Nick Saban had some solid assistant coaches with the Alabama Crimson Tide. Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss Rebels), Kirby Smart (Georgia Bulldogs), Steve Sarkisian (Texas Longhorns), Mario Cristobal (Miami Hurricanes), and Billy Napier (Florida Gators) were just some of the assistants who learned under Saban. While Saban’s assistant coaches were very talented, the Alabama head coach still had a record of 28-3 against them.
Saban appeared on a recent edition of “The Pat McAfee Show” to discuss some upcoming college football games. The show was live from Dublin, Ireland, ahead of the Week 0 game between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and Florida State Seminoles.
The Alabama head coach weighed in on programs like Texas and the Oregon Ducks. He also gave his opinion on head coach Dan Lanning, who was a graduate assistant at Alabama in 2015. Saban revealed he wanted to hire Lanning for another position before the Oregon coach went to Georgia.
“I think both of those programs are, you know, Dan Lanning’s a really good coach,” Saban said. “He was a GA for us. I actually wanted to hire him. …When all these guys started coaching, like Kirby, Pruitt, Billy Napier, and Mike Locksley, They all hired them before I could hire them, so it all kinda blew up on me.”
Lanning is one of the few former Saban assistants who did not get to play the Alabama head coach. Oregon and Alabama have never met in college football.
Since Lanning’s first season with Oregon in 2022, He has posted a solid coaching record of 22-5. Last season, the Ducks were on the verge of reaching the College Football Playoff but finished the year at 12-2.
