Elephant Tipper

Kite reunites with Charles Kelly, who recruited him to Alabama. Auburn lands commitment from former Alabama DB Antonio Kite (247sports.com) WDE !!!

Nailed it !

Okay, thanks. That clears it up a bit more for me, unlike my coffee this morning.

Slip slidin' away, slip slidin' away, You know the nearer your destination, the more you're slip slidin' away

The point that rb was making is that NS couldn't handle the NIL, consequently, he retired. To the contrary, he seemed to handle it just fine, even better than USC. Besides, what on earth does he mean "the playing field is level" because NS has certainly recruited 5* talent better than USC, even with the advent of NIL ? Am I missing something ?

I'm not a defender of UA, I just really , really dislike rb. rb is a brazen dumb*** and a cheater. Just to remind rb, USC removed all Name, Image and Likenesses of rb from its campus since he was forced to return his Heisman because of all the $$$ he took as bribes to play for them. IF NIL were active during his time at USC, then he would have had butt kiss. Also, if his claim were true, then why would UA have recruited almost 4 times as many 5* players compared with USC since NIL inception, UA-14, USC-4 (247) ? Why would NS recruit more players over whom he has "no control" ? AND, just to add salt to the wound, in the last 10 recruiting classes UA has recruited 41 5* players, USC only 13. Next we'll be hearing that USC-w wants to join the SEC West Division. The only big draw for USC recruits these days is the weather. Now that I've finished my coffee, I'm done.

And, like I said, the only way he wouldn't be hired is if he declined the job, which he did by making public his interest in staying at Clemson. "I have so much respect for Alabama," Swinney said in 2018. "Alabama is home, it will always be a place that I love, and I've got a lot of family, and I look at it the same at Clemson. It's home, it's family. It's a very healthy rivalry. I think there's a lot of respect." Swinney addressed a rumor he could replace Saban at Alabama that same year. "I always smile," Swinney said. "I understand it. That's kind of the world we live in. I stay focused on where I am. I'm incredibly happy here at Clemson. I love where I am. It's not like I haven't dug my roots in here. It's a special, special place that we love dearly. I've had three or four opportunities to leave Clemson over the years. We still have a lot of work left to be done." Clemson president addresses Dabo Swinney as potential Alabama candidate: 'Dabo's our guy' (247sports.com)

That's my gut feeling too. Just paving the way for #2 or 3 or 4.

I talked crap to a few of my UpDyke friends and rode one especially hard, saying the same thing, that NS wouldn't be there past his first NC. I got that wrong, wrong, wrong. And this one friend still has not spoken to me since 2009. lol What you say about KD's record is true, but it's the same thing I was saying about Harsin's record, 78% win over 7 seasons. The SEC is different from the PAC. We'll see if he adjusts. Wait and see. WDE !!!

CK applied for the DC job when HF was hired. Instead, HF offered him the asst/associate DC job. CK declined and took the Colorado DC job that DS offered. I think that it was HF realizing he made a mistake in not hiring CK previously.

