Nick Saban denies rumors around why he retired from Alabama football
Nick Saban was in the news again this week after he made comments around the future of college football amid the development of NIL and the transfer portal.
The seven-time national champion was in Washington, D.C. recently at a meeting convened by Sen. Ted Cruz to discuss the impact of NIL in college football, but denied recently that the practice didn't play a role in his retiring from the game.
"No, not at all," Saban told Fox News' Bret Baier. "I just never wanted to see the program go down, and I felt whether it was recruiting or hiring coaches and people wanting to know how long you're going to be here. When you get to 72 years old, it gets harder and harder to promise people you're gonna be there for four or five or more years."
Related: Nick Saban tells Congress how to fix NIL in college football
Saban added, "I love coaching. We adapted well to the system. At Alabama, we were one of the 'haves' in this new, current system, even though I see some serious problems with it moving forward in the future."
A solution to those problems? Saban thinks that officially sharing some of college football's revenues with players could be a way to formalize the situation and make things more equitable for the athletes on the field.
What's next for Saban? In 2024, we'll see the former Alabama coach on our TV screens as he joins ESPN's College GameDay as an analyst.
"I'm going to work on TV and do some things like that and stay involved in football," Saban said. "I have business that I enjoy being part of and got some good partnerships and relationships out there."
(Fox)
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