How exactly the Alabama Crimson Tide athletic department went all in following Nick Saban retirement in 2024
The Nick Saban era ended at Alabama over a year ago now. Since then the Crimson Tide somehow missed the college football playoff with new head coach Kalen DeBoer at the helm, but fans should still have confidence that the program and its success is not going anywhere.Why?The Alabama athletic department immediately went all in […]
The Nick Saban era ended at Alabama over a year ago now. Since then the Crimson Tide somehow missed the college football playoff with new head coach Kalen DeBoer at the helm, but fans should still have confidence that the program and its success is not going anywhere.
Why?
The Alabama athletic department immediately went all in following Nick Saban's retirement in every way that they possibly could have.
I took a deep dive into every detail of the Alabama athletic department budget activity from 2024 thanks to Knight-Newhouse consulting and a handful of other sources to find out just how "all in" the program went following Nick Saban's departure. The results were extremely promising.
Alabama Donor Contributions skyrocketed in 2024
Now more than ever money is going to be the driving force that keeps the best of the best programs competing at the highest levels. Alabama's staff understood that the "Saban discount" in acquiring talent of all kinds was likely going to be gone, so adding as much potential cash flow as possible was paramount.
When diving into where most of the money comes from for Alabama's athletic department, much of it is out of their direct control (like media rights distributions, government support, etc.), but what they can control–or at least influence–is donor contributions.
Alabama had been lagging behind the other major college football powers in the sport with their overall athletic donor contributions for nearly two decades, consistently ranking outside the top ten in the country. However, as soon as Nick Saban left in 2024 they cranked things up a notch (or a few).
In just one year Alabama jumped from less than $50 million in athletic department donor contributions to over $76 million. That still ranked behind Texas, Georgia, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Nebraska last year, but that type of commitment from the fans and efforts from the athletic staff is–for the first time in 20 years–finally on par with the rest of the blue bloods in college football.
Donor contributions may still be a small overall chunk of the entire athletic department budget pie, but that kind of increase speaks to the overall immediate sense of urgency felt in the post-Nick Saban era.
Alabama Athletic Department went all in on spending following Nick Saban retirement
It wasn't just the amount of money that Alabama brought in last year that was impressive. The massive uptick in monetary spending across the board was more notable than any other program in the country.
Surprisingly, Alabama's total coaching compensation had been a bit lackluster across the total athletic department for quite some time compared to most of the major programs in the country.
However, last season Alabama jumped from less than $39 million in total coaching compensation all the way up to $67 million in just a single year. That $67 million mark for all forms of coaching compensation (not including buyout money) was over $10 million more than any other university in the nation.
It's important to note that "coaching compensation" is not just raw salary and bonus numbers either. Knight-Newhouse–the consulting company that FBS schools use to report athletic spending–wouldn't offer a more detailed itemized breakdown, However, they did share that schools like Alabama whose coaching compensation ranks as high as it did in 2024 typically cover a vast array of different things that help their staff reach their goals. Stipends (for all kinds of things from travel to clothing and apparel budgets), camps compensation, media and speaking fees around the country, and much more–all grouped together under "coaching compensation".
Alabama's massive spend increase didn't just stop at all things coaching compensation either.
The overall recruiting budget spend across the athletic department jumped up by more than 75% in 2024 versus 2023 and was more than double their five-year annual average. All travel-related expenses rose by over 20% and was up 33% versus their five-year annual average. Even the facilities and equipment budget leaped up more than 17% last year.
Alabama's athletic department clearly and completely understood the assignment. Either collectively go all in on making sure they maintained elite status following Nick Saban's retirement or fall back to the pack for good.
The buy-in is still there at Alabama where it matters most, now perhaps more than ever. The question is, will the results Alabama fans want to see actually follow on the field?
The recruiting is still where it needs to be (on pace for another top five class in 2026). The team just barely missed out on making the playoff in Kalen DeBoer's first year. Alabama is already close. The Crimson Tide may never be exactly where or what they were under Nick Saban, but it's clear they're doing everything in their power to build towards another era of greatness.
We'll be back with more Alabama Crimson Tide coverage here at A to Z Sports soon! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!
