Kayla Braud on decision to leave TV booth, join Alabama softball staff: 'This is forever'

Alabama softball coach Patrick Murphy had an open assistant job on his staff last fall and decided to fill it with a familiar face in former Crimson Tide star Kayla Braud.

As a ‘Bama softball player herself, Braud was a national champion and three-time All-American. She graduated from the school and program in 2013 and turned to a career broadcasting NCAA softball for ESPN. However, after a long stint in that gig, Braud was excited to return to the Alabama locker room as a coach.

During this weekend’s home series against Tennessee, though, Braud got to relive her days behind the microphone and was mic’d up for a portion of the game while serving as a base coach when her team was batting.

Braud’s old colleagues asked her about that transition from the booth to coaching one of America’s premier programs.

“Hey, you know, it’s one of those things, like, when you’re a coach, the highs are high and the lows are lower,” shared Braud. “But man, when you’re seeing a kid shine, seeing us come from behind and get a win, there’s just no feeling like that. I miss being in the booth, I’m not going to lie to you. But celebrating young women and growing this game, I love it.”

Specifically Braud was asked to elaborate on the homecoming aspect of her career, because it’s a poetic development to have a legend on the field return to help coach one day.

“Yeah, you know, when (Murphy) offered me this job, my husband and I, when we really thought about all the opportunities we were given in life — my ESPN broadcasting, actually, his job was because of a connection. Like, it’s going to mean everything, it’s going to be my life. So I wanted to give back to the next generation of Alabama softball players. This isn’t just four years, this is forever.”

Kayla Braud is showing what a long-lasting experience playing for Alabama’s softball team really is, since she is now helping oversee the latest generation of stars.

However, this weekend, things haven’t gone completely according to plan. Entering Sunday’s final game of the series, Alabama hadn’t performed too well. The Volunteers took the first two games and were locked in stalemate midway through Sunday’s final game before the Tide finally broke the 0-0 tie with a run to take the lead. A very competitive series is unfolding in Tuscaloosa, with Alabama trying to come away with at least one win.