Evaluating new Auburn assistant Charles Kelly as a recruiter (247sports.com) Evaluating new Auburn assistant Charles Kelly as a recruiter Charles Kelly was 247Sports' No. 1 recruiter in the 2023 cycle CHRISTIAN CLEMENTE34 mins8 Auburn officially added Charles Kelly to its defensive staff on Friday, with the Colorado defensive coordinator returning to his alma mater as co-defensive coordinator and a defensive backs coach. From Ozark, Alabama, Kelly started his coaching career back at Central-Phenix City (Ala.) as an assistant coach in 1990 once his playing career at Auburn wrapped up. He got his first college coaching job as a graduate assistant at Auburn in 1993, before getting his first collegiate on-field role at Jacksonville State in 1994. Kelly has had a collection of different stops since then, including at Georgia Tech, Florida State, Alabama and most recently at Colorado. Along the way, he's becoming touted as one of the best recruiters in college football. His efforts in 2023 at Alabama and the late push once he arrived at Colorado ended up earning him the 247Sports National Recruiter of the Year award. “An honest, stand-up, good guy,” Madhouse Fitness founder Tracy Varner told 247Sports' Steve Wiltfong after Kelly was named the Recruiter of the Year. “If anybody deserves Recruiter of the Year it’s CK. Kids love him. He’s a country guy from Alabama and doesn’t pretend to be something else. Does his job, literally did his job to the day he left Alabama. All the talk had come out he was going to Colorado and he recruited for Alabama and did his job till the day he left. He never once tried to convince a kid to come out there. He did his job for Alabama. “CK tells you what program is, how you fit in it, tells you to work hard and you’ll be fine. He told our guys you’re going to get coaches hard. Doesn’t promise anything. Doesn’t sugarcoat anything.” Taking a look at some of Kelly's biggest recruiting wins over the years. NOTE: All rankings are based off the industry-generated 247Sports Composite rankings: S CALEB DOWNS — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Kelly's highest-ranked addition, Caleb Downs was part of his 2023 class at Alabama before departing to Colorado. Downs was ranked as the No. 6 player, No. 1 safety and No. 1 player from Georgia out of Mill Creek. Fellow defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson was credited as the secondary recruiter for Downs. Georgia, Notre Dame and Ohio State also received official visits. CB LEVONTA TAYLOR — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Secondary In the Class of 2016, Levonta Taylor was ranked as the No. 7 player, No. 1 player from Virginia, hailing from Ocean Lakes. Florida State was the only school to get an official visit from Taylor, with Odell Haggins listed as the primary recruiter while Kelly was the secondary recruiter. DE JOSH SWEAT — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Secondary Back in the 2015 recruiting cycle, Kelly teamed up with Sal Sunseri as the recruiters for Josh Sweat. Georgia, Ohio State, Oregon and Virginia Tech were all heavily involved and got official visits for the Virginia native who ranked as the No. 8 player and No. 1 edge in the country. CB CORMANI MCCLAIN — COLORADO Recruiter: Primary Right after taking over the job at Colorado, Kelly went to work with Deion Sanders and Kevin Mathis to try and flip Cormani McClain from Miami. McClain, who ranked as the No. 13 player and No. 1 cornerback in the class, opted not to sign in the early period and flipped to Colorado in January before signing in February. CB TARVARUS MCFADDEN — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Secondary Florida State was the lone school to get an official visit as Kelly teamed up with Bill Miller to land the No. 15 player and No. 3 cornerback in the country in Tarvarus McFadden back in the 2015 class. EDGE WILL ANDERSON — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Originally from Hampton, Georgia, it was once again Kelly and Sunseri that teamed up to get Will Anderson — this time at Alabama. Anderson ranked as the No. 17 player and No. 1 edge in the 2020 class. Georgia Tech was the only other school to get an official visit. DT JAMES SMITH — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary A name that Auburn fans are plenty familiar with from the 2023 recruiting class, James Smith was recruited by Kelly and Freddie Roach throughout the process. He was ranked as the No. 26 player and No. 2 defensive lineman, choosing the Crimson Tide over Auburn, Georgia and Florida. EDGE YHONZAE PIERRE — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Another Kelly and Roach recruitment for Alabama in the 2023 class, Yhonzae Pierre was the No. 30 player and No. 4 edge in the class. Kelly used his connection to Eufaula high school — a spot he previously coached — to get Pierre early on in the class with no other schools getting an official visit. EDGE QUA RUSSAW — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Yet again a Kelly and Roach special in 2023, Qua Russaw is the ninth and final 5-star that Kelly is credited with recruiting. Russaw was the No. 34 player and No. 5 edge in the class, also a package deal with Smith as the two considered the same schools and went on all their visits together. OT ELIJAH PRITCHETT — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Out of Carver-Columbus (Ga.), Kelly and Doug Marrone beat out the likes of Georgia, Florida State and USC for the Elijah Pritchett. In the 2022 class, Pritchett was the No. 37 player, No. 5 offensive tackle and No. 5 player from Georgia. CB STANFORD SAMUELS — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Secondary Back in the 2017 recruiting class, it was Florida State or Georgia for Stanford Samuels. The 'Noles won out with Miller and Kelly, landing the No. 38 player and No. 4 cornerback in the class and keeping him home in Florida. RB EMMANUEL HENDERSON — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Alabama got an early commitment from Emmanuel Henderson in the 2022 class with Kelly and Robert Gillespie leading the way. Henderson ranked as the No. 41 player, No. 2 running back and No. 2 player from Alabama in the class, only officially visiting Alabama. Auburn tried to stay involved in his recruitment, but was unsuccessful. WR TRAVIS RUDOLPH — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Primary Back in the 2014 class, Florida State and Kelly battled with Alabama, Auburn, Ohio State and Tennessee for Travis Rudolph. Kelly and Florida State assistant Lawrence Dawsey won out, landing the No. 43 player, No. 6 wide receiver and No. 6 player from Florida in the class. WR ISAIAH BOND — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Committed to Florida for part of the 2022 recruiting cycle, Isaiah Bond was considered an elite athlete and a defensive back by some and wide receiver by others. He's found his home in Tuscaloosa as a receiver. Bond ranked as the No. 52 player, No. 2 athlete and No. 6 player coming out of Georgia, hailing from Buford. CB TERRION ARNOLD — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Originally from Florida and also considering the Gators, Kelly dipped back into The Sunshine State and plucked away Terrion Arnold as part of his 2021 class. Arnold was ranked as the No. 51 player, No. 3 safety and No. 12 player from Florida. DL KHURTISS PERRY — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Kelly and Roach once again dipped into the Montgomery area to land Khurtiss Perry in 2022. Auburn and UCF also got official visits, but Alabama led most of the way and got him on Signing Day. Perry ranked as the No. 65 player, No. 11 defensive lineman and No. 3 player from Alabama. IOL TERRENCE FERGUSON — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary From Peach County (Ga.), Kelly and Kyle Flood were credited with the addition of Terrence Ferguson in 2021. Ferguson was the No. 58 player, No. 2 interior offensive lineman and No. 6 player from Georgia in the class. S BRIAN BRANCH — ALABAMA Recruiter: Primary Alabama, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma battled it out for Brian Branch, but it was Kelly and Karl Scott who got the Sandy Creek (Ga.) product. In the 2020 class, Branch was ranked as the No. 61 player, No. 3 safety and No. 8 player from Georgia. OLB JACOB PUGH — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Primary All the way back in the 2014 recruiting class, Florida State was the only school to get an official visit from Jacob Pugh. The Florida native ranked as the No. 69 player, No. 5 outside linebacker and No. 10 player from The Sunshine State. Kelly was the only coach listed as a recruiter for Pugh. EDGE JANARIUS ROBINSON — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Primary A 2016 class addition, Janarius Robinson looked at the Gators and the Seminoles coming out of Bay high school (Fla.). Kelly was the only coach listed as a recruiter for Robinson, who ranked as the No. 85 player, No. 7 edge and No. 14 player from Florida. S CYRUS FAGAN — FLORIDA STATE Recruiter: Secondary Florida State led most of the way for Cyrus Fagan, with Kelly and Rick Trickett recruiting him. Fagan is the 21st and final top-100 player that Kelly is credited with recruiting, ranking as the No. 97 player in the 2017 class and No. 13 safety.

