Sorry about this question but 1 of my co-workers said that he got fired by Bama before getting the UT job because he and Saban had difference of opinion on how the offense should be ran. I'm out of state so I haven't heard that news. Thanks in advance for the replies.
There was no official firing, and Saban doesn't seem the type to allow someone to save face when he is going to get rid of an assistant. I know some will say that being waterboy at Texas is more prestigious than head coach at any other university, but it seems odd to me that he went from OC at a big name program to RB coach here. I'm guessing he was very unhappy there and Mack was happy to add him to the staff.
pretty much the confirmed truth is that Applewhite didnt have much freedom as an OC, and the OL coach and co-OC Pendry called the offense bc he and Saban go way back and both favor a more conservative run first offense. he was going to be stripped of his OC title and named the QBs coach, so why not come to Texas and get an actual co-OC gig in a place where you are practically royalty?
If Applewhite was fired, Saban would have already put out feelers for the new OC instead of having to start a search from scratch. Applewhite took the job at UT 2 weeks ago and Bama still doesn't have a replacement. That's really all the proof you need to show that your aggy cooworker is full of crap.
I heard what Mike heard from a client who is a fat cigar at Bama. Their story was that Saban was unhappy with the O, had been down on it all year. He put his staff together in a hurry and the only reason he put Major in as OC was for recruiting in Texas, which had not really panned out to the extent hoped. They say Major was going to be demoted to position coach, got the message and jumped to Texas. Hence the sudden interest on MA's part which had not been the case previously, as has been noted on several pay sites. Removing my orange glasses for a very brief moment, I must say, while this take is obviously self serving and face saving for an Alabama booster to pass along, it all sounds entirely plausable. Alabama is still a serious football institution, and no one goes from OC there to position coach elsewhere (even his alma mater) without either being pushed or having assurances of things to come. No matter what the story is, I'm thrilled he's back. It either puts pressure on our OC to perform, or signals a transition is in place already. Either way, I'm happy.
as with everything, i'm sure it's somewhere in the middle. but lets say he wasn't being releived of his play calling duties, just asked to receive more input from pendry....... still, why wouldn't you take a minor paycut to go back to your alma mater, and the ONLY place you'd be more beloved and also b e able work less than 20 hours a day. kinda sounds like a no brainer to me
most of what i've heard is from John McClain, the writer from the Houston Chronicle. he is VERY knowledgeable and usually has the correct information on football, pro especially, but college as well. he has a lot of friends and people he respects very much that went to Baylor, and you can tell he gets kind of sick on how much attention we get in the local media compared to Baylor/Tech/Houston/SMU/TCU etc, as he is a Texas football fan in general. so he really has no bias towards making Major look good, but thats what he said.
Pendry has a reputation for being a back-stabbing son-of-a-***** who plays a mean game of office politcs. Texans coach Dom Capers hired his old pal Pendry in part to give him the last year or two Pendry needed to get an NFL pension. Pendry went from co-OL coach to OL coach to offensive coordinator, getting offensive coordinator Chris Palmer fired after just two games during the 2005 season. Of course, the main problem with the offense had been the offensive line, which was Pendry's responsibility. After showing signs of progress in 2003 and 2004, David Carr completely imploded in 2005 and Capers (and also Pendry) were fired. Chris Palmer didn't make out too bad. He's coaching in the Super Bowl as the Giants QB coach. The story on Pendry is that he was bad-mouthing and sabotoging everyone on the Texans offensive staff to curry favor with the head coach. It is quite probable that he was doing the same thing at Alabama and Major Applewhite could see the writing on the wall, which is why he took a "demotion" to go to Texas.
Seems pretty clear to me that this is a two-sided story (like most stories). Neither side should be taken at face value.
It's impossible to say whether Major would have been demoted or fired. The only facts are that he chose to leave Alabama and that "his" offense took a Greg-Davis-vs-Oklahoma level dump the last 3 games before their bowl. If you believe that Major was really in charge of the offense at Alabama, then you have to wonder about the way their season ended. If Major really was running the show, it might have been a bigger surprise if he wasn't fired or demoted than if he was.
Your idea of him being stripped of his OC is 100% *********. __________________________________________________ It is common knowledge in alabama circles that applewhite and saban did not get along very well. That is not to say that applewhite would not stay and I am not real sure whether applewhite called all the plays or not. If he did, you have to question his offense. Bama lost to louisiana monroe for God's sake. That would be equivalent to UT losing to rice. There were many many unhappy bama fans after that game. Somebody had to take a fall. Applewhite was not fired but he was not given a vote of confidence either so he moved along.
