Sitting among 100,000 screaming fans can be overwhelming for even adults, but the experience proved particularly confusing two decades ago for a boy from Hartselle.
Especially when he heard Roll Tide.
“He thought they were all hollering at him,” said Tim Witt, the boy’s dad.
Such is life when your name is Tyde. Tyde Witt.
“The first time I realized it was a big thing is when we would get interviews because Tyde and Saban,” said Tyde Witt, who is now 20. “Not many people are named Tyde and Saban.”
Yes, his brother is named for the retired Alabama football coach. Their dad came up with the idea.
“Honestly, I’m glad he did,” 18-year-old Saban Witt told AL.com. “It’s a unique name. I’m named after the greatest coach of all time.”
He’s not the only one. Since 2007, 37 babies in Alabama have been named Saban, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. Over that span, 23 babies have been named Tyde.
Saban Witt might have been the first, though. He was born in March 2007, two months after Alabama hired Nick Saban. That means the Witts picked the name before Nick Saban had even coached a game for the Crimson Tide.
Why?
Tim Witt said he heard the name on sports radio and decided to suggest it to Hannah Witt.
She eventually came around to the idea.
“After a while, we get closer to football season,” Tim Witt told AL.com “I’m thinking, what if he fails? But I didn’t say that to nobody. I wasn’t going to act like I made a mistake.”
He went to extra lengths to ensure he made a good choice. He said he even drove an hour west to meet Nick Saban at an event before the 2007 season. Tim Witt told the new Alabama coach he named his newborn son after him.
So I’m putting a lot of faith in you. Don’t make me wrong.
Well, Saban didn’t. He won six national championships for Alabama over 17 seasons, among other accomplishments.
“Definitely a relief the guy I was named after became one of the greatest coaches of all time,” Saban Witt said.
Tim Witt introduced the idea of naming their second son Saban Witt, and Hannah Witt had the idea to name their first son Tyde Witt. Courtesy photo
The gamble paid off, but there almost was no gamble in the first place. Not if Saban had been a girl. In that scenario, Hannah Witt said she would have named her second child Crimson.
Then, their kids would have been Crimson and Tyde.
Tyde Witt said he likes his name and has never been annoyed by it. But he does almost always have to correct people on the spelling.
“They always think I’m saying Ty,” he said. “I always have to say, ‘Tyde. Like Roll Tide.’”
Nick Saban was hired at Alabama two months before Saban Witt was born. It worked out well for all parties. Courtesy photo
Hannah Witt picked the name after she saw it on a license plate while driving to Huntsville one day. She told Tim Witt, and he was on board.
“I didn’t want it to be Tide because it makes me think of the washing detergent,” Hannah Witt said. “I wanted it to be a little bit unique.”
Other parents have agreed. There have been fewer than six babies named Tide since 2007, according to the Alabama Department of Health. That’s considerably less than the 23 babies named Tyde.
Most people react to hearing Tyde Witt’s name the same.
Are you an Alabama fan? Are your parents Alabama fans?
Then there are the comedians.
I bet you’re an Auburn fan.
“If I’m meeting someone new and they’re Auburn fans, they’ll hit me with a War Eagle,” Tyde Witt said. “Just got to hit them with a Roll Tide back.”
Football is usually the subject people want to talk with the brothers. That works well because they both played in high school.
“I didn’t hate it,” Saban Witt said. “I actually love football, so it was nice getting to talk to people and honestly being talked to.”
Having that name hasn’t been so fun after Iron Bowl losses, though.
“It’s just back to back to back Auburn fans stretching the win, saying it to me,” Saban Witt said. “That was one of the most annoying parts. Other than that, there’s not much bad about it.”
Saban Witt never felt like he could root for any other team, and rightfully so. But his fandom was cemented in elementary school when the Crimson Tide was winning national championships with AJ McCarron leading the offense.
“He was one of my favorite Alabama football players of all time,” Saban Witt said. “Watching him really made me fall in love with Alabama on that team.”
Maybe, just maybe, if a son’s in the future for the youngest Witt brother, he might have to name him McCarron Witt.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
