Former Alabama coach Nick Saban knew a while ago that his time with the program was coming to an end. The 72-year-old Crimson Tide legend confirmed in a recent interview with ESPN that he began contemplating retirement shortly after the 2022 season and told athletic director Greg Byrne that he felt his coaching career was nearing an end.
To everyone else, Saban's decision to step away on Jan. 10 -- just nine days after Alabama's loss to Michigan in the Rose Bowl -- came as a surprise. Though it wasn't the Rose Bowl loss, or anything that followed, that served as a catalyst for Saban's retirement, he recalled sobering moments involving his team after their College Football Playoff run fell short.
"I want to be clear that wasn't the reason, but some of those events certainly contributed," Saban told ESPN. "I was really disappointed in the way that the players acted after the game. You gotta win with class. You gotta lose with class. We had our opportunities to win the game and we didn't do it, and then showing your ass and being frustrated and throwing helmets and doing that stuff ... that's not who we are and what we've promoted in our program."
Alabama made its way back to Tuscaloosa, where Saban met with several members of the team to reflect on the season and take a look at steps forward. Saban recalled that a majority of his players were worried about an increased role on the team or financial gain through NIL initiatives, with talk of the transfer portal looming as a sort of leverage:
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To everyone else, Saban's decision to step away on Jan. 10 -- just nine days after Alabama's loss to Michigan in the Rose Bowl -- came as a surprise. Though it wasn't the Rose Bowl loss, or anything that followed, that served as a catalyst for Saban's retirement, he recalled sobering moments involving his team after their College Football Playoff run fell short.
"I want to be clear that wasn't the reason, but some of those events certainly contributed," Saban told ESPN. "I was really disappointed in the way that the players acted after the game. You gotta win with class. You gotta lose with class. We had our opportunities to win the game and we didn't do it, and then showing your ass and being frustrated and throwing helmets and doing that stuff ... that's not who we are and what we've promoted in our program."
Alabama made its way back to Tuscaloosa, where Saban met with several members of the team to reflect on the season and take a look at steps forward. Saban recalled that a majority of his players were worried about an increased role on the team or financial gain through NIL initiatives, with talk of the transfer portal looming as a sort of leverage:
Nick Saban reveals late factors in retirement from Alabama, wonders if process there 'doesn't work anymore'
The 72-year-old said he was considering retirement for the past year
www.cbssports.com
