Character should play big role in Bama’s recruiting

By Robert Rousseau  |   Tuesday, July 01, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

Alabama Crimson Tide
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Last week, Alabama head football coach Nick Saban chose to dismiss Jimmy Johns -- a possible starter at linebacker from the team -- after a high-profile arrest. Namely, Johns was charged with five felony counts of distributing cocaine. Further, a sixth charge of possession was also added when police found cocaine and Ecstasy pills at his off-campus residence.

What choice did Saban have but to release Johns from the team, you ask? None.

“This type of behavior will obviously not be tolerated, and he is not longer a part of our program,” said Saban, who made the call for dismissal nearly immediately.

Unfortunately, Johns’ arrest is the 10th to be made with Alabama football players during the past year.

On one hand, the arrests are alarming -- and they have happened during Saban’s watch. But he is clearly attempting to set strong boundaries and guidelines, even if he is encountering problems. On the other hand, most of the players who have encountered legal trouble during the past year were brought into the fold before Saban came to Tuscaloosa, so he doesn't deserve blame for recruiting low-character performers in this instance. And Saban surely knows character must play a part in recruiting players.

Last year the Tide put together the nation’s best recruiting class, which was headlined by superb wide receiver Julio Jones, who some believe could end up being a Heisman Trophy candidate.

But a player’s heart and character have proven time and again to be just as important as athleticism when it comes to a college football career. In fact, Saban would do well to pay heed to something that the other college football coach in Alabama once said regarding recruiting.

“We try to tell our fans,” stated Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville. “I’ll tell them that I’ll take a three-star [player] every time over a four- or five-star if he has good character and good athletic ability. The problem with all these services (Rivals, etc.) is that they rate players strictly on athletic ability. They don’t include a kid’s character or his work ethic, because they don’t know those things. A player has to have athletic ability, but it’s important to have those other things.”

Has the Alabama staff been considering character as strongly as it's been thinking about athleticism on the recruiting trail? Fans should hope so. The good thing is that as the Saban years continue in Alabama, the answer will manifest itself.
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About Robert Rousseau

Robert Rousseau is a sports writer that has been published in a variety of print and online venues. He’s been writing for RealFootball365.com for almost three years now. When Rousseau isn’t writing about college football he tends to be penning mixed martial arts pieces for MMAFighting.com or ...
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