This story shows what a bunch of hypocrites Bammers are

[whiteplainstiger 0]

This story shows what a bunch of hypocrites Bammers really are. They were outraged about Franchione lying to officials at Bammer about his interest in the Texas A&M job, but they dont care that Nick $aban lied to Dolphin official about his interest in the Bammer job. I dont want to hear to another word from Bammers about Auburn fans being hypocrites because Bammers are a bunch of hypocrites themselves.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports...ce/4447673.html

Liars treated differently at Alabama

By RICHARD JUSTICE

Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

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Dennis Franchione asked his Alabama players to stay through the tough times. To be there for one another. And then he left. Poof. See ya.

He was in such a hurry to leave that he had assistant coaches say goodbye to his players. Classy, huh?

Alabama Nation was outraged. "Brutus and Benedict Arnold are mild figures in history compared to what Alabama people feel tonight for Dennis Franchione," one columnist wrote that day four years ago.

That, my friend, is a tough assessment. To this day, Coach Fran might be the most reviled man in the history of Alabama football.

Caught in a fib

Knowing how Bama fans feel about liars, I figured Nick $aban was going to get a tough reception when he got to Tuscaloosa on Wednesday.

He, too, was caught in a lie.

"I'm not going to be the Alabama coach," he said on Dec. 21.

He also fibbed to Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga. OK, he was in an extremely awkward position. He was coaching the Miami Dolphins while his representative had conversations with the Crimson Tide.

By then, he knew the NFL wasn't for him. He was 15-17 in two seasons at Miami, and the Dolphins weren't headed in the right direction. His best players were those acquired by Jimmy Johnson and Dave Wannstedt. He'd shown no particular expertise in either coaching or personnel, and his tough-guy act didn't play well with adults.

The way out

He saw Alabama as a way out, as a way to get his diminishing reputation back. He was 40-12 his last four seasons at LSU, and by the time he left, he was on the short list with Jim Tressel, Pete Carroll and one or two others in any discussion about college football's best coach.

$aban knew he could do for Alabama what he had done for LSU.

Forget the money. Of all the things this story is about, money isn't one of them. LSU would have paid him almost anything to stay. The Dolphins would have paid him more to stay.

This column isn't really about $aban, either. It's about Alabama and the reception it gave $aban on Wednesday night. It's about treating the liar coming in ($aban) differently than the liar going out (Franchione).

It's about the usual game. While the coaches run around the country collecting the next huge contact, the kids they've recruited are left to play for whoever shows up.

I love it when coaches tell you it's just about the kids. Yes, it's about the kids only if you discount the fat-cat boosters, television networks and, of course, the coaches.

Kids have no choice

$aban will tell the kids at Alabama what he told the Dolphins. He'll tell them we're all in this together. He'll talk about character and commitment and (maybe) honesty. And the kids will believe him. They have no choice.

He didn't have to lie in South Florida. When pressed on the Alabama job, he could have said he was thinking only about the next game. Or — and here's a novel concept — he could have refused to comment.

Instead, he lied. And he got mad when reporters continued to press him.

"I shouldn't even have to comment on this," he huffed at one point.

(Franchione used the word "idiotic" when asked to comment on a report he might leave Alabama for Texas A&M.)

Knowing how Crimson Tide fans feel about Franchione, I figured $aban would get the same treatment. Poor Nick. He has just made the worst mistake of his life. Losing to Bill Belichick and Eric Mangini is going to seem like a walk in the park compared with answering to those Alabama fans.

I guess it depends on whose ox is being gored. Turns out, Alabama fans were willing to let bygones be bygones. Maybe they feel badly about the way they treated Coach Fran. Or maybe standards have changed since Fran left.

Hey, here's a thought. Maybe they'd like to lure Fran's underachieving football team to Tuscaloosa for a game. Wouldn't that be the perfect way for $aban to begin his Alabama career?

Alabama gave $aban a hero's welcome. One newspaper printed a special edition. Photos of joyful fans ran in the Alabama newspapers. Looking at those pictures it was impossible to tell if a war had ended or a new Krispy Kreme had opened.

Among the various newspaper columns, I found nary a mention of the fact that the guy is a liar. Only that he would win some games.

Few people around Texas A&M seemed upset about how Franchione left Alabama. They were just happy to have someone who might make the Aggies competitive against Texas and Oklahoma. In the end, that's all that counts in college football.

Will anyone remember?

If $aban loses a couple to Auburn and Florida, someone surely will mention his lies. If he wins at Alabama as often as he won at LSU, no one will remember. Besides, he's not the first to lie about leaving.

Butch Davis lied up until the moment he left the University of Miami. He failed in the NFL, too, but just landed a sweet deal from North Carolina. At various times, almost all of them lie, and then they do their best to spin it another way.

"What I realized in the last two years is that we love college coaching because of the ability that it gives you to affect people, young people," $aban said Thursday. If that doesn't put a lump in your throat, you're one cold fish.

$aban is a terrific hire for Alabama. He'll win big. He'll put Bama back on the map. In the end, that's what's important. As for the other stuff, well, I won't tell if you won't.