Mike DuBose

They lost seven of the last nine games, including their first loss to Kentucky since 1922, blowout losses at the hands of Tennessee and LSU, and a loss to Louisiana Tech.

Michael Lynn DuBose (born January 5, 1953) is an American football coach, most recently serving for Opp High School in Opp, Alabama.

His most recent college coaching experience was serving as defensive line coach for the University of Memphis.

The Tide finished with the school's worst record since 1957, the year before Bryant arrived.

He earned four varsity letters as an athlete at Opp High School, before going to the University of Alabama, where he played for the Crimson Tide on the defensive line under head coach Bear Bryant from 1972 to 1974.

The highlight of DuBose's career was a performance against the Tennessee Volunteers in which he caused a fumble, had twenty tackles, and was named SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week.

His career totals included 129 total tackles, eight forced fumbles, and six fumble recoveries.

Prior to coaching, DuBose played for Alabama under coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, where he was a teammate of other noted players such as John and Charley Hannah and Sylvester Croom and was a part of the Crimson Tide's 1973 national championship team.

DuBose was born in Opp, Alabama.

DuBose's coaching career began as a graduate assistant with the Crimson Tide in 1975.

DuBose was an assistant coach in 1976 and 1977 at Fairhope High School in Alabama.

In 1978 and 1979, he was the head coach as well as athletic director of Prattville High School in Prattville, Alabama.

DuBose began his collegiate coaching career as a defensive line coach at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 1980.

After two years at UTC, he was offered a job on the staff at Southern Mississippi.

DuBose wanted to reject the job offer in hopes of working for Bear Bryant at Alabama, but Bryant told DuBose to go for one year and he'd get a call for a new job the following year (see Ivan Maisel, War In Dixie).

DuBose went to USM and was the defensive line coach.

He was on the opposite sideline of the game that ended Alabama's then college record 57-game home unbeaten streak in November 1982.

Two months later, Bryant died, and DuBose was invited to Alabama as a defensive line coach on the staff of new coach Ray Perkins.

He coached the defensive line for four years and followed Perkins to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for three years, 1987–1989.

He returned to Alabama as the defensive line coach under Gene Stallings from 1990 to 1996, including the Crimson Tide's national championship season in 1992.

On December 9, 1996, sixteen days after Stallings announced his retirement, DuBose was named as head coach of Alabama.

In 1997, DuBose's first season at Alabama, the Crimson Tide won its first two games.

However, they soon began feeling the strain of the loss of 30 scholarships as a result of NCAA violations from the Stallings era.

The 1997 Iron Bowl presented DuBose an opportunity to salvage at least a piece of a lost season, but Alabama lost after leading the game 17–15 with less than a minute to go.

Faced with a third and a long one and the prospect of having to punt the ball to Auburn if they did not convert, leaving Auburn an opportunity to get into field goal range, the Tide ran a screen pass, resulting in a fumble and Auburn recovery that led to the game-winning field goal for the Tigers.

Much controversy surrounded the apparent fact that DuBose not only didn't call the play, but didn't know what play was being run.

DuBose reacted by firing four assistants, including the ones who called the play, Bruce Arians and Woody McCorvey.

The following year, 1998, DuBose led the team to a 7–5 record and a berth in the inaugural Music City Bowl against Virginia Tech.

The Tide lost with a poor performance on a day with even worse weather, 38–7, and DuBose went back to the drawing board.

Nonetheless, DuBose restored much of the goodwill he had lost in his first season with a comeback over LSU in Tiger Stadium, and a win over Auburn in Legion Field, which coincidentally was the last time the Iron Bowl was played at the location.

DuBose is best known for his four-year stint as the head football coach at his alma mater, the University of Alabama, where he led the Crimson Tide to an SEC championship in 1999.

In May 1999, rumor leaked out on the Internet that DuBose was accused of having an affair with Deborah Gibson, his secretary.

DuBose flatly denied the charges, but three months later acknowledged the affair and reached an out-of-court settlement that paid over $300,000 out of his own pocket, removed the final two years of his contract (leaving him without a job after the upcoming 1999 season unless either an extension was granted or a new contract was reached), and gave the administration the chance to fire him at any time they desired.

After a 2–0 start, Louisiana Tech stunned Alabama again, scoring a touchdown on the last play from scrimmage, a 29-yard pass by Brian Stallworth, who replaced an injured Tim Rattay on the previous play, to win.

Calls for DuBose's firing reached a fevered pitch, and the administration responded by firing Athletic Director Bob Bockrath.

Rumors persisted that DuBose would be the next to go in the off-week of October 9, 1999, right after the Tide was expected to be routed by the Florida Gators.

However, Alabama suddenly took off behind All-American tailback Shaun Alexander and Outland Trophy winner Chris Samuels, who played left tackle.

DuBose pulled the team together and beat Arkansas, then beat Florida in a 40–39 overtime game that ended Florida's five-year home winning streak and put Alabama back in the top ten.

DuBose came to Memphis from Millsaps College, where he was the Majors' head coach from 2006 to 2009.

He resurrected the school's struggling football program by winning outright or sharing a conference title in each of his four seasons there.