TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) -Alabama head coach Nick Saban on Friday announced the hiring of Bobby Williams as tight ends coach/special teams coordinator.

The hiring marks the fourth time in Williams' career that he joins a coaching staff under Saban. The two have worked together at Michigan State and LSU and also in the NFL with the Miami Dolphins.

``Bobby Williams was the first guy I called when this position opened,'' Saban said. ``I've coached with Bobby for a number of years and he is as good as there is in this business.

``Not only is he a great coach and a great teacher, but he is also an excellent recruiter and is very well respected by the players that he coaches''

Williams coached running backs for the Dolphins in the 2005 and 2006 seasons. He was the associate head coach/wide receivers coach at LSU in 2004 after spending the 2003 season as the wide receivers coach with the Detroit Lions. He was the head coach at Michigan State from 2000-02, leading the Spartans to a pair of bowl victories. Williams was an assistant at MSU from 1990-99 before being named the Spartans' head coach in December of 1999.

``I'm very excited to be a part of the Alabama football program,'' Williams said. ``The tradition, the history, and the passion here at Alabama are what college football is all about.

``Nick has put together a great staff and I'm looking forward to doing my part in helping to build a championship program here at Alabama.''

Williams graduated from Purdue where he was a four-year letterman for the Boilermakers. A tri-captain as a senior in 1981, Williams was a part of three Purdue bowl teams as a player.

A native of St. Louis, Mo., Williams and his wife, Sheila, have a daughter, Nataly, and a son, Nicholas.