Leading up to its College Football Playoff National Championship matchup with Clemson, Alabama welcomed a recently fired NFL head coach to campus.
Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban confirmed a report that former Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly paid a visit to Tuscaloosa this week. Saban, of course, did not divulge whether Kelly offered any help with the staff’s preparation for Clemson.
“Chip Kelly is a good friend of myself and a lot of coaches on our staff, and he just happened to be in the area and he stopped by and visited with us for a little bit, and not really anything of significance relative to this game,” Saban said.
Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin said it was good to “get some ideas” from Kelly.
"It was good to have Chip come in and just spend some time with him, talk about some different things," Kiffin said per Al.com. "It was really good to see him. I've always had a good relationship with him, and it's always good to be able to bring some people in to get some ideas from."
Before his time in the NFL, Kelly had a 46-7 record in four seasons as head coach at the University of Oregon. Kelly was known for running an up-tempo offense with the zone read option, a similar wrinkle to what Clemson often uses with Deshaun Watson. It was speculated that Alabama may have brought Kelly in to help with that aspect of defending Clemson’s offense, but defensive coordinator Kirby Smart said he "did not see" Kelly during his visit to campus.
Kelly was fired on Dec. 29, a few days before the Eagles’ Week 17 contest with the New York Giants. Kelly led the Eagles to a 10-6 record in his first two seasons, but the team won just six games under his guidance this year.
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