Thanks for the tigerillustrated info. Here's what the President of Clemson and DS have said: Clemson president addresses Dabo Swinney as potential Alabama candidate: 'Dabo's our guy' (247sports.com)

Here's a name being floated by some REC, Glenn Schumann Glenn Schumann - Wikipedia co-DC at Jawja, 33 years old........I hope that they hire him

Kill is gone.

Clempson was ranked '15-'23: #2, #1, #4, #1, #2, #2, #14, #13, #20. DS's record is stellar. UA sees him as a work in progress and the bean counters will bring him around to embrace the changes they want. If he doesn't, then he'll be out of a job even at Clempson.....and he knows that. I prefer that it not be DS, sincerely, because he will be the one the UpDykes rally behind the easiest and quickest for the next 20 seasons. UA fans may be upset with him at first, but that will disappear like a puff of smoke when the AD says Dabo's name. I would rather have UA in disarray for years like they suffered after PBB retired than hire DS because he will carry the torch as their dynasty maker with a true connection to UA, a la PBB and Stallings. PLUS, DS is capable of pushback with the fanbase which he will need at UA. The ptb at UA know that their fanbase has to have a hc with an iron will to withstand their culture, especially because they are so whiney, even when they're doing well. LK would eventually crumble. He's meek and UA would run him off too easily. UM is a cakewalk compared to UA for LK and he knows it. Like I said above, I prefer that LK be hired. PBB, Stallings and NS each was a man of tough character and the ones who weren't didn't succeed. Of the other candidates mentioned, I don't see one similar except for DS. DS's response to the call from Tyler only whetted the ptb's appetite for hiring him because he naturally told Tyler to go jump in a lake. That ruffled only the sensitive fanbase, but the strong-willed heard him as a man worthy of respect because he demanded such. It's Dabo.

Really ? They'd have to give a reason(s) to make that claim. Did they ?

Who has a record which compares with Dabo's, for so long ?

I would be thrilled if UA had any one of those coaches because they don't understand the UpDyke culture. Whoever is their next coach will have to show their fanbase that he doesn't bow before them.

Shhhhh.......

I absolutely love it when Legend gets ramped up, even though I can't understand half of what he says. Maybe it's that prison jargon. Either Legend or I will be disappointed in the next 24 48 hours. LOL

I'll bet you a 79.8 winning percentage over 16 seasons, then raise you 2 NCs, then re-raise you #9, #11, #16, #7, #10, #3, #5, #10, #11 and #12 recruiting classes for the past decade, AND THEN, I'll go all in on the fact that DS is an UpDyke through and through such that their fanbase has said they wanted him all along to replace NS. The quibbles heard about not hiring him comes from UpDyke fans who get upset over not being worshipped, like DS has shown. The sane people who actually do the hiring would never pass up a candidate with DS's credentials. It's about resume', not personality. No potential candidate comes close to DS's record. Dabo Swinney - Wikipedia Clempson recruiting classes: 2024 Recruit Football Team Rankings (247sports.com) Plus, DS is a true ambassador for college football. He'll pick up where NS left off without missing a beat. IF DS is not hired, then it will be because he rejected the job, not because it wasn't offered to him and I won't look so samrt.

ANYONE BUT DABO ! Sound familiar ? Anyone but Chizik ? It's going to be Dabo

Not even Rece mentions DS Rece Davis Names Three College Football Coaches Alabama Should Consider (msn.com)

Buyouts among the candidates: Saban retirement: What is the buyout of Dan Lanning, other Alabama candidates? - al.com

Please be Kiffin, oh please, oh please !!!