There's a new Nick Saban retirement rumor and it makes a lot of sense
Rumors about the eventual retirement of Alabama head coach Nick Saban are nothing new — it seems like every year a different rumor pops up and is quickly debunked. The latest Saban retirement rumor, however, is from a credible source and it makes a lot of sense. Bruce Feldman and Matt Fortuna reported this week […]
Rumors about the eventual retirement of Alabama head coach Nick Saban are nothing new — it seems like every year a different rumor pops up and is quickly debunked.
The latest Saban retirement rumor, however, is from a credible source and it makes a lot of sense.
Bruce Feldman and Matt Fortuna reported this week that a source speculated to The Athletic recently that Nick Saban could retire after winning his next championship.
A person close with Nick Saban speculated to The Athletic recently about the possibility of Saban retiring after his next national title, an observation that was met with an eye roll. After seeing Saban uncharacteristically call out multiple schools by name last week, though, that scenario is suddenly easier to imagine.
The "eye roll" mentioned by The Athletic is the typical response to any Saban retirement rumors. But I think this one might have some merit.
Saban is eventually going to retire — every coaching career comes to an end at some point. And there's no doubt that Saban is nearing the end of his career. The West Virginia native will turn 71 during the 2022 season and he's been coaching since 1973. The end of his legendary career is coming sooner rather than later.
Right now, college football is in a state of flux, and Saban, based on his verbal assault of Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher last week, is clearly perturbed by it.
We've seen coaches in college football and college basketball become disillusioned with the new era of college athletics — the NIL deals and transfer portal — and call it a career earlier than expected. Bob Stoops and Chris Petersen got out of the college football coaching business before the craziness of NIL hit. If being a college football coach was stressful before NIL and the transfer portal, I can't imagine how bad it is now.
We've also seen multiple high-profiled college basketball coaches end illustrious careers sooner than expected. Roy Williams and Mike Krzyzewski — two legendary college basketball coaches in the same age range as Saban — both retired in the last two years. The feeling is that their retirement decisions were driven by the massive changes that have hit college athletics over the last decade. Villanova head coach Jay Wright also retired earlier this year at the somewhat young coaching age of 60.
All Saban knows is coaching football. It's going to be tough for him to step away from that role. But with college football turning into a modern version of the wild west, it's easy to see how Saban could decide it's not worth it anymore. Of course, I agree with The Athletic's source — there's no way Saban will retire until he wins another natty.
Featured image via Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
