Neyland and the Bear: Then and Now

The Tennessee and Alabama rivalry has plenty of traits to make it a storied tradition.  One characteristic which stands out is the coaches who have been involved in the rivalry.  There are not any two bigger names in College Football than Paul "Bear" Bryant and General Robert Neyland.  Now most people will agree with me on the Bear, but the Neyland part would most likely be viewed as a “homer’s” point-of-view.  However, if you look at the facts and consider Neyland never lost to the Bear, and basically taught him a lot about coaching, then he has to be one of the biggest legends in College Football.  Still not convinced?  Wait until you see the data.  Unfortunately for Neyland, he did not live long enough to see football evolve into the American iconic sport it is today;  therefore, he was never known personally by the media the way coaches are these days.   

Considering the history of the two schools, I want to look at the facts about how good these coaches were, and also compare them to two modern coaches.

The table below shows the careers of the Bear, General Neyland, Phil Fulmer, and Nick Saban currently to date.  Saban and the Bear have had HC positions at different schools, so I included a column for conference championships to reflect whichever conference they were in.  As you can see, the General finished with the highest winning percentage.  Even though Saban comes in last, he still has a very impressive record.  

Coach	Overall Winning Percentage	Years Coaching	Total Record	National Champs	Conference Champs
General Neyland	0.800	21	173-31-12	4	7
Paul Bear Bryant	0.760	38	323-85-17	6	15
Phil Fulmer	0.745	16.5	152-52	1	2
Nick Saban	0.723	16	141-53-1	2	4

Before I go any further, let me be very clear.  I despise Alabama, and I think Nick Saban is pond scum on the best of days.  Would I like him to coach my team? Absolutely!  But he is a perfect example of what is wrong with the game.  He does not care about Alabama.  I know Bama fans thinks he cares, but he doesn’t care about them or anybody else except for the guy signing his check.  He made it clear this week the Tennessee and Alabama game didn’t mean anything to him when he was asked about the possibility of the rivalry ending due to conference realignment.  The Bear played for Alabama and he hated Tennessee.  Phil Fulmer played for Tennessee and he hates Alabama.  Now we have two coaches, who are friends, with no ties to the school other than a contract.  Another point I want to make: I am NOT a Fulmerite.  I am simply sharing data to show how good these coaches are. 

So how good were these coaches?  Well, the record speaks for itself.  Let's look at one more data set.  In my lifetime, I don't know of any other coach who is clearly recognized as the very best at what he does besides Nick Saban.  Since becoming the head coach at Alabama, Alabama has been nearly unstoppable, and had it not been for Tim Tebow, Nick Saban would have another SEC and NCAA title.  You may have asked why is Phil Fulmer in the same category as these guys?  Glad you asked.  I chose about seven SEC coaches to compare to get a feel for the Bear and General Neyland.  This is when I noticed how successful all these coaches were.  If you asked anybody how good of a coach has Nick Saban been at Alabama, they would say "the best."  Did you know, as of this week, Nick Saban and Phil Fulmer have the exact same overall record?

Coach	First 5 Years	Record	National Champs	SEC Champs	Notes
General Neyland	0.895	52-2-3	0	1*	Southern Conference
Nick Saban	0.820	50-11*	1	1	Saban still has a possible 7 games left in his 5th year
Phil Fulmer	0.820	50-11*	0	1	Not included are the 4 games that Fulmer coached as the Interim HC during the 1992 Season which would have made him 54-11 (0.830)
Paul "Bear" Bryant	0.808	41-8-5	1	1	1st 5yrs at Alabama

What I find most interesting is none of the coaches accomplished, in their first five years at Bama or Tennessee, what General Neyland accomplished when he was hired at Tennessee.  In five years he lost only 2 games.  Could you imagine if he was living and coaching today?  How much money he would be worth?

When we look at these numbers, there are all kinds of intangibles which may have affected some of the records.  It is hard to say who is the best sometimes, but here is what I believe to be a fact: you are only as good today as you were in your last game if you are still coaching  .Once you have retired or have left this world, then you may get much better.  It kind of speaks to how sick sports have become.  With that said, I would warn fans today of wanting to get rid of your coach just because you are not #1.  After all, only one team can finish first, and I would not be surprised if one day Nick Saban wakes up and he is not #1 anymore.   

In closing, I just want to add this: no matter what kind of record a coach finishes with, in order for him to finish as a legend, he must embrace the tradition.  The General and the Bear are the type of men who made this sport the number one sport in America.  We need to keep this in mind when ESPN and Conference committees attempt to decide what is best for the game.  Hopefully we will have more guys to come along who love the School they work for and hate the one across the field.

Go Vols

RR