Michigan statement

Sporting News, The, Dec 4, 1995 by Terry Frei

a) The team's grade-point average improves from the 2.3 of Perles' last year to at least 2.55 in the 1999-2000 academic year;

b) The Spartans stay clean in the eyes of the NCAA, at least under Saban;

c) Saban's teams win two-thirds of their games.

Of course, if he accomplishes a) and b), but not c), then chances are Saban won't be the coach in 2000.

The Saturday after the announcement, Cleveland beats the Cowboys in Texas Stadium. Saban travels that night to East Lansing and meets with the MSU players. The room is silent, and players joke later that they didn't want to exhale too loudly lest they get marked as troublemakers.

Saban doesn't smile.

Not once.

"This is the way we're going to do things around here ... my way," Saban tells the players.

Saban still is coaching two starting Browns linebackers who played at MSU. "I love Michigan State," Saban says, "Carl Banks loves Michigan State, Bill Johnson loves Michigan State, and I sit in a room with them every day. If one of you guys does something to embarrass yourself and this program, it hurts every one of us. But you hurt yourself worse, and you're responsible for your actions."

If the players aren't interested in getting a legitimate education? "We probably will have some problems down the road," Saban says.

December 14

The Browns have two regular-season games remaining, the first a Central Division showdown at Pittsburgh. On Wednesday morning, Saban is driving to the Browns' Berea, O., headquarters in the dark. He dials area code 517 on his car phone. The ringing awakens Gary Van Dam, one of the holdovers from the Perles staff. Before he can wipe the sleep from his eyes, Van Dam hears his new boss rattle off what he wants done in East Lansing that day.

It is 6:15.

"I'm basically the head coach at Michigan State when I'm in my car," Saban says.

Saban coordinated the academic program during his stint under Perles, and he is unapologetic about believing in giving academically suspect players chances to prove themselves in school -- but also not skating them through. His first financial request of the Downtown Coaches Club, MSU's football booster club, is for the club to buy five desktop computers for the players. "I've recruited too many guys who have been willing to make the commitment to improve the quality of their life," Saban says, "and they got the education. Right now we're saying in the NCAA that those guys shouldn't get the opportunity, and I don't necessarily agree with that."

January 7

Saban's Cleveland defense is run over by the Steelers in a Saturday playoff blowout. Saban is in East Lansing that night, eating with 15 high-school prospects. On Monday, he returns to Cleveland, cleans out his locker at the Browns' offices and speaks frankly with Belichick about the defense. He is in East Lansing the next day.

He finally is Michigan State's head coach. Full-time.

Until the February 1 letter of intent signing date, Saban feels like "a hot potato" tossed around by his staff. One day, he visits six prospects in their homes -- five in Detroit and one in Toledo.