BATON ROUGE — LSU coach Nick Saban will have to make some more room in his trophy case as he was named the Bear Bryant Coach of the Year at an awards ceremony in Houston on Thursday.
The honor marks the third time this season that Saban has received a national coach of the year award. Last week, Saban received the Eddie Robinson Award, while he was named Associated Press National Coach of the Year in December.
Saban led the Tigers to the school’s first national title in 45 years with a 21-14 win over Oklahoma in the Nokia Sugar Bowl. The Tigers finished the season with a 13-1 overall mark, which marked the first 13-win season in school history.
In four years with the Tigers, Saban has guided LSU to a 39-13 overall mark and to a pair of Southeastern Conference titles. Saban also led the Tigers to their second national title in football, joining Paul Dietzel, who coached LSU to the 1958 crown.
Saban, who was a finalist for the Bear Bryant College Football Coach of the Year Award following the 2001 season, was named the winner of the award, beating out Tommy Bowden (Clemson), Lloyd Carr (Michigan), Pete Carroll (Southern Cal), Terry Hoeppner (Miami-Ohio), Paul Johnson (Navy), Steve Kragthorpe (Tulsa), Urban Meyer (Utah), and Bob Stoops (Oklahoma).
The winner of the award was determined in a vote by members of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association.
Please check back later for quotes from Coach Saban.