Legendary Alabama coach Nick Saban insisted after his January retirement that he stepped away simply because he was slowing down a bit, but his exact reasoning is becoming more complicated by the day.
Saban admitted in a recent ESPN profile that the changing landscape of college football, including an emphasis on NIL deals and the proliferation of the transfer portal, "contributed" to his decision, explaining that "70 to 80 percent" of his Alabama roster was focused on either transferring or demanding more money as soon as the 2023 season ended.
Speaking at a congressional roundtable hosted by Sen. Ted Cruz about NIL on Tuesday, Saban elaborated on his thoughts about the state of college sports.
Saban said his wife approached him just before his retirement and asked, "Why are we doing this? All they care about is how much you're going to pay them."
Nick Saban said his wife, Terry, came to him before his retirement and told him, “Why are we doing this?" She told him that the players now only care about how much money they are making.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) March 12, 2024
"All the things that I believed in for all these years, 50 years of coaching, no longer exist in college athletics," Saban said. While Saban isn't young by any means — he turned 72 in October — it's becoming clear that his retirement was much more complicated than he initially let on.
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Saban told ESPN last week that he didn't like the way his team acted in the locker room after January's playoff loss to Michigan, indicating that players were throwing helmets around. He said that's "not who we are" and described the scene in the context of how student-athletes have changed in the NIL era.
Nick Saban salary 2023
Some were quick to point out that Saban is the type of person who has considered money quite a bit during his career. He made $11.7 million in 2023, the most of any college football coach.
It's tough to blame Alabama for paying Saban handsomely considering he built the Crimson Tide into a perennial powerhouse and brought six national championships to Tuscaloosa, but many find it hypocritical that he complained about players prioritizing money when he was making far more than any of them.
It's also not uncommon for a head coach to simply leave a program for another job, especially if the pay is better. That isn't too different than a player leaving for another program if more money is on the table elsewhere.
Saban's successor, Kalen DeBoer, is one example. While the allure of Alabama and its resources undoubtedly played a factor in DeBoer's decision to leave Washington, his $10 million annual salary is a colossal increase over his $4.2 million annual salary with the Huskies.
Here's a look at how much Saban made throughout his outstanding coaching career.
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Nick Saban career earnings
Forbes estimates that Saban made nearly $150 million throughout his five-decade coaching career. While the outlet notes that the figure is before taxes and agent fees, it's an indication of how well Saban did for himself during a career that included plenty of winning.
Saban actually could have taken that total much higher, as he was still on the early end of a $93.6 million deal that ran through 2023.
