Recapping the history between Jimbo Fisher and Nick Saban
It has been a long-awaited matchup for the 2022 College Football season. The Texas A&M Aggies will travel to Tuscaloosa to take on the Alabama Crimson Tide. Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban called out the Aggies’ recruiting antics which eventually created a brief feud back in May. Aggies head coach Jimbo Fisher took Saban’s comments a little overboard and has since garnered a lot of attention from Alabama fans.
Alabama players, coaches, and college football fans have all had October 8 circled on their calendars. It was originally anticipated to be the best matchup during the regular season. However, the Aggies haven’t been able to hold up on their front thus far.
After two disappointing losses to Mississippi State and Appalachian State, the Aggies will be tasked with finding their identity against a daunting, Alabama team with a lot of animosities. It will be interesting to see how the players as well as coaches engage with one another during this matchup.
Roll Tide Wire will now look at the history between Coach Fisher and Coach Saban and the feud earlier this year.
2006 - Jimbo Fisher serving as assistant coach at LSU under Nick Saban
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Jimbo Fisher served as both the offensive coordinator and quarterback coach for LSU from 2000-2006. During that time, he was an assistant under Nick Saban from 2000-2004. In 2003, the Tigers won a national championship under the direction of the two of them.
2018 - Jimbo Fisher is hired as head coach at Texas A&M, set to face Nick Saban every year
(AP Photo/Sam Craft)
In December of 2017, Jimbo Fisher was hired as the next head coach at Texas A&M. As a result, the two former colleagues had to face each other yearly in the SEC West. Previously, Nick Saban had some positive things to say in regards to the Aggies hiring Fisher. “I had a great working relationship with Jimbo. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him. He did a fantastic job at Florida State — he won a national championship there (in 2013) — and he’ll do a really good job at Texas A&M,” he said.
May 18, 2022 - Saban calls out Fisher in NIL rant
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Nearly a year after the name, image, likeness (NIL) policy was introduced, Saban spoke on its impact on the game and how it could further affect major aspects of the game, such as recruiting. During his statement at a World Games event in Birmingham, Saban did something he rarely ever does: name a specific program that’s doing something he doesn’t necessarily approve of.
May 19, 2022 - Jimbo Fisher calls for press conference
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Fisher called for a press conference the day after Saban made comments regarding his program and their recruiting approach. He had quite a few shots at Saban during his press conference. “It’s despicable that a reputable head coach can come out and say this when he doesn’t get his way, or things don’t go his way. The narcissist in him doesn’t allow those things to happen.” That wasn’t the entirety but is a brief summary of Fisher’s comments.
October 3, 2022 - Fisher reinforces that he and Saban have moved on
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On Monday, Fisher made it known to the media that things were better between he and Saban. “We’re in good shape, and we’ve moved on,” he said. After that, he went on to compliment Saban as a football coach. “Nick (Saban) is a tremendous coach. People say he’s arguably one of the best ever or the best ever,” he said. It appears that the two sides have resolved the issue, but we will wait to see how things play out on Saturday evening in Bryant-Denny Stadium.
