Highlights from HBO's 'Belichick & Saban: The Art of Coaching'

Two of football’s most prolific coaches took to the screen Tuesday night as HBO Sports released “Belichick & Saban: The Art of Coaching,” a 73-minute documentary detailing the relationship between New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and Alabama head coach Nick Saban.

The screening highlighted the three-decade-long friendship shared between two of football’s greatest minds, documenting their path to their successful careers. Here are a few highlights from the documentary.

One of the most interesting scenes in the documentary took place during Alabama’s pro day in March. Belichick, who wore a crimson Alabama pullover, asked Saban who the Crimson Tide's best player was outside of defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, who went on to be selected No. 3 overall. Slow to answer, Saban said it was offensive lineman Jonah Williams, who ended up being the next Alabama player taken at No. 11 overall. Belichick then asked Saban if Jonah Williams was exclusively a tackle or if he could play anywhere to which Saban answered, “I think he can play anywhere."

In a later scene, Saban commended Belichick for always asking him about perspective players, stating the Patriots head coach has never drafted one of his players without asking him about him first.

“There are 30 teams I never hear from, and they pick somebody and I’m saying, ‘How can they pick that guy?’” Saban said. “Or whatever. And then they come back and say, ‘We didn’t know this.’ Well, all you had to do was call. I would’ve told you the good stuff and I would’ve told you any issues.”

Nick Lou Saban Jr. was born on Oct. 31, 1951 in Fairmont, W. Va. Less than six months later on April 16, 1952, William Stephen Belichick was born in Nashville, Tenn. The two coaches both share Croatian heritage, leading Belichick to playfully quip, “somewhere along the line we’re probably related… distantly. There’s got to be a brotherhood there somewhere, at least cousins.”

Saban agreed he has several similarities to Belichick.

“Whether it comes from lineage or something else, I really don’t know,” he said. “I always thought we sort of thought a little bit alike.”

One of the funnier similarities between the two coaches came during clips from practice. First Saban was shown correcting Alabama linebacker Ben Davis for not wearing knee pads before eventually sending the former five-star recruit off the practice field.

“How can we let a guy come out here like that?” Saban said. "Hey Ben, go back in the locker room man. You’ve got your knees covered?”

Belichick was a bit more hot-tempered when faced with the same situation, as he too dismissed one of his players for not suiting up correctly.

"Get out, and get your knee pads on,” he said. “That includes you morons.”

Both Belichick and Saban were fortunate enough to coach two of the most talented quarterbacks their respective levels have seen. The documentary provided a look inside one-on-one quarterback meetings as Belichick went over plays with Tom Brady while Saban broke down film with Tua Tagovailoa.

At the end of the scene, Tagovailoa explained his Houdini-like escape in the pocket against Louisville in the opener of the 2017 season. The play resulted in a touchdown pass to Jerry Jeudy but wasn’t executed properly as the Crimson Tide didn’t block adequately, forcing Tagovailoa to use his elite elusiveness.

“This is almost like a lucky play I guess,” Tagovailoa told his head coach. “The defender’s back was towards Jeudy, so I thought Jeudy would have a chance if I threw him up.”

Saban responded, “Makes sense.”

“I know it’s risky,” Tagovailoa continued, “but I don’t think I did it again throughout the season.”

Belichick and Saban first crossed paths when Saban was working alongside Belichick’s father, Steve, at Navy. Steve was somewhat of a father figure to Saban and even had the future head coach stay at his house for a period of time. That’s where Saban and Bill first met. Naturally, the two started talking ball and quickly became friends.

Saban was the first to get a head coaching job, taking over Toledo in 1990. Meanwhile, Bill worked his way up as the defensive coordinator under Bill Parcells’ New York Giants. After helping the Giants upset the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXV in 1991, Bill was hired as the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. It was then that he called on an old friend to serve as his defensive coordinator.

“When I got the Cleveland job, I always kind of had Nick in the back of my mind,” Belichick said. “I felt like he would be a great defensive coordinator, so he’s the first call I made.”

The decision to move to the NFL was tough for Saban who had just taken the job at Toledo a year earlier.

“It was a difficult decision,” Saban’s wife Terry said. “As much as we loved Bill and the lure of the NFL, it was tough. If anyone else had called there would not have been a consideration. But because it was Bill, it made a lot of difference.”

Saban went on to take the job and worked alongside Belichick from 1991-94. Belichick describes him now as “the best coach I hired.”

After his time with Belichick, Saban took the head coaching job at Michigan State. While he took with him some of the philosophies passed down from his former mentor, Saban didn’t bring over any of Belichick’s staff. He explained that decision, pointing out a mutual respect the two had not to take each other’s staffers.

“It’s one thing that I always try to emphasize to the guys: what I have a tough time with, aight, is we’ve had however many guys who have worked here who are at Georgia, Tennessee — whoever, wherever — is when they get those jobs, and in most cases you’ve helped them, is they have a hard time understanding why they can’t take your people,” Saban said. “I’m gonna help you get a job, (only) so that you can take what I’ve tried to build here and destroy the continuity of what I have? It’s amazing how some of the assistants don’t understand why that’s not a good thing.”

Belichick shares the same belief.

“Look, I’m happy for the people who worked hard for me to get opportunities.,” he said. “And I want to see them build their own program. When they try to tear down our program, that’s kind of where the line gets crossed.”

It’s worth noting that Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt and Georgia head coach Kirby Smart — both former defensive coordinators under Saban at Alabama — went on to hire former Crimson Tide staffers.

Upon getting the head coaching job at Georgia, Smart brought Alabama defensive backs coach Mel Tucker with him to Athens, promoting him to defensive coordinator. Smart also nabbed former Crimson Tide director of player development Glenn Schumann who currently serves as his co-defensive coordinator. In addition, Smart unsuccessfully tried to hire Alabama's head strength and conditioning coach Scott Cochran.

After getting the Tennessee job, Pruitt took former Alabama director of recruiting operations Brian Niedermeyer and offensive analyst Chris Weinke. Niedermeyer currently serves as the Volunteers' tight ends coach, while Weinke coaches quarterbacks. Pruitt also hired current defensive coordinator Derrick Ansley from the Oakland Raiders. Ansley served as Alabama's defensive backs coach before taking the same role with the Raiders.

Saban returned to the NFL when he took the head coaching job for the Miami Dolphins in 2005. That put him in the same division as Belichick’s Patriots. Over Saban’s two seasons with the Dolphins, the two went 2-2 against each other.

“Playing against you was hard,” Belichick told Saban. “I remember sitting in those quarterback meetings with Brady and it was different each week, and we knew we were going to get something different and we were going to try and figure out what it was, and then we usually guessed wrong… It was hard.”

One challenge both coaches face is the ability to balance their pursuit of perfection on the field along with their family life. For Saban, one of the hardest things has been finding time to get away from the game after the season. The head coach calls his home on Lake Burton in Georgia “a salvation.” Belichick’s safe haven has been Nantucket, a small island off the coast of Massachusetts.

“I don’t think you can invest as much as we have in terms of time and commitment to a standard of excellence and not say that it has been a sacrifice for everyone involved and supporting you from a family standpoint," Saban said. “I think that my children probably at times — and Miss Terry — resented the fact that I spent so much time trying to be successful. But I also think that they have a great appreciation for the time that you did have and you did spend was good time."

The documentary showed footage of both Saban and Belichick walking their daughters down the aisle during their weddings.

Saban’s daughter, Kristen Saban Setas, said having her father walk her down the aisle as well as the father-daughter dance at her wedding was the “sacred moment” she has of him.

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