Tommy Tuberville CINCINNATI, OH – NOVEMBER 5: Head Coach Tommy Tuberville of the Cincinnati Bearcats walks off of the field after calling a timeout during the fourth quarter of the game against the BYU Cougars at Nippert Stadium on November 5, 2016 in Cincinnati, Ohio. BYU defeated Cincinnati 20-3. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)

First it was Kid Rock, and now it’s Tommy Tuberville. Days after rumors came out Kid Rock may run for office as a Michigan Senator, CBS Sports is reporting Tommy Tuberville may run to be the next Governor of Alabama.

From 1999 to 2008, Tuberville was the head football coach at the University of Auburn. That was his last job in the state of Alabama. His next job could be the governor of the state.

“Two words — Donald Trump,” Terry Lathan, the chairman of the Alabama Republican Party, said when she heard Tuberville was a possibility for the GOP. “See, Nov. 8.”

Tuberville was fired as Cincinnati’s head coach last year.

As Lathan pointed out, Trump went from no political experience to the highest office in the land. So for Tuberville to run isn’t that strange. After all, Kid Rock may run for an even higher office than Tuberville one could argue.

The one issue for Tuberville is that running in Alabama isn’t easy when you worked for Auburn. That’s simply because some University of Alabama football fans may dislike him so much they refuse to vote for him.

Ah yes, deciding who you vote for because of who you root for. That always works out.

At the same time, that would make his campaign extremely interesting. Can you imagine Tuberville having to speak in Tuscaloosa on the campaign trail, or even while in office, if he were to win?

The race isn’t until 2018, but Tuberville is starting to snoop around to see if there is interest in his possible campaign.

“I think Tommy would stand a slugger’s chance of getting elected,” said Steve French, a former political consultant in Alabama.

“Everybody wants non-politicians now,” said a person from his camp. “Eighty-percent of it is name recognition.”

Both of those points are true, and if you were the head coach of Auburn or Alabama football at one point, it’s safe to say most people in the state of Alabama know your name.

The 62-year old Tuberville won the SEC title with Auburn in 2004, the same year he won the Paul “Bear” Bryant Award as the NCAA Coach of the Year.

Another reason why Alabama fans may still dislike Tuberville enough to not vote for him is that from 2002 to 2007, Tuberville went 6-0 against Alabama. If Tuberville became the governor, he might have to recuse himself from every Iron Bowl while in office.

“He’s probably the only one I can think of who has been in a stadium with 80,000 or 90,000 people where everyone there could point him out on the sidelines,” Lathan said. 

The political consultant French points out that regardless of where he coached, Tuberville’s experience in education should help him out.

“If you can connect with voters on an education message, that’s a big plus,” French said. “Tommy has recruited. He’s seen underprivileged youth come into his program and go out the other door and be a successful professional the rest of their life.

“Those are powerful messages. It’d be fun to package him, to be honest. I might want to dust off my credentials and go with him.”

Time will tell if Tuberville ends up running. If he does however, he may have to swallow his pride and yell “Roll Tide” at a campaign stop at the University of Alabama.

[CBS Sports]

About David Lauterbach

David is a writer for The Comeback. He enjoyed two Men's Basketball Final Four trips for Syracuse before graduating in 2016. If The Office or Game of Thrones is on TV, David will be watching.