Four Spartans that must shine vs. Alabama

Smart said the actual number deciding between those two schools is even smaller. “That’s my focus and goal right now-to do the best job I can on the task that’s in front of me”. Saban – who once left Toledo at age 39 after one (excellent, 1990) season and walked across campus while saying to his quarterback, “Are you mad at me that I’m leaving?” – won a national title at LSU four seasons later. “I’ve got a special relationship with these guys”, Smart said.

Smart isn’t the first coach to take the challenge.

But he had the itch to coach and in 2000 signed on to be an assistant at Valdosta State for a mere $10,000 and access to a Nissan Altima. And so you have to have the mental toughness to be able to say, ‘Hold on. “So I got to use some of my finance (education)”. I don’t think I can!

Smart has people to count the dollars now.

Defensive coordinator Kirby Smart said players this year are self-policing better, but he acknowledges that in the moment, he did not think anything was wrong with last season’s group.

Both teams enter this contest losing one game in their campaign this season, and both teams are fighting for that ultimate prize, which is to be the next national champion in college football. It seemed inevitable he would one day leave – parlaying the success of a program he helped build into a lucrative position at the top of his profession.

Michigan State defensive tackle Joel Heath said the Spartans have to understand that just because they limit Henry once, twice or three times doesn’t mean Alabama will stop running its go-to plays. “And (I) tried to model myself after that”, Smart said.

This wasn’t the plan. Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell’s only other scholarship offer out of high school was from Bowling Green, while Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins had Western Michigan.

The most effusive praise came from Smart, who said Cook can do it all. “But he could carry it 60 times (if the coaches would let him)”. When the Colts cut him, he had some good business opportunities and he was leaning in the direction. “You get exhausted of hitting that big back”.

“For the most part, I haven’t really seen them together”, Ragland said of Pruitt and Smart.

He is the coach’s son. He exuded those rare organizational skills at an age when most kids were bouncing off walls with sugar rushes.

Having some down time and almost a month between games was a huge benefit for the star senior. “They’re always good, always going to the league”. He’s kept in touch with several of his former Beavers teammates throughout the season, and said that they’re happy for him and “just kind of living through me”. “I’m not surprised because he still has a job he has to do for us. But he passed me by in about two years”.

Coach Nick Saban and the Alabama football team took some time away from their intense Cotton Bowl preparation to meet patients at a Dallas children’s hospital, answer their interview questions and sing some impromptu karaoke. In the video, Saban’s head is Photoshopped on Darth Vader’s body, while Dantonio’s is on Luke Skywalker’s body. To prepare for this juggling act, Smart reached out to Florida coach Jim McElwain, who experienced this very same situation at Alabama four years ago. That 1999 season, Wisconsin won the Big Ten to nab the Rose Bowl bid, while Michigan State and Michigan finished tied for second with identical records of 9-2 overall and 6-2 in the league.