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Former Alabama and Auburn assistant coach Bill Oliver, who got a full taste of the Iron Bowl rivalry from both sides of the state, has died at the age of 85.
Oliver was around for so long that he managed to make 2 stops each as an assistant at Alabama and Auburn. But Oliver — who was known as “Brother” Bill Oliver — will be most remembered for being the architect of the Crimson Tide’s 1992 defense, which shut down high-powered Miami in a stunning national title game victory.
And 31 years before helping Alabama to a national championship as an assistant, Oliver was a part of the Crimson Tide’s 1961 national title team as a player.
“There’s no question that in his day, he was the finest defensive coach in the country,” former Alabama athletic director Hootie Ingram once told AL.com.
Oliver spent a total of 33 years in coaching, highlighted by those 2 stops each as an assistant at Alabama and Auburn. He also had stints at Clemson and with the USFL’s Memphis Showboats.
Oliver was the head coach at Chattanooga from 1980-83 and was Auburn’s interim coach for part of 1998 following the midseason resignation of Terry Bowden.
A native of Epes, Ala., in Sumter County, Oliver signed with Alabama as a quarterback in Bear Bryant’s first recruiting class in 1958.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
