Nick Saban rejects request to sign Alabama memorabilia from autograph hunters: Photo
Former Alabama football coach Nick Saban was on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. today to speak with a panel convened to discuss NIL in college football, and on the way into the building, he was confronted by some adult autograph hunters to sign some Crimson Tide memorabilia.
But the 7-time national champion declined to offer his signature for the items, in a photo captured by Yahoo Sports reporter Ross Dellinger, noting that Saban "can spot collectors with the best of them."
Not having Saban's signature on those items will cost those autograph hunters dearly, as the value of anything with the former Alabama coach's name on it would have risen greatly in value since his historic retirement from the game.
Saban announced his bombshell departure from college football in January, putting a cap on a career widely regarded as the single best by a head coach in history, winning his first national title with LSU before winning six more with the Crimson Tide.
The coach was in Washington to speak with a panel on NIL in college football that was convened by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), offering his commentary on how the practice has changed the sport, and what a possible solution could look like.
A solution that Saban suggests could involve sharing college football's huge revenue in part with the players on the field.
"All the things that I believed in for all these years, 50 years of coaching, no longer exist in college athletics," Saban said of NIL's effect on the sport.
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