For a third straight year, Alabama prepares to play Clemson in the College Football Playoff while one of its coordinators has one foot out the door.
Last year, Lane Kiffin and head coach Nick Saban agreed to part ways before the national championship game because Saban felt his then offensive coordinator was not all in and was focused more on his new head coaching job at Florida Atlantic than he was Alabama.
Two years ago, Kirby Smart was juggling back-and-forth between his new job and Georgia, while preparing the Tide’s defense for their national championship clash against the Tigers.