Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan • Page 52

12E THE DETROIT NEWS SUNDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1994 College football Nick Saban: MSU's New Coach Spartans players like Saban's background in NFL "We basically have to show (the recruits) a good time and make them feel they fit in and they're a family member here," Martin said. "We have to make them feel comfortable. That's the main thing." Martin is enthusiastic about Saban's defensive background. "That would be a big plus for me and all the defensive backs," Martin said. "He's coached in the pros, and you can't help but ask questions on what the pro defensive backs do." Sophomore split end Derrick Mason agreed.

"I've heard he's a good coach and a good recruiter," Mason said. "I'm just glad this is out of the way." So, too, were a number of other players. "I'm happy with the decision," sophomore flanker Nigea Carter said. "Hearing all the talk about all the candidates, I would say he was (the right choice). The hardest part was not knowing who the new coach was going to be." MSU freshman outside linebacker Ike Reese said Saban might be just the man the Spartans need.

"I'm not too familiar with him, but looking at the other candidates going to be. Now, we can start recruiting and get that out of the way. Then we can have a couple of meetings with him (Saban) and see what he wants to do and go from there." Martin said it was natural for players to be concerned about the selection of Perles' successor. "There was a big question mark," Martin said. "Everybody was wondering who the coach was going to be and when he would be named.

I'm sure everybody had their own opinion. We talked (among themselves) and said, 'Who do you think Nick Saban's coaching stops Years Team Head coach(es) 1973-76 Kent State Don James, Dennis Fitzgerald 1977 Syracuse Frank Maloney 1978-79 West Virginia Frank Cignetti 1980-81 Ohio State Earle Bruce 1982 Navy Gary Tranquill 1983-87 Michigan State George Perles 1988-89 Houston (NFL) Jerry Glanville 1990 Toledo 1991-93 Cleveland (NFL) Bill Belechick Undergraduate: Saban lettered in football three years at Kent State, 1970-72, when he played for Dave Puddington and then Don James. Kent State was Mid-American Conference champion in 1972. PSL coaches wanted Lewis, but say they'll back Saban fate.) I I i I i I i By Terry Cabell The Detroit News EAST LANSING Michigan State's football players don't personally know Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator Nick Saban. But after Saturday's announcement that Saban would become the 20th head coach at Michigan State, the Spartans were ecstatic.

The players know his reputation. "That's pretty cool," junior cor-nerback Demetrice Martin said. "I'm real glad it's out of the way not knowing who the coach was Nick Saban, the new Michigan State SABAN Continued from Page IE to the process acknowledged Saturday that not since John Hannah (1940s-60s) was running Michigan State has a president acted with such authority on a football coach's selection. McPherson was not alone, but other members of the selection committee who helped interview candidates understood they were along as consultants and not as decision-makers. The cast consisted of, in addition to McPherson: Roger Wilkinson, MSU vice-president; Jay Morris, MSU senior adviser; Terry Denbow, vice-president of university relations; Athletic Director Merrily Dean Baker; Clarence Underwood, senior associate athletics director; and faculty representative Michael Kasavana.

It followed that a man as intent as McPherson on making his own pick would naturally fall for Ganter, Penn State's offensive coordinator, who turned down the Spartans' job Friday. Ganter came into the picture nine days ago as an unknown who had not, at that point, been discovered by media members or by various Board of Trustees members who had been talking for a month with possible candidates. Best of all, perhaps, as McPherson narrowed his choices, Ganter carried something Michigan State unofficially wanted in this, its fifth coaching search in the last 22 years: He had a Penn State Joe Paterno pedigree and no experience with any of MSU's past athletic escapades. By the time he was finished interviewing last week two days after Penn State had demolished MSU, 59-31 Ganter, 45, had cemented himself as a favorite. Ganter and his credentials were so impressive that MSU was ready to overlook some potential nega- -A A- in in as the on it's going to But we were going to play for whomever came in as coach.

We didn't have a favorite. But it always makes it easier when it's someone who knows the campus and knows the background of the players as opposed to someone who's starting from ground zero." Thursday was the first day college coaches could begin recruiting. While Martin acknowledged the Spartans likely are behind, he said they would make up for the lost time despite Saban's commitment to the Browns through their NFL season. li'i 1.,.. Daugherty Munn celebrity and autonomy to remain at Penn State.

