What former Notre Dame OC Tommy Rees said about joining Alabama
On the same day a report surfaced that the offensive coordinator candidate Notre Dame was pursuing will remain at his current program, the Fighting Irish’s former OC was officially announced as the OC at his next stop. Tommy Rees is now Tuscaloosa Tommy.
Alabama made the hirings of Rees, defensive coordinator Kevin Steele and linebackers coach Austin Armstrong official on Monday just a few hours before ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Utah’s Andy Ludwig is off the table for Notre Dame. Thamel said the Irish had issues paying Ludwig’s buyout, which was reported by The Salt Lake Tribune to be $2.8 million.
So while Notre Dame continues its search to find Rees’ replacement, Rees himself is settling into his new surroundings in the South. Those include the man who’s widely considered the best college football coach of all time in Nick Saban.
“I have the utmost respect for what Coach Saban has built at Alabama and the tradition of this program,” Rees said in a statement. “I’m excited to have this opportunity, and I’m looking forward to getting in the meeting room and on the practice field with this team.”
Saban, 71, raved about his new assistant coaching haul.
“We are excited to bring in such a gifted group of coaches to develop our players both on and off the field,” Saban said. “Kevin, Tommy and Austin have a great mix of energy, enthusiasm and experience that will be a tremendous asset to our program. They are all excellent teachers of the game and fantastic recruiters who bring a wealth of experience and resources to our staff.”
Notre Dame’s search for a new offensive coordinator is going on two weeks. Reports of Rees accepting his new position at Alabama came out on Friday, Feb. 10. The Irish had Kansas State offensive coordinator Collin Klein on campus last week before bringing Ludwig in for an in-person interview that included a trip to the Notre Dame hockey game on Feb. 17.
The Irish start spring practices sometime in March in the buildup to April 22’s Blue-Gold Game. Head coach Marcus Freeman still needs an OC and an offensive line coach after Harry Hiestand announced his retirement on Sunday.
