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Jan 9, 2017; Tampa, FL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban signals one during warm-ups prior to the game against the Clemson Tigers in the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

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Alabama Football has 4 linebackers who turned down freshman play time and full scholarships to sit on Bamas bench behind first round draft picks. Bamas only 1,000+ yard rusher in 2016 may be the third best back who suits up for the Tide in 2017. Nick Sabans 7th consecutive number one ranked recruiting classfeatures 4 of the top 12 receivers in the country according to a report by Matt Zenith for Al.com. Bama was the only team to sign more than one.

and we signed FOUR.

Alabama Football put a gray shirt on 4 star Jarez Parks and new offensive analyst Chris Weinke because Saban solves problems off the field the same way he solves problems on it. Recruiting. Nick Saban is playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers.

Football Oversight Committee Chairman and Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby wants to put the King of college football in check. He plans to do that by placing a cap on the number of staffers a team can hire.Alabama Football currently has 97.

This is what Nick Saban himself had to say about it:

Alabama Football head coach Nick Saban in post game presser as reported by al.com.

College football has the fewest coaches per player of any sport in college. Staffers arent coaches. They dont interact with players. They break down film, analyze data, streamline process, run down information, schedule, double check, and handle tasks that eat up a coachs day.

So why would Bob Bowlsby target football staff size as opposed to gymnastics, baseball or tennis? Thats easy. Football pays the bills and the Big 12 is behind on rent.

According to a report by Heather Dinich for ESPN, Bowlsby hired some extra staffers of his own to figure out why The Big 12 cant make the playoffs. They added a championship game. It didnt help in 2016 when 11-2 Big 12 champion Oklahoma was passed over for a playoff spot.

Bowlsby responded by asking for clarification from the college football playoff committee as to why Washington, with a weak out of conference schedule and Ohio State, who didnt win their conference got in ahead of a Big 12 team according the Heather Dinichs report for ESPN.For clarification, the Sooners lost to Ohio State 45-24 at home in 2016. Oklahoma is still the only team from the Big 12 to ever make it to the big show and they werent on stage long after losing to Clemson 37-17 in 2015.

The bottom line here is that the commissioner of a conference with 10 teams named the Big 12 wants to dictate the right number of staff for the rest of college football. He didnt always feel that way though. In 2013 Bob was all but advocating for succession from the NCAA in response to frustration that the member organization no longer represented the best interests of his conference.

Source: Bob Bowlsby as reported by Chuck Carlton for SportsDay

Of course, that was before Bowlsby was appointed to his position as Chairman of the Football Oversight Committee in 2015. The same Bob who was whispering revolution in 2013 is talking about full blown socialism in 2017.

Bowlsby justified his slide to the left by saying that limiting staff size would level the playing as smaller FBS programs cant spend the kind of money that Power 5 programs pay according to a report by Creg Stephenson for al.com.In contrast, Nick Saban said at his April 14th presser as reported by al.com that the amount of money Alabama pays staffers is so little that its almost criminal.

Bowlsby is grandstanding as a champion for FBS programs in 2017 but in 2013 he said, in response to his frustration at not being able affect substantive Division I change because of smaller schools that picked apart proposed legislation that:

Division I is too cluttered. Meaningful legislation gets stalled or picked apart. And a one-size-fits-all model is unworkable when Division I athletic department budgets range from $3 million to $160 million. Not all sports are March Madness, where Florida Gulf Coast can create compelling story lines as Kentucky.

Source: Bob Bowlsby as reported by Chuck Carlton for SportsDay

2013 and 2017 Bob would seem to have little in common past their overly diplomatic prose until you scratch the surface of their flaky facade and realize they are the same person with the same goals. They are both looking our for their own in the Big 12.

In 2013 that meant putting FBS schools to the sword. In 2017 it means using them as a shield to guard against backlash. 2013 and 2017 Bob both want to see Big 12 schools at the top. The problem is that teams out west cant reach the bar Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, Dabo Swinney and Jimbo Fisher have raised so Bowlsby has come up with a solution.

Lower it. Legislate it to a maximum height. Make sure its low enough that Big 12 coaches can reach it from the bottom half of the top 20 in recruiting. Add early signing days to keep big programs like Alabama Football away from recruits committed to smaller teams. Eliminate camps that big programs conduct away from their school. Restrict head coach recruiting visits.

These kinds of rules are nothing new to college football but the reason for them now is Nick Saban.In an age of scholarship limits, restrictions and more parity of play than has ever been seen in college football, Saban has found a way to outwork the rules. He has set a standard for hustle that seven consecutive number one recruiting classes echoes across the entire landscape of college football.

Bowlsby and the rest of his red comrades dont like the sound of it.

Continued here:
Alabama Football: NCAA Flirts with Socialism While Eyeballing Bama - BamaHammer