Here's an explanation for why the players haven't been so gung-ho about the Saban hiring. They've believed for years that they could be a great team if only DW were out of the way, sorta like dropping the counterweights off a hot air balloon.
Huizenga fires DW and hires a guy who will likely revamp the whole team. The players are thinking, "WAIT! -- we just got rid of the one thing keeping us from being great -- why not let us go out and be great without turning the whole team over in the process?"
With Bates that could happen with virtually all of the same players, same assistants, same schemes, etc. With Saban, it'll be more like starting from scratch, and a lot of these guys will have to wave goodbye to their teammates, as well as to their chances for a Super Bowl before they retire if Saban goes into a long-term rebuilding mode.
Make sense? In other words, the players aren't really mad about the Saban hiring; they're mad that they never got a shot to show what they could do without DW in the way.
Huizenga fires DW and hires a guy who will likely revamp the whole team. The players are thinking, "WAIT! -- we just got rid of the one thing keeping us from being great -- why not let us go out and be great without turning the whole team over in the process?"
With Bates that could happen with virtually all of the same players, same assistants, same schemes, etc. With Saban, it'll be more like starting from scratch, and a lot of these guys will have to wave goodbye to their teammates, as well as to their chances for a Super Bowl before they retire if Saban goes into a long-term rebuilding mode.
Make sense? In other words, the players aren't really mad about the Saban hiring; they're mad that they never got a shot to show what they could do without DW in the way.