The Absence of Loyalty

With Nick Saban making his departure from Miami to take the job at Alabama, cries again rang out for a lack of disloyalty. But in today’s sporting world, the concept of loyalty seems to vary from person to person and seems impossible to determine just exactly what is expected from today’s sports figures.
Saban took the Crimson Tide gig days after second disappointing season with the Dolphins but the reaction from fans was less than pleasant. Fans, players etc. thought he abandoned the Dolphins for greener pastures when things got tough. They also were dismayed after his move because for weeks leading up to his departure he repeatedly said he was not interested in all and only cared about the Dolphins. They felt they had been lied to because they thought Saban was telling them the truth about his future plans.
Now contrast this situation with that in Atlanta with Jim Mora Jr. He told a radio show, in the middle of the season, that his dream job would be to coach Seattle. Again, a coach asked about a job other that his own, but this time Mora responded with a bit more honesty. Now long after the knifes came out shredding him for making such comments and later Mora found himself without a job.
Now the million dollar question seems to be what does a coach say when asked where his loyalties lie? If coach moves on after saying he’ll stay or says he wants to move on, he is seen as disloyalty to his team. It seems to be a very interesting Catch-22 that really has no correct answer, either politically or morally.
These two coaches are definitely not the first to move after speculation about their jobs. In 2004 Larry Brown led the Detroit Pistons to the NBA Championship and in 2005 led them back to the Finals. But when things got serious with the Spurs, all the buzz turned away from the games and towards the rumors regarding Brown’s possible move to New York. Again Brown denied the rumors while his team was still playing but was quick to leave after the season leaving Pistons fans feeling abandoned. Brown then went on to coach the league’s worst, and most expensive team, and was quick to be fired. But he wasn’t fired until the Knicks had to pay millions dollars for him to leave. In the end, Brown sabotaged the Pistons bid for a second straight title, really screwed up New York and came out a richer man.
Fans don’t care where their coach goes, but it’s how he treats their team is what really matters to them. They realize that when a coach is given a better opportunity, more often then not, he is going to accept. Steve Kragthorpe had done a great job getting the Tulsa football program back on track and it was time for him to move to Louisville. But sometimes these same fans put their coaches in situations where they can’t make a correct decision has we found out with Saban and Mora.
So in a world where fans constantly demand loyalty from their players and coaches, they fail to live up to their end of the bargain as well. Teams don’t play for their fans as a first priority, its up there but not first. They play for each other and they play to win. In the end, the loyalties we all think are so real turn out to be nothing but illusions. Coaches and players leave their teams for more money and fans crucify them whether they go to the left or the right.
Loyalty is dead, or maybe it never existed in the first place. Either way, to expect it from your team or your fellow fans to hold an ideal that is worth about as much as the paper these coaches and players sign their contracts on.