Tommy Tuberville says the leadership lessons he learned over decades in college football still come down to a few fundamentals: communicate clearly, outwork the competition, trust good people and know when to take a chance.
Alabama’s U.S. Senator spent much of a recent interview with Capitol CNCT looking back at his coaching career and the philosophy he developed along the way.
For Tuberville, one of the clearest examples came from former Miami defensive lineman Russell Maryland.
Tuberville recalled Maryland arriving at Miami weighing roughly 400 pounds before transforming himself into a player who eventually became the first overall pick in the NFL Draft.
“There was a lot of success stories like that,” Tuberville said. “That’s what this country gives you. It gives you a chance to put hard work and effort and put your mind to something.”
That experience helped shape one of Tuberville’s core beliefs as a coach.
“There’s nothing that takes place of work ethic,” he said. “You can have all the talent in the world, but if you don’t work to make yourself better, nobody stays the same. You’re either getting better or you’re getting worse.”
Tuberville also credited legendary coach Jimmy Johnson, whom he worked under at Miami, with teaching him how to lead an organization without trying to control every detail.
“Be a CEO, hire good people, explain to them and communicate to them what you want them to do, and turn them loose,” Tuberville said.
“You can’t win by yourself. I mean, it’s impossible.”
His philosophy is to establish a plan and a destination, then give people room to determine how they get there.
“You give them your philosophy, then give them a goal that you want to achieve, but let them achieve it however they can get there,” he said.
Tuberville said football particularly shaped that view of teamwork because most players never touch the ball.
“Somebody’s got to block. Somebody’s got to tackle,” he said, noting that each position has a different responsibility toward the same goal.
And sometimes, Tuberville said, leadership requires taking a risk.
He recalled once telling his punter to take off his uniform at halftime because his team would go for it on every fourth down rather than punt. The gamble helped energize the team and became an example of a lesson he carried throughout his career.
“So many people are afraid to take a chance,” Tuberville said.
“Sometimes you just got to do something crazy out of the ordinary to give you a shot in the arm.”
Tuberville spent four decades in college football, including head coaching stops at Ole Miss, Auburn, Texas Tech and Cincinnati, before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2020.
Sawyer Knowles is a state and political reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].
