Looking around the practice fields for Alabama’s spring football sessions, very few coaches were on staff last season. In fact, Alabama brought in six new assistants and saw one transition to a new off-field role.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban stressed that the changes were not his decision. He had to adapt based on staff turnover, but feels he landed some great coaches for his new staff.
“I’m excited about them and I like every one of them, and to be honest with you, we’re very, very fortunate and hit a home run with the guys we were able to hire,” Saban said.
To recap, Alabama promoted Tosh Lupoi from outside linebackers coach to defensive coordinator after Jeremy Pruitt left for the Tennessee head coaching position. Mike Locksley replaced Brian Daboll as offensive coordinator. Daboll left to be the offensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills.
Karl Dunbar took an NFL job as well, with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Craig Kuligowski replaced him as defensive line coach. Derrick Ansley took a job with the Oakland Raiders, and Karl Scott replaced him as defensive back coach.
Alabama also hired Josh Gattis from Penn State to be the wide receiver coach and co-offensive coordinator. It also brought in Pete Goulding to be the co-defensive coordinator and inside linebacker coach.
Alabama’s new staff is younger than in years past. Saban admitted to ESPN that he did that on purpose. He has liked what he has seen out of the younger staff members.
“I think they’re all working hard, and they’ve got a lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of new ideas,” Saban said. “You know, I’m excited about our staff. These guys have been great, they’re really aggressive recruiters.”
Perhaps the biggest move came when the team announced that Joe Pannunzio would take over as running back coach for Burton Burns. Pannunzio coached special teams for Alabama last season. Jeff Banks replaced him in that role.
Burns has been on the staff since 2007. He was the last remaining member of Saban’s original staff.
During his tenure, Burns coached two Heisman trophy winners in Mark Ingram and Derrick Henry. Five running backs reached 1,000 yards in a season under him.
Alabama running back Damien Harris returned for his senior season. It will be his first without Burns coaching him. Harris himself has back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons.
Harris confessed that it was weird to not be under Burns for the first time in three years.
“It’s different, but every coach can impact you in different ways,” Harris said. “I think Coach Pannunzio brings things to the table that Coach Burns may not. That’s not a knock on either one, but like I said, everyone has different coaching style.”
Despite the number of new coaches, Locksley and Lupoi made the biggest transitions and both came from within the program.
Locksley previously spent three years as the head coach of New Mexico. Then, he went to Maryland and was the offensive coordinator from 2012-2015. He spent two years on Alabama’s staff before being promoted to offensive coordinator.
Harris advocated for Locksley to get the job during the offseason.
“He’s been here for a couple of years, and so obviously he’s developed a good relationship with a lot of players on this team,” Harris said. “In the offseason when we were looking for an OC, I saw that as a guy that we were all comfortable with. He’s been at different places and obviously has a great football mind.”
Lupoi came to Alabama in 2014 after spending six years in the Pac-12. He originally was an analyst, but transitioned to outside linebacker coach in 2015. In 2016, he added co-defensive coordinator to his title.
He has been crucial into developing one of the nation’s most feared pass rush. This year, linebackers Terrell Lewis, Christian Miller will become Alabama’s go-to players to get pressure on the quarterback.
“He’s still invested just as much as he did before, so I respect him for that because I know he definitely has a lot more on his plate,” Miller said. “But he’s doing a good job of stepping up and covering all the bases. And I noticed that he’s giving the attention that he gave to us to all the positions now.”
All of the new coaches will use spring to develop new relationships with the players for next season. Alabama usually loses a few coaches a year, but this year it happened in bulk. The spring season will help Alabama see what the new coaches can bring to the table.
