Nick Saban Issues Statement on the Passing of Mentor George Perles

Michigan State announced that former Spartans football coach, athletic director, football player and Board of Trustee member George Perles passed away on Tuesday, Jan. 7.

He was 85 (1934-2020).

“George Perles meant a tremendous amount to not only me, but the entire Saban family," Nick Saban said in a statement. "He was one of my mentors in this profession, and he gave me my first opportunity to be in a position of leadership as the defensive coordinator at Michigan State. George was always a great friend and someone who I turned to for advice on many occasions. I learned an incredible amount of both football and life from him over the years.

Perles, who was inducted into the Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007, led the Spartan football program from 1983-94 and guided Michigan State to two Big Ten titles (1987 and 1990) and seven bowl appearances in his 12 seasons.

Three of his teams finished among the nation's Top 25, including the 1987 Big Ten Championship team that ranked No. 8 in the final polls following a win over USC in the Rose Bowl. Perles tutored nine first-team All-Americans and 50 of his players were selected in the NFL Draft, including nine first-rounders.

Perles also gained fame as the defensive architect of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1970s. In 10 years under Hall of Fame head coach Chuck Noll, including the last three as assistant head coach, Perles molded a strong defense which played a major role in Pittsburgh's four Super Bowl championships (1974, 1975, 1978, 1979) and recognition as the "Team of the Decade" in the 1970s.

"George did an outstanding job at Michigan State building that program," Saban continued. "He was a great leader who impacted that transformation at Michigan State from the top down. Those five years at Michigan State, which culminated with a Rose Bowl victory at the end of the 1987 season, showed us the type of foundation necessary to build a program.

"We are so very close to his family, his wife Sally, and their children, Kathy, Terry, John and Pat, and they are in our thoughts and prayers. It is a sad day for the Sabans when it comes to losing one of our great mentors and the fantastic memories that we had with them.”

Perles was named Michigan State's head coach on Dec. 3, 1982. He helped return his alma mater to national prominence with two bowl appearances in his first three seasons (1984 Cherry Bowl, 1985 All-American Bowl).

He was the one who initially brought Saban to East Lansing. From 1983-97, he served as the Spartans defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator.

After playing at Kent State, Saban had bounced around as an assistant coach from Syracuse to West Virginia, Ohio State and Navy. He would leave to do his first stints in the NFL with the Houston Oilers and Cleveland Browns.

“George Perles, who was a great coach at Michigan State, also at the Pittsburgh Steelers with Chuck Noll, really taught me a lot about developing as a coach,” Saban said. “I'm talking about technique of being a good defensive coordinator and a secondary coach, and was great at how he handled people and treated people, was a great recruiter. I learned a lot from him.”