alabama as Nick Saban tries to find the Tide's new DC is Georgia Co-DC Glenn Schumann, a rising star in the business. The 32-year-old Bama grad broke into coaching as a student assistant and then spent four years as a Alabama GA under Saban. https://t.co/sYRWJJZ8l5

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 13, 2023

Your Daily Gator’s familiarity breeds contempt.

This message board thread about Todd Grantham going to work for Nick Saban is everything you’d expect.

I’m looking forward to the future thread when these geniuses — they’ve gotta be smarter than Saban, amirite? — discover that Grantham at Alabama is a totally different animal from the Grantham at Florida.

Inevitable

Of course this is happening…

Sources: Todd Grantham considering offer to join Nick Saban's staff https://t.co/jHzTqb4xjg via @JohnDBrice1

— FootballScoop (@FootballScoop) February 25, 2022

The only surprise is that it’s taken this long to come to fruition.  One question:  does an analyst need a towel boy?

TFW your reputation precedes you

From Stewart Mandel’s Mailbag ($$):

Todd Grantham, the Florida defensive coordinator, is a Virginia Tech alum and a native of the Blacksburg area. Would he be a realistic possibility to replace Justin Fuente if the Hokies move on? — Tom W.

@Tom W. If you are a Va. Tech fan, may God have mercy on your soul if this is the guy you’re hoping to land. — Brian S., Georgia fan

I love it when mailbag readers give a better answer than I possibly could.

Go Dawgs!

This is fine, Gators.

While we’re on the subject of the Toddster, check out this vote of confidence from *** checks notes *** one of his defensive starters ($$):

“We made the adjustments we were given to make,” linebacker Mohamoud Diabate said. “It seemed like they were hitting with a similar scheme, kind of a counter run. We had whoever we had in the box so we had to play it how we played it.”

Now, postgame Zoom calls don’t allow for the kind of one-on-one reporting where players clarify or amplify their responses, but unlike previous occasions when players went out of their way to back Grantham, this felt different.

“I’m confident in my teammates and my teammates’ ability to play hard and be where they’re supposed to be,” Diabate said. “I’m confident in my teammates.”

Asked about what adjustments might’ve helped slow down LSU’s running game, Diabate offered: “Honestly, I don’t know. That’s not my decision to make. I don’t look into those things. I’m like a soldier. When the general tells me where to shoot, I shoot. I don’t really ask too many questions. That’s y’all’s job.”

Somewhere out there, Todd Monken is like

Good news for modern Dawgs

“I’ve always had a lot of confidence in Todd. Todd’s a great football coach,” Mullen said…

He sure as hell wasn’t talking about Georgia’s offensive coordinator there.

Long may they run.  Especially on third down.

TFW you didn’t use the NFL to leverage your job security

#Gators defensive coordinator Todd Grantham: 'We're going to play good this year.'

— Edgar Thompson (@osgators) February 24, 2021

Promises, promises…