Alabama still searching for coaching stability
Saturday December 07, 2002By JOHN ZENOR
AP Sports Writer
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) Bear Bryant built one of the nation's premier college football programs at Alabama. He also established a standard that's been tough for other coaches to meet.
``I think he created excellence,'' says Danny Ford, who played and coached under Bryant, ``and there's nothing wrong with that.''
Coach Dennis Franchione's abrupt departure for Texas A&M this week left Alabama searching for its sixth head coach since Bryant retired after the 1981 season.
Franchione's successor will have to deal with NCAA sanctions and the always lofty expectations of the team's fans.
Those thought to be candidates to take over the Crimson Tide include former San Diego Chargers and Oregon State coach Mike Riley (who played at Alabama) and Franchione's defensive coordinator, Carl Torbush. Pittsburgh coach Walt Harris and Arkansas coach Houston Nutt also have been mentioned.
Torbush, fired after three seasons as North Carolina's head coach, said he wants the job. Riley told the New Orleans Times-Picayune he would be interested.
Athletic director Mal Moore has declined interview requests since announcing Franchione's departure Thursday.
Even after Bryant left Alabama with five AP national titles (1961, 1964, 1965, 1978, 1979) and a .780 career winning percentage, success seldom has been a problem for the Crimson Tide.
Four of Bryant's five successors have left after 10-win seasons. Three won Southeastern Conference titles. One, Gene Stallings, won a national championship in 1992.
Stallings' predecessor, Bill Curry, still thinks plenty of coaches would jump at an opportunity to come to the Capstone.
``Alabama will hire a very good football coach, because a lot of people would love to come there,'' said Curry, now an ESPN analyst.
``Walking that sideline with a crimson shirt on is a great privilege because the football tradition is second to none.''
But will Alabama manage to hang on to its next hire? Franchione's two-year tenure was the shortest of any Alabama coach since Guy Lowman stuck around only one year in 1910.
Franchione said NCAA sanctions played ``a major role'' in his decision.
Ray Perkins left for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1989, and Curry bolted for Kentucky in 1989. Stallings, the most successful of Bryant's heirs, stepped down in 1996 after seven seasons. All three departed after 10-win seasons.
Then came Mike DuBose, who twice had losing records in four seasons but also won a league title in 1999 before getting fired the next season.
Alabama seemed to have found the answer in Franchione, who led the team to four straight victories to end the 2001 season and to a 10-3 mark in his second year.
The next hiring could be the most vital of the post-Bryant era.
``With probation and the scholarship limitations, if they make the wrong choice here, I think it could really be a step back for a good many years,'' said Ford, who coached Clemson to the 1981 national title. ``They've got a pretty good road to climb here.''
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