In Cleveland, meanwhile, Saban last week was trying to maintain his patience and his pride. He had wanted the Michigan State job above all others that stood at the end of 1994 to come the way of a prominent, playoff -bound NFL defensive coordinator whose stock has risen steadily during his 22-year coaching career. An NFL franchise already had asked Cleveland for permission to speak with him, while the University of Miami job also had been mentioned as a possible Saban stop if Dennis Erickson moves to the NFL, as expected before the '95 season. Saban's interview 13 days ago at the Marriott Hotel near Detroit Metropolitan Airport was a hit by all accounts: Saban was prepared, had a plan and handled hardball questions with strength, not afraid to level with the committee on where he felt Michigan State was, and what he believed needed to be done to satis tmmtn, and talking with other people who knew him when he was here, they say he was a good guy," Reese said. "He was a part of the (coaching staff) when Michigan State went to the Rose Bowl.

"He's a disciplinarian, but there's nothing wrong with that. You have to work hard, and disciplinarians make you work hard. If you're not going to work hard, you shouldn't play the game. Plus, he's a Michigan State guy. I always felt that's what we needed.

You didn't need to go outside the Spartan family to get somebody else." MSU assistant coach. Perles and his staff also had deep familiarity with Detroit's schools, and PSL coaches have been concerned that a new regime might not look as enthusiastically toward Detroit talent. But Dozier said Saban's appointment was heartening. "I knew him vaguely from his time up there, and while I don't know him the way I do George, we'll have no problems opening our program to his staff. We just want to make sure our kids get a fair shake at being recruited, and that they have a staff in place with a sincere interest in taking care of those kids when they're on campus." Mike Marshall, Henry Ford coach, and a former Spartans defensive back who was coached by Lewis at MSU, deeply hoped his old teacher and friend would return to East Lansing.

"I'm disappointed, sure, because I had played for him, and most of the things Sherm taught me I've also used as a coach," said Marshall, who has been considered a prime PSL bet to move to a college coaching job. "But I'll welcome Michigan State." Staff writer Tom Markowski contributed. be forced to keep any of the current coaches. "There are definitely some coaches from the outside that I want to hire," Saban said. "I think there will be a significant amount of change.

"Some (of the coaches he wants to hire) are in bowl games. But the most important thing is to hire the best people. Whether he can get here by Dec. 10 or Dec. 20 is not the important thing.

"I want this to be the kind of program that I want, with the aggressive, hard-working, disciplined, class type of people I want to represent the program," Saban said. Two assistant coaches with good chances of being retained by Saban are believed to be offensive coordinator Morris Watts and tight ends coach Pat Shurmur. "I have not spoken to George at all since this happened," Saban said of his predecessor. "I do not plan to talk to George about any decision regarding the football program in the future. I respect George.

He is a friend." MSU will likely have to buy out defensive coordinator Hank Bul-lough's contract. Bullough has four years remaining on a deal that pays him $85,000 annually. Saban said "the most important person" on his staff will be the offensive coordinator. Saban indicated he would basically give control of the offense to that coach while he helps run the defense. "I'm not a conservative guy," Saban said when asked about his offensive philosophy.

"I've never been a conservative guy. I was once a quarterback." Saban talked about a "rebuilding process" that is needed at MSU. "I know there's a deficiency of linemen here," he said. football coach, tries on a jersey while being fitted for a hat by Athletic Michigan State coaches i Associated Press Director Merrily Dean Baker. fy football and academic goals.

What Saban faced were ongoing committee concerns: Would he stay in East Lansing long enough to build up MSU, then bolt for the NFL? Despite his work as architect of MSU's 1987 Rose Bowl defense, had he also been part of the kind of MSU football past that McPherson Co. wanted to put aside? Was he a permanent Perles disciple? Saban was frustrated. He had left MSU for the Houston Oilers at the end of the '87 season as the lowest-paid defensive coordinator in the Big Ten, not long after Perles had just been handed an expensive 10-year contract. In fact, he had never known Perles until the MSU job was offered in 1983. What he knew about Michigan State in 1994 was what made the job so attractive to him and to his wife, Terry.

It had been the couple's favorite stop during a football career in which Saban has worked for seven colleges and two NFL teams. East Lansing was where they wanted to raise their adopted children, 8-year-old Nick and 4-year-old Kris-ten. Saban also wanted the job from a clinical, football standpoint: Michigan State, he believed, had all the resources a coach would need to make it a steady Top 20 program. Saban's reservations were the same concerns as those of the Browns. The Browns hierarchy wasn't interested for their sake, or for Saban's in having a respected, rising-star defensive coordinator tainted by an uncertain college coaching sweepstakes.

