Nick Saban doesn't hold back on why college football coaches are getting fired

College football's record-holder in national titles thinks donors have more power than ever.

Nick Saban thinks the big-time donors are pulling the strings in college football now more than ever before. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Black Sunday came earlier than usual in college football as nine FBS head coaches have been fired midway through the regular season, and Nick Saban thinks it’s the rich folks who give so much money to programs who are getting so impatient.

In an age when coaches in charge of very expensive rosters are paid so much money and don’t perform quickly, the big-money donors intervene to get their way and demand immediate results or else threaten to hold back their donation funds.

Follow the money

“You know, I’m not [surprised] because everybody’s raising money to pay players,” Saban said this week.

“So the people that are giving the money think they have a voice and they’re just like a bunch of fans. When they get frustrated and disappointed, they put pressure on the [athletic directors] to take action, and it’s the way of the world.”

College football’s revenue sharing era and the increased demands set by the NIL regime were a reason why Saban, the sport’s record-holder with seven national championships, ultimately decided to step away from the game he helped define in the 21st century.

Saban’s decision to retire from Alabama after the 2023 season came following meetings with players who were asking for more money to return to school, and he believes money has completely changed the way players are coached.

“It’s really different. Not in a good way from a developmental standpoint. A good way from a quality-of-life standpoint [for players],” Saban said.

“But we need to find a system that improves the quality of life of players but still focuses on the right stuff: development, getting an education, all those kinds of [things].”

Saban slammed Franklin firing

The former coach’s comments come after he criticized Penn State’s decision to fire James Franklin, despite his 104-45 overall record and the $50 million payout they’ll owe him as they search for his replacement.

“It’s unfair as hell,” he told the coach directly during last weekend’s College GameDay program.

“For you to go to the Rose Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, get to the final four, come out being ranked [No. 2] this year, an expectation that you created by what you accomplished at Penn State, and for those people not to show enough appreciation for that and gratitude for all the hard work that you did, I’m saying it’s unfair.”

It may be unfair, but it’s the law of the land in college football, and everyone is forced to adapt.