Alabama Adds Former NFL Head Coach to Staff

Ken Whisenhunt is joining as a special assistant to the head coach for the Crimson Tide after multiple stints across NFL and college football.

Katie Windham | Feb 16, 2023

Alabama Adds Former NFL Head Coach to Staff /

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Alabama Crimson Tide

Now that Alabama has officially locked down its two new coordinators, Nick Saban is continuing to round out his staff for the upcoming football season.

The Crimson Tide has added another experienced, veteran coach to its staff Wednesday night with former NFL head coach Ken Whisenhunt listed in the staff directory as a special assistant to the head coach.

Sal Sunseri already served as the senior special assistant to the head coach, and Todd Watson and Joe Pendry hold the same title as Whisenhunt.

The latest addition comes to Tuscaloosa after two seasons as an offensive analyst at Penn State, but before that, Whisenhunt had an extensive career in the NFL. He spent six seasons as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, which included a trip to the Super Bowl in 2009 and two as the head man with the Tennessee Titans from 2014-2015.

Whisenhunt had multiple jobs as a tight ends coach in the NFL with stops at the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers. He was promoted to offensive coordinator with the Steelers from 2004-2006 and won a Super Bowl in 2006. He also had two separate as the offensive coordinator for the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers in 2013 and then 2016-2019.

He is one of several former NFL head coaches to join Saban's staff over the last few years joining guys like Bill O'Brien and Doug Marrone.

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Published Feb 16, 2023

KATIE WINDHAM

Katie Windham is the assistant editor for BamaCentral, primarily covering football, basketball gymnastics and softball. She is a two-time graduate of the University of Alabama and has covered a variety of Crimson Tide athletics since 2019 for outlets like The Tuscaloosa News, The Crimson White and the Associated Press before joining BamaCentral full time in 2021. Windham has covered College Football Playoff games, the Women's College World Series, NCAA March Madness, SEC Tournaments and championships in multiple sports.