Rating the Nick Saban coaching tree: Where will Tennessee Vols’ Jeremy Pruitt end up?

Here are the words attributed to Alabama coach Nick Saban in Tennessee’s 2010 news release announcing Derek Dooley as the Vols’ head coach: “Derek is a very articulate, bright guy. He’s a great coach.”

He wasn’t for Tennessee.

Dooley was fired after going 15-21 in three seasons.

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Saban was quoted in another UT news release on Dec. 7, when the Vols announced Jeremy Pruitt, another Saban disciple, as their coach.

“He is hard-working, dedicated and organized with exceptional knowledge of the game,” Saban said. “He is an excellent recruiter who does a great job developing players and earning their respect. He will do a great job at Tennessee.”

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Saban has produced an extensive coaching tree. It’s a byproduct of a long, successful career. Programs pluck away Saban protégés in hopes they’ll have a career similar to their mentor.

Here’s a look at some coaches who came from the Saban tree and how they fared.

HOME RUNS

Kirby Smart

Coached at: Georgia (2016-present)

Tennessee fans hope Pruitt will pan out the way Smart has for Georgia. Smart will face Saban in Monday’s national championship game. The Bulldogs are 21-6 in Smart’s two seasons after he took the reins following the 15-year tenure of Mark Richt. Smart worked under Saban as an assistant at LSU in 2004 and with the Miami Dolphins in 2006 before working for Saban at Alabama in 2007-15. He was Saban’s defensive coordinator for the final eight seasons. Pruitt replaced Smart as Saban's defensive coordinator after Smart took the Georgia job.

Jimbo Fisher

Coached at: Florida State (2010-17): Texas A&M (present)

Fisher’s tenure at FSU ended with a thud — he went 5-6 this season before resigning before the regular-season finale — but his run with the Seminoles, overall, was a roaring success. FSU won the national championship to cap the 2013 season before losing in the College Football Playoff semifinals the following season. He posted an 83-23 record with FSU, jumpstarting the program after it had tailed off in the final years of the Bobby Bowden era. Fisher served as Saban’s offensive coordinator during Saban’s five seasons at LSU. Fisher left FSU for a 10-year, $75 million contract at Texas A&M.

Mark Dantonio

Coached at: Cincinnati (2004-06); Michigan State (2007-present)

An early Saban disciple, Dantonio was Saban’s defensive backs coach at Michigan State from 1995-99. Dantonio is as much a part of the Jim Tressel coaching tree — he was Ohio State’s defensive coordinator from 2001-03 — as the Saban tree. Dantonio has a career record of 118-62, including 100 wins with the Spartans. He was the Big Ten coach of the year in 2010 and 2013. He’s had 11 winning seasons in 14 years as a head coach.

BUSTS

Derek Dooley

Coached at: Louisiana Tech (2007-09); Tennessee (2010-12)

Dooley had one winning seasons in six years as a head coach. He went 8-5 in 2008 at Louisiana Tech. Dooley's background is rooted in the SEC. He worked seven years as an assistant for Saban — five at LSU and two with the Miami Dolphins — and he’s the son of former Georgia coach and athletic director Vince Dooley. But Dooley flopped with the Vols. He won four SEC games in three seasons. Dooley, now the wide receivers coach for the Dallas Cowboys, went 32-41 as a head coach.

Bobby Williams

Coached at: Michigan State (1999-02)

Williams replaced Saban at Michigan State. Promoting Williams was a popular move in East Lansing at the time, but it didn't pan out. He went 16-17. Williams has spent much of his career attached to Saban, working under him at Michigan State, LSU and Alabama, along with the Miami Dolphins. He’s spent 18 seasons working for Saban. Currently, he’s a special assistant to the head coach at Alabama, an off-the-field role.

MEDIOCRE

Jim McElwain

Coached at: Colorado State (2012-14); Florida (2015-17)

McElwain’s Florida tenure was bizarre. He won the SEC East in back-to-back seasons, but the East was weak in those years, and UF fans were left unsatisfied. Then he was fired amid his third season in Gainesville after he made an unsubstantiated comment that he’d received death threats. McElwain got the Florida job after turning around Colorado State’s program. He has a 44-28 record. McElwain was Saban’s offensive coordinator at Alabama from 2008-11.

Will Muschamp

Coached at: Florida (2011-14); South Carolina (2016-present)

Muschamp was fired amid his fourth season at Florida after replacing Urban Meyer, but he’s doing better in his second tenure as a head coach, leading South Carolina to a 9-4 record this year. He’s 43-32 overall. Some might associate Muschamp more with Mack Brown — he was Texas’ defensive coordinator and coach-in-waiting from 2008-10 — but he worked under Saban for longer. He was on Saban’s staff at LSU from 2001-04, serving as his defensive coordinator for the final three seasons, before spending one year as his assistant in Miami.