They didn't want Saban marred by a possible losing candidacy to coaches the Browns thought were clearly inferior, and that included any favorites mentioned regularly by the media. The message was delivered to Michigan State, as it had been given to other schools and clubs that had called for permission to contact Saban. By Lynn Henning The Detroit News Nick Saban's appointment as Michigan State football coach will not lead to problems with Detroit's Public School League football coaches. Although members of the PSL Coaches Association said Saturday they were disappointed that Green Bay Packers assistant Sherm Lewis did not get the job, their chairman, Bob Dozier, said Saban and MSU would be welcome to recruit at their schools. Last month, PSL coaches sent a letter to MSU President Peter McPherson suggesting that Lewis be considered to replace George Perles.

"Obviously, we wanted Sherman Lewis, but we were more concerned that we have someone as coach there who is familiar with Michigan State and with its traditions," said Dozier, coach at Mackenzie High. "We're going to cooperate. It was never our intention to boycott Michigan State. We just couldn't understand why they would want to go outside the university and not consider someone of Sherm's experience." Lewis regularly recruited in Detroit during his many years as a MSU Continued from Page IE Saban said he would spend some time each week preparing for the MSU job. But he indicated that time would be minimal because of his commitment to the Browns.

The hiring of Saban must be officially approved by the MSU Board of Trustees. McPherson said he will make the recommendation to the board during a Friday meeting. McPherson said he expects overwhelming approval. McPherson said Saban will receive "at least a five-year contract." More details of the contract will be revealed after the board's approval, McPherson said. Since leaving MSU, Saban was the Houston Oilers' secondary coach (1988-89) and the head coach at Toledo (1990) before joining the Browns in 1991.

He said he wanted to wear green during Saturday's news conference. "But all my green stuff was out of style." That's fine with McPherson, who wants a new start for the MSU program. "He knows MSU," McPherson said of Saban. "But he's been gone long enough to provide the fresh beginning that we must have." As for some of the qualities he saw in Saban, McPherson said, "He's tested and proven as a defensive coordinator here. He has excellent experience in the pros.

He's a very successful recruiter. He's a man of great personal integrity. I like his intensity." Saban's first priority will be to hire "an aggressive recruiting staff." He had a late-afternoon meeting with members of Perles staff planned for Saturday. He will not Coach Years W-L-T Pet Henry Keep 1897-98 8-5-1 .609 Charles Bemies 1899-1900 3-7-1 .318 George Penman 1901-02 7-9-1 44 Chester Brewer 1903-10 54-10-6 .814 John Macklin 1911-15 29-5-0 .853 Frank Sommers 1916 4JM .642 Chester Brewer 1917 0-9-0 .000 George Gauthier 1918 4-3-0 .571 Chester Brewer 1919 4-4-1 00 George Clark 1920 4-6-0 .400 Albert Barron 1921-22 6-10-2 .389 Ralph Young 1923-27 18-22-1 .451 Harry Kipke 1928 3-4-1 .437 Jim Crowley 1929-32 22-8-3 .712 Charlie Bachman 1933-46 70-34-10 .658 Biggie Munn 1947-53 54-9-2 .857 Duffy Daugherty 1954-72 109-69-5 .609 Denny Stolz 1973-75 19-13-1 .591 Darryl Rogers 1976-79 24-18-2 .568 Muddy Waters 1980-82 10-23-0 .303 George Perles 1983-94 73-62-4 .540 tives, including a MSU community that seemed to greet his candidacy the same hostile manner it received Muddy Waters as coach 15 years ago. Also, Ganter had lived all his life Pennsylvania and had spent the past 28 years in State College, and though he had worked at one time Paterno's recruiting coordinator, his prime recruiting turf is New Jersey, far away from the areas in which Michigan State gets its high school talent.

That he is also considered the heir apparent to Paterno, 67, at Penn State didn't seem to bother MSU as Ganter's wife was called into East Lansing at midweek. It would remain one of the great ironies of Ganter's candidacy: A school that, after Perles, has feared prospects of losing a head football coach to the NFL, was ready to name a coach who seemed destined to return to Penn State. Ganter ended up making it easy Michigan State when he turned down MSU's offer Friday passing up a colossal increase in pay,.